As the market continues to grow for smart-phone and tablet computer apps, car companies are beginning to want a piece of the action so they can offer you a variety of cloud computing apps in your vehicle. Whether it is apps for finding parking at the local mall or GPS apps for directions, car companies like Mercedes-Benz, Ford, and Toyota are upgrading their cars to accommodate their clients' digital lifestyles. For example, Mercedes-Benz is developing a series of apps that use voice recognition software for interaction with Facebook and Twitter while you are driving.
Many of these new apps are not yet on the wider marketplace in the United States, but have debuted in overseas markets. One popular app that just recently debuted in the US is one for drivers of electric cars that allows the user of an iPhone or Android to check the battery level of their car and remotely initiate the charging procedure. Other apps being looked at by these companies include ones that would allow you to activate the heater and air conditioning of your car from inside your home, just minutes before you begin your day's travels.
One of the interesting apps that Toyota has been developing is one that allows access to a FourSquare-style social network for its cars. This app can send alerts to an owner on a variety of items. On Toyota's electric cars, there is even a feature that reminds owners to charge the vehicle.
Another cloud computing app that Toyota has developed is the Toyota Friend. This is a social networking app that will soon be available in Japan and is making its way throughout Toyota's worldwide markets. The purpose of this app is to connect cars, dealers, and Toyota to one another to exchange information on the performance of Toyota's vehicles.
Not to be outdone by Mercedes-Benz and Toyota, Ford is getting in on the cloud computing game with the development of its Evos Concept Car. This vehicle is designed to offer its driver a host of apps that assist with your driving habits and are also able to open the garage door by communicating with gadgets in your home. Also this car is being designed with apps that will allow the car's entertainment system to tune into a radio program that the driver was listening to at home. Finally, it is also offering features that will set the car's climate to match what the climate of the home was prior to departure.
Are you against my ford touch and my Lincoln touch? But if you have not heard of this cool feature in ford vehicles you need to check it out. It has a lots of perks no big bulky nobs just a simple seamless touchscreen. Plus you can use your own voice and give sync a command and it will do it for you without you having to touch a thing. It’s very simple the home screen is split into four different quadrants consisting of navigation, climate, entertainment and phone it’s very simple to use. But there is one feature people forget about that is very important 911 assist it can save your life if you are in serious crash. My ford touch is helpful to drivers because it helps them keep their eyes on the road and not on their phone.
According to MakeUseOf (2015), Google’s 7 self-driving cars of Toyota Prius hybrids hit the roadways in 2010, led by Sebastian Thrum. Since hitting the road Google’s cars have over 1.5 million miles under their belt. These cars use data from Google Street View, data from cameras, LIDAR, and radar to place the car’s position on a map. This system has proven to work very well and seems to be the closest thing to a safe, functioning, self-driving car. Google believes that self-driving cars will increase safety, reduce traffic, and be better on the
"Toyota In Action." Toyota In Action. Toyota Motor Corporation, Dec. 2011. Web. 26 Apr. 2012. .
Along with the technical advances the google car has there is also a long list of features the Google car also possesses; the google car is programmed to drive itself, it is able to traverse busy streets and can navigate comfortably on freeways, although it is still best to have a driver at the wheel. The team at Google car has software built into the car, focused on the regular challenges of driving in the city, like bicyclists and walking pedestrians. The software plots the car 's path accordingly - then reacts if something unexpected
This technology enables the owner of the vehicle to repair on his own without any hassles where ever it requires. They just need to connect it to the website of the company and select model of the car. At the end this allows us to perform the service procedures online. This service and other online services have potential to revolutionize auto services. This technology advancement provides the precision and eases the complexity minimal service procedures, such as accessory belts, battery, brake fluid, wiring, hoses, power steering and other future applications.
We have determined that their business model is an Integrated Low Cost – Differentiated Strategy. It involves finding the lowest operational cost along with a unique niche or strategy that separates them from the competition. Toyota’s new statement “Moving Forward”, reflects their plans and expectations for the future. This includes the known and the unknown factors that a business must face. In 2000, Toyota launched a new cost effective strategy called CCC21 (Construction of Cost Competitiveness for the 21st century), for Low Cost operational expenses. With this aspect Toyota plans to advance such initiatives globally, based on its policy of purchasing the world’s best parts at the lowest cost with the shortest lead times.
Pestle for Toyota. 2013. Pestle for Toyota. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/133979217/Pestle-for-Toyota. [Accessed 15 December 2013].
Companies like Google, Tesla and Nissan, among others, have announced over the past few years that their companies are trying to develop self-driving or autonomous cars [Ref. 1 and 2]. Self-driving cars can provide many benefits to the average consumer. Studies have shown that because computers can react and process information many times faster than a human being, crashes on streets and roads can be decreased with quick and consistent evasion maneuvers by the autonomous car. They can also help maximize fuel economy by calculating the most direct and fastest routes. When the driving of an autonomous car demonstrates that the computer can safely and reliably transport the passengers to their destination, this frees up the passengers to do other things that they would not normally be able to do if they were driving the car manually. For this reason, self-driving cars can help maximize productivity of their passengers.
Installed systems inside vehicles have become a process of differentiation to understand customers looking for cars with more than just the ability to transport people from one point to another. Introducing of information systems inside vehicles has enabled manufacturers to provide their customers with extra functionality, by means of improving the desirability of the the product towards satisfying customers and at the same time enabling new business style and models through the supplying of efficient services to customers. And this changes the existence of competition in the automobile industry
Toyota Motor Corporation is a very successful automobile manufacturer that is recognized globally. They have continued to obtain and retain a competitive advantage over their counterparts, despite recalls over many years. Regardless of recalls, Toyota has been quick to rectify their shortcomings and continue to lead within the automotive industry with their innovative measures. In this essay, I will discuss key internal factors for Toyota. Within those factors will include Toyota’s core competencies, which are what they do really well in comparison to their competition, three of their strength’s, which will include their posture within the automobile market and their heavy focus on research and development, and two of their
Retrieved from http://rasmusson.wordpress.com/2008/04/27/the-toyota-way-long-term-philosophy/. Sage Pub. Ltd. (n.d.). Corporate communications at Toyota. Retrieved from http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/9744_036223toyota.pdf. Toyota. Social and economic aspects of the project.
Evolution of cloud computing over the past few years is potentially one of the major advances in the history of computing. Many computing applications are general-purpose in nature, and therefore offer tremendous economies of scale if their supply can be consolidated (Marston, Li, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang, & Ghalsasi, 2011).
Toyota’s uses both differentiation and low cost as generic strategies to try and gain a competitive advantage over their competitors in the automotive industry. The market scope that Toyota uses is a broad one that encompasses nearly every type of customer that is in the market to purchase an automobile. Toyota is able to target such a large market because they have something for everyone. Toyota has four wheel drive trucks and SUVs for the outdoor types or those who live in areas that face severe weather conditions, hybrid models like the Prius for the eco-friendly customers that are interested in saving the environment, along with the standard cars for general, everyday use. Additionally, Toyota provides vehicles for all price ranges.
For example, the self-driving car fleet from Uber is already under active development and testing in Pittsburg. Competitiveness with Google Translate and Apple Siri show promise with language learning. With improvements in computer vision and legged locomotion, robots for unstructured environments become practical; these might include agricultural and service settings and helping humans (especially the elderly and infirm) with domestic chores. Finally, as machines improve their grasp of language, search engines and "personal assistants" on mobile phones will change from indexing web pages to understanding web pages, leading to qualitative improvements in their ability to answer questions, synthesize new information, offer advice, and connect the dots. AI may also have a substantial impact on areas of science, such as systems biology, where the complexity and volume of information challenges human abilities. (Russell,
Toyota has adopted an expansion strategy aimed at increasing the company’s market share through sustainable growth. This will be done based on the delivery of high quality, and safe cars, at an affordable price. As the company seeks to expand to new markets, focus will be on maintaining an organizational culture that allows optimum efficiency in the ever dynamic global market.