It seems that automobiles have always been a hotbed for innovation, especially with customer safety in mind. From seatbelts to surround airbags and ABS breaks to nearly invincible passenger cages and more recently to tires that reveal when they need air, automakers have used innovation to reassure their customers that they are driving a safe vehicle.

Alas, safety is not always in the hands of the automakers. Unfortunately, safety is more a function of the driver, not the machine. Long recognized as operator safety issues have been smoking, eating, drinking, reading, primping and using the handheld cell phone. While automakers can’t begin to cover all of these issues, they have begun to tackle the cell phone/portable device issue.

Developed in partnership with Microsoft, Ford announced their solution to this problem nearly a year ago and is now making good on delivering what they call SYNC, a factory-installed in-vehicle communications and entertainment system. SYNC utilizes Bluetooth connectivity that enables drivers to keep their cell phones and personal media players (PMPs) in their holsters. Hands-free, voice controlled auto-sync technology is hoped to reduce traffic accidents, fatalities and insurance claims – good for everyone.

Because Ford is now embedding SYNC into nearly all 2008 vehicles, as an option, it is worth shining light on this innovation again. SYNC is ready for consumers to bring nearly any mobile phone or digital media player into their vehicles and operate them by voice command or by using the steering wheel or radio controls.

SYNC Features:

- Voice-activated calling
- Voice-activated music
- Uninterrupted connectivity
- Spoken text messages
- Advanced calling features
- Instant voice recognition – no training needed
- Ring tone support
- Automatic phone book transfer
- Multilingual

2008 Vehicle Implementation:

- Ford Focus
- Ford Fusion
- Five Hundred
- Edge
- Freestyle
- Explorer
- Sport Trac
- Mercury Milan
- Montego
- Mountaineer
- Lincoln MKX and MKZ

Implementation into all Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles is planned to soon follow the initial deployment.

Nuance Communications very recently announced that Nuance speech solutions are being shipped within Ford SYNC for twelve Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models for 2008.

“With Nuance Automotive powering the speech capabilities of SYNC, Ford drivers should never have to take their eyes off the road to dial their phone, receive text messages or select songs from their iPod, Zune or other MP3 player,” said Steve Chambers, president, Mobility and Consumer Services at Nuance. “We applaud Ford for the innovative SYNC program and look forward to developing even more speech solutions to improve the driver experience in the future. Nuance is excited to see the consumer interest and new marketing initiatives for SYNC, including outdoor, radio and print advertising as well as television spots that showcase the power of Nuance speech and how it is the next, natural step for in-car entertainment and driver convenience.”

CSR also recently announced that its BlueCore4-ROM Bluetooth silicon was selected to provide the Bluetooth connectivity.

Consumers will buy this kind of innovation because of the safety it so simply brings to their driving experience, in addition to the convenience. What I personally had to manually add to my wife’s minivan, with some sweat and struggle, 2008 Ford buyers will get by simply agreeing to the option. Let’s see how fast other automakers will follow suite.

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