How the "Internet of Things" Will Affect Your Ford | All Star Family Ford

Transportation has changed just a wee bit since the 18^th century and its horse-and-buggy days, and we don’t just mean horsepower versus horsepower. Think about the experience then versus now. Wind-in-the-hair driving dynamics are about all the decades still have in common. Technology then was advanced, but technology now is almost sci-fi by comparison.

One of the most interesting has to do with communications through our vehicles. Now, you might expect this new wave of innovative technology to have some kind of computer-geeky name, but it’s actually the strangely entertaining and layman-understandable phrase  “Internet of Things.” Those in the know call it IoT. Simply put, it’s communication between objects, thanks to an interconnected network, sensors, and the like. It’s smart technology to the max, and we already see it in ways such as talking to our kitchen appliances from outside the home.

On the automotive side, Ford and Intel are teaming up to explore new opportunities for the connected car, hoping to offer the ability to remotely peer into your car using a smartphone as well as facial recognition software that could identify the owner of the vehicle and automatically adjust features based on that person’s individual preferences, in addition to offering more privacy controls.

The collaborative project is called Mobile Interior Imaging (Project Mobii), and could create a more personalized and seamless interaction between you and your vehicle. Fun fact: Mobii research has included input from anthropologists.

As you know, Ford already utilizes exterior cameras on vehicles for driver-assist features, including Lane Departure Warning. Mobii will look into how to use cameras inside the vehicle. This could mean calendar, music and contacts specific to the person ID’d in the facial recognition software. If it doesn’t recognize the person? The vehicle owner gets a photo via smartphone and can then enable or disable features as needed. And imagine gesture recognition software, too, where your natural gestures could open the sunroof or turn up the A/C.

Connecting with the future is within arm’s length, and if Ford has its way, the future really will be just one “come here” gesture away from reality.

Source:  http://social.ford.com/our-articles/cuvs/c-max/how-the-internet-of-things-will-affect-your-ford/

Does this Bag Make Me Look Green? | All Star Family Ford

Reusable shopping bags are becoming fashionably hip instead of a burden. Bright colors, funky designs and interesting materials are all the rage. So, when we decided to, well, bag one of our own, we went witty, fun and conversational with the bags. We say witty, thanks to the sayings such as, “Does this bag make me look green?” We say conversational in that the fabric is the same material–Repreve^®–used to upholster the Ford Fusion Hybrid seats. And we say fun, because your environmental statement isn’t just green–it’s blue too, as in Blue Oval!^TM

In case you weren’t aware, in some locations–such as 90 cities and counties in California–there’s a ban on plastic bags, leaving residents to either pay for paper bags or bring their own bags when they go grocery shopping.

But here’s great news: Ford handed out the bags in grocery store parking lots and popular farmer’s markets alongside the Fusion Hybrid. This is not the first time we have gone quirky and interesting with materials, nor is it a new trend for Ford; the automaker has been exploring this for years. For example, the 2014 Ford F-150 debuted with various sustainable materials, such as rice hulls to reinforce the plastic (that’s a by-product of rice grain) in the electrical harness. Recycled cotton can be found as carpet insulation and sound absorption material. Soybeans? You’re sitting on them: they have been used for seat cushions and seat backs.  Soda and water bottles, recycled tires and blue jeans are also creative recycled content. And right now, Ford is collaborating with Heinz–of ketchup fame–to look into the idea of tomato fiber to develop a more sustainable bioplastic material for vehicles, like those used for storage bins.

By the way, the use of EcoLon™ material, which is a nylon resin made from 100 percent recycled carpet has saved more than 4.1 million pounds of carpet from landfills. That’s equal to a reduction of more than 430,000 gallons of oil consumed. Ford believes strongly in “reduce, reuse and recycle.”

This philosophy is also maintained in abundance at the Ford Dearborn Truck Plant, which in 2014 marked 10 years of sustainable manufacturing. The plant builds the F-150, and has set a Guinness World Record for world’s largest living roof; at 10.4 acres, it has a unique ecosystem, removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and reduces energy use. Meanwhile, the plant itself uses natural light and ventilation, and as much recycling of packaging is done as possible to reduce waste.

Precisely why Ford is a global green brand. You could say it has “bagging” rights!

Source: http://social.ford.com/our-articles/cars/fusion/does-this-bag-make-me-look-green/