Sunday, April 27, 2014

"Bye-bye Car Wash, Farewell Wipers: Future Cars Won't Get Dirty"

"Of course, one challenge is to prevent messes in the first place, says General Motors, which has been conducting research on ways to keep passengers, especially children stuck in back seats known to industry engineers as “the puke zone,” from getting car sick."
“We know through other scientific research that even if our eyes are focused on a fixed point – if we can see the outside passing by in the window – our brain is telling us that we are moving,” explained Don Shreves, GM’s Human Factors engineering group manager said. “But if our eyes are at a downward angle and do not see the view outside the vehicle, our bodies become sensitive to motion and increase the chance of sickness.”

Among other things, the research has shown GM engineers that passengers are less likely to get sick when DVD screens are mounted overhead.

9 comments:

ricpic said...

Kids: There's No Stopping Them

Eyes up, the puke zone ends;
Eyes down, the yellow stream wends.

ndspinelli said...

I had a guy puke out my car window on the highway in sub zero weather. Try explaining frozen puke on your old man's car to him!

Dust Bunny Queen said...

“But if our eyes are at a downward angle and do not see the view outside the vehicle, our bodies become sensitive to motion and increase the chance of sickness.”

Not only that, kids strapped in backwards facing the rear seat, like little mental patients in straight jackets. Can't even see their parents. Can't look any one in the eyes. Can't see out of the windows or be engaged in conversation on what they might be able to see. Ooooh. Look at the cows. What do cows say? See the yellow building? What other things are yellow? Bananas? The Sun? Let's read the signs on the side of the road as we go past.

Nope. Stare at the fake leather seats, ignored by the adult(s) in the front...... and puke.

The reason that no one cares about paying extra for self healing paint is that today's cars are featureless plastic clones of each other. Who cares? A bunch of identical jelly beans. You are going to throw the car away in a few years anyway. The cars today will NEVER EVER be classics or can NEVER EVER be considered works of art.

We just came back from a car show and saw beautiful pieces of art like THIS and THIS Hot rods, classics, muscle cars. Beautiful lines, fantastic paint jobs, lovingly polished and dusted by proud owners. Washing and polishing these cars is not a chore....it is an act of love.

Also at the show old ratty trucks and works in progress. Each one means something to the owners and to the show viewers. We took our 1962 International Traveall (2wd) Not ours but similar. Each person who stopped had a story about their own personal experiences with this car. Reminiscences of trips to Yosemite. Cross country trips when they were kids. Loggers who went to work in these indestructible vehicles. The same holds true for those who stopped and looked at the Road Runners, Mustangs and old Panel Vans.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Ooops. Link broken to the photo of a Travelall Here Like this. Not our vehicle, but similar.

Synova said...

My second born was known as the puke-a-matic.

I finally took her out of the legally required car seat and let her ride in the booster with only the belt around her waist so she didn't have the big plastic bar thing jiggling against her tummy.

Chip Ahoy said...

The Belgians would get sick but they gave fairly obvious signal of stress by a bit of foam at their mouth so I'd start talking continuously saying their name, "good girl" over and over until I could find a good place to pull over and stop and play. The dog thought that was the whole point of making a trip and I ended up discovering lots of neat places I would otherwise never have seen and those turned out to be some of the best times we had together. Once returning to the car too wet and too dirty to just hop in a and go. I learned to keep towels in the trunk just for that.

Fr Martin Fox said...

Cars won't get dirty?

More youth unemployment...

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

Nice. keeping the camera rolling through puke. A friend would have at least held her hair for her.

Aridog said...

Chip Ahoy said ...

... find a good place to pull over and stop and play. The dog thought that was the whole point of making a trip and I ended up discovering lots of neat places I would otherwise never have seen and those turned out to be some of the best times we had together. Once returning to the car too wet and too dirty to just hop in a and go. I learned to keep towels in the trunk just for that.

Of course they do, why wander if not to have fun? And as for what's in my van for dogs...three people seats, a 6 x 4 foot area for dog lounging, a kennel crate for the obstreperous, and a big wicker kit box full of doggie gear, doggie toys, towels, towelettes, and Bissell stain & odor elimination spray (the blood & vomit variety), plus sundry brushes, combs, and leashes.

Yeah, we spoil our dogs here. I get asked why only three people seats? Answer: so Judi (or I) can ride in the rear people seat (part of third row not removed) when a dog decides to ride in the front passenger seat.