With a hard, quick strike between thumb and forefinger, it makes a snap. And – if Stellantis is to be believed – the sound of starting a car.
It's true that car brands are having a hard time at the moment. But the development departments are not standing still. Now Stellantis has come up with a solution that will start new cars with a flick of the wrist.
This is according to Carmoses , who has found the technology's patent application at the European Trademark Office.
The technology works by programming microphones in the cabin to pick up the sound of a snap, which the car then registers as a signal to start the engine.
However, to prevent the obvious – namely abuse – the system must send back a signal to which the driver must respond affirmatively before the car can drive. This can be a sound or something 'visual', as Stellantis describes it.
This type of gesture-based commands is not new. At least a brand like BMW has been working on the idea for a long time. However, the Germans have recently chosen to drop the idea that drivers can use their fingers to turn the volume up and down or flip between radio channels and music tracks.
The explanation? Very few people even bothered to use it. Whether Stellantis will have more success with their trick is still too early to say.
In reality, you should ask yourself if it isn't already just as easy to turn an ignition key or press a start-stop button.
Conversely, Ferrari is working on a V6 engine that both burns hydrogen and turns upside down. Yes, the cylinder head faces the sky. Read more about it here .
So who really knows what the car brands are thinking. For example, Toyota is working on a system that will be able to know when passengers in the car need to go to the toilet, and Mercedes wants to patent a technology against stone chips.
