BMW has launched a voice assistant that is expected to be available in cars equipped with the company’s 7.0 Operating System. Called as the Intelligent Personal Assistant, it will be available from March 2019.

Drivers will be able to summon the assistant by saying, "Hey BMW." They can control the infotainment system, air-conditioner, navigation and others. It can also give updates on traffic conditions, parking spots as well as remind the driver when to leave to arrive at a destination on time. It is compatible with Skype and Microsoft Office 365, allowing users to listen to emails and join teleconferences.

The assistant will also respond to queries on car functions and status. As an example, owners can ask the assistant questions like "How does the high beam assistant work?" and "What all warning messages does the car currently have?" or "What is the oil level in the car?" Owners will also be alerted about upcoming service inspections. They can also customise the name that the assistant will answer to.

Apart from inside the car, the assistant can be used by owners when not in the car using mobile phones and will also be able to connect with other voice assistants like Amazon Alexa. The assistant will be part of BMW Live Cockpit Professional along with BMW Operating System 7.0.

Mercedes-Benz has introduced a new infotainment system on the recently unveiled A-Class. Called as the Mercedes Benz User Experience (MBUX), the system gets a 'LINGUATRONIC' voice assistant that responds to users when called upon by saying 'Hey Mercedes'. One of the reasons for development of standalone and new voice assistants when there are already established ones like Amazon's Alexa, Apple's Siri and Alphabet's Google assistant is because many car makers would not like to let a 3rd party access their car's systems.

The Alexa-like voice assistant will be able to access the car’s navigation, phone, audio and air-conditioning functions. The self-evolving system will also be able to understand the driver's habits and anticipate their requirements. Users will be able to speak instructions to the MBUX for simple things like changing the volume to adjusting the cabin temperature and handling navigation duties. Voice recognition software from Massachusetts' Nuance Communications, will be used to handle requests when there will be a lack of internet connectivity.

Apart from the voice assistant, the system consists of a large touchscreen interface, a touchpad and steering mounted touch-control buttons to access the various functions of the infotainment system. The touchpad is capable of recognising handwriting while the steering touch-controls are used for the infotainment system, instrument cluster and the head-up display. Mercedes Me connect services are included in MBUX. They include navigation based on Car-to-X communication, real time vehicle location as well as warn owners in case of a hit on the car or when towed. Car-to-X communications will display alerts real time based on conditions like wet roads, nearby emergency services, etc. on the map. The Me App will also remind users to leave on time (depending on traffic conditions) for the next appointment.

As the technological development progresses, the future assistant systems will be even more closely linked together into the car's various computers and will be able to control many other systems.

Mercedes-Benz has introduced virtual assistant compatibility in its range of cars in the United States, allowing owners to control various functions of their car through in-house virtual assistants like Google Home or Amazon's Alexa. The said feature has been added on cars that were manufactured in 2016 and 2017 and is currently available only in the US. However, Mercedes is aiming to spread this functionality to European and Asian markets in the future.

The automaker has currently introduced phase 1 of the said service. To leverage the voice assistant features, Mercedes owners in the US need to download Google Home or Amazon Alexa apps on their smartphone and connect it with their Mercedes Me accounts. Mercedes Me is a platform that allows Mercedes owners to control their cars through a smartphone app. Once the virtual assistant is paired to the customer's Mercedes Me account, they can control various functions of the car through voice commands.

Currently, using the said virtual assistants, an owner can start the car remotely, check whether it is locked or not, lock the car remotely, search for destinations and send navigation info to the car's infotainment system and switch on/off the car's air conditioning system. Phase 2 of the service will be launched soon and will add more features that could be controlled through voice commands.

In the long term, Mercedes is aiming to build its own virtual assistant that will offer a wide range of features aimed at limiting driver distraction. The company hasn't decided on a specific timeline of feature list for this in-house virtual assistant yet.

Source: Automotive News