Magical information management: The Magic User Interface from Continental

The core element of the Magic User Interface is an internet-based platform on which a personal profile is available. Thanks to an AutoLinQ connection, all settings are made available in the vehicle, where they can be called up via a freely configurable instrument cluster and a large touch screen above the center console. Not only does this fantastic screen enable you to turn, enlarge, reduce or move the individual elements with the swipe of a finger, but a single, contact-free gesture alone is enough to transfer the individual elements from the touch screen to the instrument cluster or a cell phone as if by magic. From a map on the screen, the navigation arrow suddenly appears behind the steering wheel and the photo of the destination is displayed on the smartphone. Naturally, all functions can be combined freely and can also be controlled using many other operating systems. Continental has integrated the latest version of voice-operated control, uses buttons on the steering wheel as well as the touch screen itself in an prototype simulator and could extend the system to include a touchpad with handwriting recognition at any time.

When using the Magic User Interface, drivers are supported by a safety concept as subtle as it is sensitive: All information is processed according to the actual driving situation at hand and presented in batches small enough to ensure that the driver is never distracted from the road. Continental uses sensors and cameras to measure the degree of deviation and, in case of doubt, focuses the driver on the road again through a multi-stage warning concept. Light and sound-based warnings are backed up by haptic signals such as jerking the seatbelt slightly to draw attention.

The wide range of possibilities afforded by Continental’s Magic User Interface are demonstrated by three tailor-made sample applications that system users can download like apps for their cell phone. The personalized travel guide focuses on navigation and leisure activities in particular. Simply specify a time window and it compiles an appropriate travel program based on your personalized settings. All you need to do is click on the screen at home and let your vehicle guide you there. The Continental concept includes the computation of routes and stops to ensure the driver arrives relaxed and on schedule every time. A wealth of up-to-date information is prepared at the end of each stage. Short sound or video clips, maps of the surrounding area, hiking trails, menus and cinema listings are just a fingertip away. Touching the screen again transfers this information to your cell phone, providing you with a route description to accompany your walk.

One application is predominantly suited to electric vehicles. Via the Magic User Interface, stops are automatically arranged at Points of Interest so that the car’s battery can be charged. In this way, Continental directs culture enthusiasts to charging stations close to theaters or museums, nature-lovers are taken to nature reserves and the fashion-conscious use the time to shop in outlet centers. In Continental’s concept, pit stops are announced in advance electronically and charging stations are blocked in order to minimize waiting times. A glance at the screen of your cell phone whilst shopping or dining will tell you how much longer the battery needs.

During tedious pauses a further function serves to entertain drivers. As soon as the car stops for a red light or at a railroad crossing, for example, the screen on the freely programmable instrument cluster becomes a window to a virtual world. Depending on the criteria defined at the start, Continental imports the latest television news bulletins, video clips, e-mails, a vocabulary trainer or cartoons. Based on the distance sensors and the car-to-car signals, the infotainment program fades out again before the light turns green or the barriers lift. The system records when the program closed and continues from the same point when the car next stops. To ensure you haven’t missed anything at the end of the journey, simply point at the screen to transfer the program currently playing to your cell or home computer. Conversely, all it takes is a good shake of your phone and music and video data “jumps” to the Continental system.

All the innovations in the Magic User Interface are designed in such a way that Continental, vehicle manufacturers and third parties can also provide special apps that are integrated in the vehicle safely and reliably by Continental. To create the Interface, Continental has employed numerous innovative technologies from its various fields of expertise. In addition to the actual operating and display system and the AutoLinQ communication concept for connecting to other devices, the system primarily uses the sensors for navigation and regulating distance to record its immediate surroundings. The data links for car-to-car and car-to-X communication allow the vehicle to exchange information with other cars and infrastructure such as traffic lights and charging stations. And it is the microcameras, barely larger than a pinhead, that work together with a vision system to read the driver’s movements and determine his or her line of sight.

Many of these technologies have been in series production for some time, will be launched on the market shortly or have already proven themselves in real prototypes. So even if it seems like witchcraft at first, Continental’s Magic User Interface is no futuristic notion, but can begin production within the next few years.