Griffin Scott Driving Through the Internet: The Internet of Things in your Car

The Internet of Things is a modern phenomenon where the lives of normal people suddenly

becomes much more integrated with the internet. For instance, having one’s coffee pot talking with the

toaster so that when the toaster gets turned on, the coffee pot starts to brew a pot of coffee. The concept

of a Smart Home, or a home which can be controlled entirely through a computer or smartphone, is the

culmination of the Internet of Things. However, it is in the transportation industry which has seen the

greatest, and longest development in the IoT.

Beyond the Smart Home, internet connectivity can be found in multiple sectors of the economy.

In “Who owns the road” by Simon Ninan, we see that the transportation sector has been utterly

changed by the IoT, and has even been doing so before ARPANET, the precursor to the Internet, was

formed. GM’s Driver Aid, Information and Router (DAIR) system was an attempt in the mid-1960s to

provide “everything from directions to current road conditions and accident reports.” While the

program never left R&D, mostly due to the fact computers were running on punch cards and radio

signals at the time, the plan was so far ahead of it’s time that it was not until 1996 that the project was

realized in OnStar.

Instead of relying on theories of radio relay stations and magnetic sensor in the road, the OnStar

system used three systems: two in the car, one far away from the car. The first was a suite of sensors in

the car which gathers information about road conditions and any accidents. The second was an

embedded GPS system which told the OnStar system where the car was. Finally, the third was a

telemetry system which communicated with both the car and a OnStar assistance center which analyzed

the data sent to see if the center needed to act to help their customer. This was a sea change in the

industry, as it became a great selling point to get people to buy cars. After all, now you are never

driving alone. With the rise of mobile phones, this has been somewhat pushed to the side, but also gave

rise to infotainment focus which started in the mid-2000s and can still be seen today.
Griffin Scott Driving Through the Internet: The Internet of Things in your Car

DAIR heralded the introduction of OnStar and cars entering the Internet of Things, and while

there have been great leaps and bounds since, everything started with OnStar. The fact I can use my

laptop while being driven down the highway? Derived from OnStar. The fact I can plug my phone into

my car to see what’s going wrong with my engine? The addition of sensor packages which OnStar

helped put into the car. Tesla’s new self-driving car mode which is currently out on the market and

helped convince me Elon Musk is either a time traveler or the world’s first super-villain? OnStar.

Sure, there are a thousand unique devices made each year which use the Internet of Things as a

selling point. There are products like the wifi-enabled juicer “Juciero” which would have worked just

the same if you used your hands rather than the $400 press. Flipflops which notify you about

promotions and deals for one brand and pair with your phone for some unknown reason. A toaster

which can burn text messages from your friend on your toast in the morning. The Brita Infinity which

automatically orders new filters once the old one is dead. There is even a Nest Cam style device for

your dog which allows you to fire treats at them through your phone.

However, the Internet of Things has made significant advances in cars, as well as improving

both the safety and fun of driving. Nearly all the advancements have been positive, meaningful ones.

From here, I can only see the way we drive becoming ever more integrated with the Internet. Soon,

driving schools may teach us how to disable the connectivity of our vehicles to prevent car hack-

jacking on our highways. We are living in an interesting time, and I’m sure I will live to see having a

driver’s license be a requirement to not get a car, but to turn off the self-driving mode.