Vehicular Commerce: Applications CIS 8401 – Spring 2007 Bill Blaney

Introduction What is “vehicular commerce”? What is a vehicle? “any means in or by which someone travels or something is carried or conveyed; a means of conveyance or transport: a motor vehicle; space vehicles.” [1] Some have indicated that the term “vehicular commerce” should apply only when using the “computing and communications functions of a vehicle” [2].

A broader definition “Vehicular Commerce” also needs to include applications that relate to the existence of vehicular movement (not necessarily using the computing or communications capabilities of the vehicle itself). GPS! While GPS has many more uses than just in vehicles, we cannot ignore the prevalence of GPS applications meant for vehicles (e.g. mapping, routing, POI, LBS, weather updates).

Types of Vehicular Commerce Applications GPS-based Applications Vehicle Statistics/Diagnostics Applications Vehicle Convenience/Safety Applications Vehicle-based Payment Facilitation Applications Mobile Hot-Spots Other

GPS-based Mapping/Routing (iGuidance)iGuidance Points of Interest / Location Based Services Weather Updates Traffic Updates (Garmin)Garmin Tracking / Logging ( Bonus fun item (not commercial, but it is vehicular…and cool!): GPS drawing (

Vehicle Statistics/Diagnostics GM’s OnStar Service – Diagnostics GM Animation Sample Takes OBD to the next level!

Vehicle Convenience/Safety GM’s OnStar Service Airbag Deployment Notification Remote Door Unlock Hands-Free Calling (Verizon option) Remote Horn & Lights Stolen Vehicle Location Assistance Turn-By-Turn Navigation Plans and Services

Vehicle-based Payment Facilitation Tolls (CruiseCard – RFID)CruiseCard Parking (Ad hoc sensor network integrated with text messaging)Ad hoc sensor network integrated with text messaging Wireless RFID Parking Meters Pay-By-Cell Parking Meters

Mobile Hot-Spots Products already exist! TracNet InMotion Technology “Roll your own” (Make Magazine)

Other Vehicle-To-Vehicle ad hoc networks Low “contact time” and narrow spectrum make this a “future” item [2] What about other Bluetooth applications? Lots of hands-free headsets, little else Any other applications the class knows about?

Economic Viability and Business Models OnStar subscription model is by far the best example I could find. GPS is a part of daily life, but it’s free. Related services are the key. Vehicle-to-vehicle communication is a big question mark.

The Future Leverage cellular wireless networks (2G, 3G) and wireless protocols Bluetooth RFID Approach other technologies with caution (do we really need other standards/technologies to move forward with vehicular commerce?)

References 1.) "vehicle." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 24 Apr icle 2.) Varshney et. al. Vehicular Mobile Commerce: Applications, Challenges, and Research Problems. CAIS. 2005(?).