Applications made by automakers to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office sometimes are noteworthy enough to garner media attentions; in most cases, they involve a request to protect a vehicle name, or to patent new technology.
A recent patent application by GM shows the automaker is currently working on new technology that would substantially reduce, if not eliminate, motion sickness. And why tackle this issue now, when the phenomenon has been around since the dawn of transportation?
Because of the eventual arrival of self-driving vehicles. In those types of transportation, occupants will be doing other things besides focusing on the road or the horizon. Things like reading, writing, looking at screens, etc. And that is precisely what lends itself to the onset of motion sickness. If you’ve have ever tried to read a book or even a tablet or smartphone as a passenger in a vehicle for any length of time, you probably know what that’s all about.
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In its patent application, GM notes that motion sickness could make people reluctant to use self-driving vehicles – especially if the very first experience they have with one leads to nausea.
The technology GM is working on is described as a system of lights and images that visually represent acceleration, braking and cornering forces. This could take the form of an image of the vehicle on the screen, or a change in colour or light patterns. A sound system or haptic function could also be used to produce a similar effect, the company states.
According to GM, this would align a person's sensory perception with the forces acting on their body in addition to providing more information about what the vehicle is doing, which has a reassuring effect.
For now, no one knows if this technology will move from the drawing board to production. But GM, it should be noted, is continuing to develop self-driving vehicles. GM’s Cruise division is about to offer driverless cab rides to the public in San Francisco. Chevrolet Bolts are currently being used for that pilot project, but eventually the Cruise Origin model, designed for driverless public transportation, will be launched onto the market. First presented in 2020, that self0-driving vehicle will be manufactured at GM's Factory Zero plant in Michigan.