Visteon's Innovative Vehicle Solutions Keep Today's Mobile Family Secure, Entertained and Headed in the Right Direction
15 September 1999
Visteon's Innovative Vehicle Solutions Keep Today's Mobile Family Secure, Entertained and Headed in the Right Direction
FRANKFURT, Germany, Sept. 15 -- Visteon is revolutionizing
the family road trip to be more safe, comfortable, convenient and enjoyable,
because of Visteon's consumer-focused innovative technology. Visteon, a
leading global provider of integrated automotive systems, is helping families
get to where they're going and is creating some fun along the way.
Visteon's innovations include voice-activated communication tools, rescue
services at the touch of a button, controlled airbag inflation, a navigation
system to avoid traffic delays, and enhanced night visibility. Entertainment
is available with a state-of-the-art audio system that eliminates the need to
carry CDs or tapes and a Rear Seat Entertainment system that allows kids to
watch a movie, play a video game or listen to their own music.
"Gaining greater consumer insight is what Visteon is all about," said
Visteon President Craig Muhlhauser. "With this knowledge, we're able to
develop the products and technology consumers are looking for, which
ultimately makes our customers successful."
Some of the technologies designed to make car trips safer and more
enjoyable include:
* Visteon Voice Technology -- the future for communication tools in the
vehicle. Now available in six languages including English, French, German,
Italian, Japanese and Spanish, Visteon's breakthrough technology can control
features ranging from audio and climate control, to e-mails and navigation
systems. Visteon has developed the only voice-activated system in the
industry that understands continuous and natural patterns of speech.
* Reconfigurable Projected Image Display -- the instrument cluster of the
future, providing a revolutionary alternative to the conventional instrument
display. The system can be voice controlled and integrated with Visteon's
audio systems and the NavMate(R) navigation system. Parents can even keep an
eye on children in the back seat on a small screen on their instrument panel
with the help of a rear seat camera.
* NavMate(R) -- the navigation system with turn-by-turn instructions to a
destination. The system provides detour capability and reroute calculation if
a turn is missed. NavMate(R) is available in the U.S. as an aftermarket
product and will be available in Europe by the end of the year.
* Flexible Audio -- the latest audio compression techniques and memory
storage bring the consumer the capability to store their entire music
collection within their car. With Visteon's technology, consumers can create
playlists of their favorite music or audio books for long car rides.
* Rear Seat Entertainment System -- the "Smart Fun" mobile entertainment
system, designed to keep children and rear seat passengers entertained. The
system features an in-console VHS video cassette player for movies, plug-and-
play capability for Nintendo games and video camera playback, and premium
audio through the vehicle stereo system or individual headphones.
* Vehicle Emergency Messaging System (VEMS) -- a state-of-the-art
telematics system which integrates cellular phone and satellite vehicle
location technology. The system is currently available in the United States
and will be launched in Europe early next year. VEMS automatically puts the
motorist in contact with 24-hour rescue assistance and can be operated by
voice activation or telephone.
* Visteon Airbag/Restraint System -- determines the level of seat belt
tension and airbag inflation depending on speed of impact, the position of the
seats, and whether the seat occupant is a driver, passenger or child. Linked
to Visteon's Vehicle Emergency Messaging System, it automatically contacts
emergency services on impact.
* Visteon offers a unique system for improving visibility while driving
at night. This system uses a revolutionary "overlaid" image to retain the
driver's eyes on the road ahead at all times. Using a near-infrared camera,
the road scene appears as an enhanced image, superimposed onto the view
through the windscreen. This gives the driver greater confidence while
driving at night, when most accidents occur. Future developments will include
voice control using Visteon Voice Technology.
"Visteon is constantly looking to the future," said Muhlhauser. "We've
spent considerable time gaining an understanding of the feelings, attitudes
and changing preferences of consumers -- the result is our revolutionary
technology that is changing the way people spend time in their car."
With a global delivery system of more than 125 technological,
manufacturing, sales and service facilities located in 21 countries, Visteon
is leveraging the talents of its 77,000 employees to deliver innovative,
consumer-driven systems solutions to its customers.