Jaguar Land Rover Invents A Way To Counter Motion Sickness In Autonomous Cars

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is working on ways to prevent self-driving/autonomous cars from making commuters motion sick. The Tata-owned company has come up with the technology which eliminates motion sickness to provide a smooth comfortable drive in their autonomous cars. "Mobility is rapidly changing, and we will need to harness the power of self-driving vehicles to achieve our goal of zero accidents and zero congestion. Solving the problem of motion sickness in driverless cars is the key to unlocking the huge potential of this technology for passengers, who will be able to use the travelling time for reading, working or relaxing," said Dr Steve Iley, Jaguar Land Rover Chief Medical Officer.

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Dr Steve Iley and his team at Jaguar Land Rover are not only making self-driving cars that can manoeuvre safely, but also ensuring the most comfortable drive for their passengers. They added another milestone with the motion sickness software that will help 70% of the people who fall prey to their anxiousness while in motion.

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To calculate how “well” a passenger is doing, JLR developed a “wellness score”.

Motion sickness typically happens when the body's inner ear senses motion without the eyes seeing any motion happening on the outside. This typically occurs in a car when the passenger is trying to do some attentive activity like reading a book or do something other than watching the outside view while the car is in motion. To deal with the motion sickness, JLR has developed a software that can detect/sense if the driver/passenger feels unwell while the car is in motion and adjusts the vehicle's driving gesture and seating settings to make the passenger less anxious, hence making them avoid the sickness. The company has collected over 20,000 real-world and virtually-simulated test miles to calculate a set of parameters for driving dynamics to be rated against.

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To calculate how "well" a passenger is doing, JLR developed a "wellness score" based on data collected from the sensors. If the system detects a passenger is feeling uneasy, the car's AI will adjust its suspension, cabin comfort and the stability control to make their situation better and calm them down.

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JLR has managed to improve the passengers' wellness scores by 60% using their system. As a result of the project, engineers are now able to develop more refined advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) features on future Jaguar and Land Rover models, such as adaptive cruise control and lane monitoring systems. The in-depth knowledge is helping Jaguar Land Rover design and manufacture capable and advanced vehicles, both now and in the future.

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JLR is also working on an ambition to make our societies safer, healthier and cleaner through relentless innovation. With the mission of raising the quality of future urban living, Jaguar Land Rover has unleashed Project Vector, an advanced autonomous ready concept mobility for the future.

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In a post-COVID-19 world, where a 'new normal' is emerging, customer expectations of private transport are changing, and the focus will be on safe, clean mobility where personal space and hygiene will carry a premium. New technologies and materials are being developed to meet these expectations at Jaguar Land Rover with today's vehicles designed to help improve passenger wellbeing, including a Driver Condition Monitor and antimicrobial wireless device charging. Besides, features such as cooling seats, ambient lighting and multiple seat configurations are proven to significantly reduce the likelihood of motion sickness

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With the world changing amidst the current pandemic, customers' expectations of private transport are changing as their main focus will be on safe, clean mobility where personal space and hygiene will carry the utmost importance. JLR is developing new technologies and materials to meet these expectations to help improve passenger wellbeing, including a driver condition monitor and antimicrobial wireless device charging. Furthermore, features include cooling seats, ambient lighting and multiple seat configuration to significantly reduce motion sickness.

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Although it might seem like a minor issue, motion sickness could become a real problem in the fight to reach the pinnacle for autonomous vehicles. Passengers will most likely be glaring at their smart devices, playing games or doing a virtual video meeting while in transit instead of looking out their windows or sunroofs which is one of the reasons for the 70% of the people to feel sick.