
Car sharing is here to stay. If you need a car, just order one on the app and run away to collect it. As long as it doesn't rain - and the car isn't too far away!
Wouldn't it be nice if the car drove itself from the nearest parking space?
Elmo Clean, a car sharing company in Estonia, has developed a solution that can do just that. Elmo Remote is based on an operator at the car-sharing center remotely controlling the customer's car via an advanced game console that resembles a driving simulator. The solution uses the mobile network to communicate with the car.
Certifications
The Estonian company is the first in the world not only to launch a system for remote control of cars, but also to have it approved for public roads. So far, they have approved the system for the Nissan Leaf's first model and 3 operators are certified to drive remote-controlled cars on the road. The car sharing company states that 6 new operators will be certified in the near future.
Security
Have you seen the TV commercials where it is suggested that the 5G network can be used for remote surgery? Fortunately, remote control of cars is not as demanding. Since the solution is completely dependent on the mobile network, detailed coverage maps are used, where the cars are prevented from ending up in places with poor or no coverage. On the console, the operator can read all information from the instruments, as well as monitor an indicator that shows the car's real deceleration. It is not so easy to dose the brakes when you cannot feel how they are acting.
Can be introduced in several large cities
Elmo Remote was recently presented at the Autonomy Mobility World Expo in Paris (22 – 23 March 2023). There is speculation as to whether this is a solution for the car sharing services in Paris and other major cities in Europe. Having the car delivered or driven back to a parking space if necessary will undoubtedly make it more practical to use car sharing. Seen in a larger perspective, car sharing can prevent cities from being blocked by parked cars and it can help increase the share of zero-emission vehicles.
In Norway?
In the Oslo area, car sharing has gained a good foothold. Right now it's Easter. Hyre, Getaround, Hertz car sharing and Bilkollektivet have rented out all (!) of their passenger cars in Oslo - a total of over 500 cars. Norwegian road authorities are unlikely to be the first outside Estonia to approve remote control of cars, but if Elmo Remote gets their solution approved by an international certification body, it can pave the way for them to also be approved here at home. Norwegian car-sharing companies are not unfamiliar with remote-controlled cars. A couple of years ago I took part in a survey where one of the questions was about how much it would mean to have the car delivered home. At the time, I could not decide on this question without knowing how the delivery was to take place. Should self-driving cars be sent into residential areas? Should the cars be delivered by fast drivers with foldable scooters in the trunk?
It is important to clarify that remote-controlled cars are far safer than self-driving cars, although self-driving functions can help make remote control safer.
A concept for several types of services?
In the UK, a couple of decades ago chauffeur services appeared that could drive people home from the pub in their own cars. If you had drunk too many glasses to drive yourself, you could call someone central who sent someone on a scooter to drive you home. The scooter was packed in the trunk during the trip.
Imagine if the concept of remote-controlled cars became standard in new cars. Then the workshop can pick up and deliver the car for service, or you can get an operator to drive the car home from a party.
Or the bailiff can pick up the car if the owner is behind on the installments?
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