Electric Car History in a Glance
Many of us perhaps think that electric-powered cars are new technology. But in fact, it has been invented for more than 100 years. In the 19th century, Robert Anderson, a Scottish scientist, presented the idea of the three-wheel vehicle powered by battery. His invention was documented as the first electric-powered car. Some inventors namely William Morrison, Ferdinand Porsche, Thomas Parker, and others followed Anderson’s trail by developing the same product.
Electric cars became very popular. Compared to gas- and steamed-powered automobiles, electric cars are quiet, easy to drive, don’t smell, and don’t require gear changes. But in the early 20th century, the success of electric cars fell down. The price of electric-powered cars is twice as expensive as gasoline-fueled cars. It caused the market to choose vehicles powered by gas.
The Rise of Modern Electric Car
In this present day, the market for electric cars starts to arise. Of course, the market shares for fueled cars are still dominating. But the sales of electric cars have doubled within the past year. Since the significantly escalated gas prices in the 70s, many car manufacturing companies tried looking for more sustainable alternatives. For this reason, they jumped back into electric cars development. Automobile makers like Volkswagen, Toyota, General Motors, Honda, and some others launched their new products in the late 20th century which marked the comeback of electric vehicles.
The technology used in electric cars is evolving where these vehicles can drive by themselves. Unlike the previous generation of autonomous cars that utilize electromagnetic fields and remote controls, the new age of electric cars manages to drive, steer, brake, and park which relies on GPS and detection systems to recognize the road and obstacles.
The Electric Car Trendsetter
Electric Vehicles with their progressive technologies are getting popular. But it is obvious that Tesla cars are most favored compared to other manufacturers. Founded in 2003, Tesla is a luxury electric sports car manufacturer that launched its first car in 2008. This new car manufacturing company has successfully dominated the market and exceeded the value of the most famous electric car market leaders that have been around for longer than one century like Chevrolet, BMW, Ford, Volkswagen, and Audi. The fact that Tesla was able to surpass those huge and well-known companies in just 18 years tells a lot about how innovative Tesla’s technology is and how brilliant they are in delivering their ideas into things that people need.
Tesla is not just another car company that makes car bodies and inserts them with electric machinery. Tesla is truly a company that dedicates its life and its whole operation to manufacturing smart devices and leading technologies. Moreover, Tesla also focuses on developing software and providing various payment methods where Cryptocurrencies happen to be one of them. These actions that Tesla took seem more like the operation of IT companies, rather than car manufacturers. But maybe, that is what it takes for Tesla to be different and very successful.
Smart Screen & Software
How different and advanced is Tesla’s technology? How can they be a trendsetter for electric vehicles? The most talked-about feature that Tesla has is its internet-connected screen that has and can control almost everything. It has a dashcam, pet mode, sketchpad, and entertainment apps like games, Netflix, Youtube, and Spotify. It also can customize horns and control audio, A/C, and heating systems. Moreover, it can connect to your phone and is equipped with an AI-powered virtual assistant. The touchscreen feature definitely is not a new thing in the automobile industry. But Tesla’s built-in smart screen is not like any other existing automotive touchscreen that its competitors already have. Lately, some automobile companies seem like following Tesla’s screen concept, like Audi’s E-Tron, Jeep’s Grand Wagoneer, and Mercedes’ 2021 S-Class with their expansive screens to control most car functions.
Tesla still has other features that are very convenient like the Bioweapon Defense Mode and a built-in HEPA filter that is capable of eliminating bacteria and pollution inside the cabin, which is much more efficient than standard automotive air filters. Also, the coolest thing is, Tesla might be the only electric car company that enables over-the-air software updates. This feature allows users to improve the car’s functionalities and get the newest innovations.
Self-Driving
Another amazing yet very controversial thing from Tesla is its driver assistance technology called the Autopilot mode and Full Self-Driving mode.
Different from similar functions from other manufacturers that mostly only facilitate auto park, auto braking, keeping safe-distance, lane-centering, or auto change lane, Tesla has additional features that are more than that. The standard Autopilot is quite impressive. It recognizes traffic lights and traffic signs, can pre-set and accelerate speed, monitor blind-spot, and execute minimal steering. The most impressive feature might be the Smart Summon which responds to the driver’s call to pick up the driver within 150 feet (about 45 meters) from where the car is parked.
The other function, which is the optional add-on Full Self-Driving is very controversial. With this feature, Tesla claims that in the future, the car can drive you from your location to your destination without any action required by the driver. It means that the car will be able to fully navigate, steer, handle merges, exits, and overtakes, and even automatically search for a parking spot and park itself.
When other manufacturers use the combination of camera, lidar, and radar for this function, Tesla only uses cameras with 250 meters visibility, which grabbed the concern of the lawmakers even more. Until this date, there is no such regulation that allows electric vehicles to be fully autonomous drive. The reason is that machines cannot yet reason like a human–though they can capture inputs. The names of the functions themselves (Autopilot and Full Self-Driving) have misled many drivers to be overly dependent on the technology causing a lot of car accidents and injuries.
Conclusion
Although Tesla’s groundbreaking innovations draw a lot of argument and discussion regarding safety and security, its ambition and revolutionary thinking are what drive the company to its successor state. Indeed, electric cars are the greener and more sustainable alternative for gas-fueled transportation. But beyond this reason, Tesla also considers the amenities and convenience its customer should experience inside the car. This case is proof that autonomous-operating smart devices that include software and technology development are the innovations that customers long for.