Car theft has long been a nagging problem in many parts of the world, and even with anti-theft devices and systems, it seems as though the cars just keep disappearing. With that in mind, students over at the University of Saskatchewan have developed a prototype that aims to solve the problem (or at least deter it some more) once and for all. The prototype brings your cellphone’s text messaging capabilities and your car’s computer system together. How does it work? Well, if you notice your car is stolen, pick up your cell (hopefully you haven’t left it in your car) and send a quick text message to your car. The car will initiate a shutdown process to stop the thieves right where they are. Cool.
Explains student/developer Michael Siourounis:
“You text your vehicle and inform it that it has been stolen. It will actually initiate a sequence of events that causes the car’s internal computers, that we don’t modify at all, to think that the car has overheated.”
Very cool. The students also noted that once the text is received by the car, it will go into a limited power mode for about 30 seconds. The car will slow down to a maximum of 30km/h, which will give the thieves time to pull over before the car stops for good.
Siourounis also noted that the device is still a prototype and costs about $600. However, once a device like this gets tied into an on-board GPS, the results can be even more powerful. The test vehicle the students used had an on-board GPS, and once the car stopped, the unit would text back the location of the ‘stolen’ car… You know, so you can alert the police or head down there yourself to lay a beating on the thieves if they’re still around. Great work and two thumbs up to the students at the University of Saskatchewan.
[MobileSyrup via CBC]