Nissan's Brain-to-Vehicle Tech Looks to Improve Driving Experience

Nissan's New Technology on display at CES places a device on the driver’s head to measure brainwave activity.

The technology claims to foresee upcoming movements such as steering adjustments, the throttle or brakes. The tech apparently reacts between 0.2sec and 0.5sec quicker than the human driver can. The carmaker has also claimed that this tech enhances manual driving.

“When most people think about autonomous driving, they have a very impersonal vision of the future, where humans relinquish control to the machines,” said Daniele Schillaci, Nissan's executive Vice-President. “Yet, brain-to-vehicle technology does the opposite by using signals from their own brain to make the drive even more exciting and enjoyable.”

The tech also can tell the mood and state of its driver, which will be handy in fully autonomous mode. It enables the vehicle to adjust its driving style or drive settings to improve comfort. The system also can edit what the driver sees using augmented reality to create a “more relaxing environment”.

“The potential applications of the technology are incredible,” added Lucian Gheorghe, senior innovation researcher at the Nissan Research Centre in Japan. “This research will be a catalyst for more Nissan innovation inside our vehicles in the years to come.”