Ford information patent for vehicles that can repossess on their own

Ford is paving the way for autonomous autos that can functionally repossess themselves, as evidenced by a patent application noticed by the individuals at The Generate. Submitted back in 2021 but recently revealed, the software states that Ford seeks to patent “Systems and Techniques to Repossess a Auto,” but from the description, that is just the idea of the iceberg.

If Ford’s accounting department decides you’re delinquent, there are myriad strategies the business could have the motor vehicle assist coerce a payment from you, simply because nothing at all beats getting broke and miserable. Such as? For starters, it can geofence the area exactly where you’re permitted to operate the car (Better convert remaining, Marcy, or you is not going to be turning at all). Failing that, Ford says it could command the audio program to “emit an incessant and uncomfortable seem each individual time the operator is current in the automobile,” for instance, or disable other critical features, these as climate manage. 

From there, the car’s other techniques can be commandeered to aid the lender track down your automobile. Digicam and sensor details about the surroundings could be transmitted to the repossessing agency. And if none of this does the trick, autos with self-driving functions could just be summoned to the holding yard of the bank’s picking as the repossession course of action commences.

In fairness, the patent software does make some lodging for unexpected emergency situations. If the in-motor vehicle methods decide that you are going through a medical crisis (say, warmth stroke owing to the actuality they have disabled your air conditioning), it will kindly summon you an ambulance. 

A process these types of as this raises questions about not just whether it is really moral to use it as meant, but what other apps it may possibly have and what the consequences could possibly be if it really is abused. Glimpse no even more than the the latest shenanigans at Hertz for a glaring example of how speedily little clerical faults can spiral out of regulate. 

Ford’s application can make it obvious that cars of tomorrow will be capable of all types of significant-tech wizardry, but if you question me, there’s one obvious omission: If your F-150 is likely to depart you all on its very own, the least it could do is create you a region song about it initially.

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