What Happens When Your Car Runs on Android?

From well-designed entertainment systems to voice recognition and networking, cars are gaining many of the capabilities of our smartphones. It should come as no surprise then that smartphone manufacturers are speeding to build their portfolios of car patents.

According to a new analysis from Envision IP, an intellectual property research firm, the top smartphone manufacturers have hundreds of auto patents between them, largely related to smart device integration, navigation, and electric and autonomous vehicle technologies.

Leading the way is Google, which owns 310 US patents and 153 published applications concerning autos. Consumer electronics giants Samsung, LG, and Sony all boast more than a hundred patents. Even Apple, which tends to keep to its own sphere, has 35 vehicle patents and 54 pending applications.

The integration of smartphones into cars was a big theme at CES last year, and not just for hooking up your music to the car's radio. Auto manufacturers have long had trouble developing infotainment systems that are intuitive to use, and it seems that for some, letting smartphones do the work seems to be the answer.

A recent Wall Street Journal report highlighted by Envision IP suggests we'll be seeing even tighter partnerships between device makers and auto companies this year, with Audi and Google expected to announce a new initiative at CES next week. Really, it makes sense. Building a car requires engineering hundreds of individual systems, which means a firm like Audi will never be able to invest the same amount of R&D into a car's infotainment systems as Google has in developing the Android ecosystem. So why not rely on a specialist?

In the immediate term, that means integrating smartphones for in-car navigation and networked search. Need a gas station? Google Maps' system is far better at finding destinations than anything an automaker could afford to build. With that in mind, it's no surprise that Samsung and the like would have automotive patents.

But in the longer term, things really start to get interesting. Google's lead in automotive patents is expected, as the firm is a leader in autonomous vehicle research. Envision IP's report highlights some of Google's more ambitious patents, including US 20130261871, which describes a method for “gesture-based automotive controls." Imagine that: Your autonomous car is driving you around, and you could have it pull over for a cheeseburger at the flick of a wrist.

Perhaps more exciting is Google's patent for "modifying behavior of autonomous vehicles based on predicted behavior of other vehicles." One of the promises of autonomous vehicles is traffic prediction and amelioration; if your car could automatically respond to what all the cars are doing ahead of it, traffic snarls could be smoothed out much more quickly.

Google's not the only consumer tech company interested in sorting out traffic, as every company listed in the Envision IP report has a traffic or intelligent navigation patent. Even BlackBerry has one for a mobile device that can connect to mobile networks to share local traffic conditions.

This is leading to a new wave in networked capability for drivers. As GigaOM's Kevin Fitchard explains, the first car with 4G connectivity will hit the roads in 2014, which means more bandwidth than we've ever seen. Sure, that means things like native iTunes integration and high-quality Pandora streaming, which is awesome.

But high-speed wireless in cars also means bandwidth for far more intelligent navigation systems. What happens when your car is powered by Android, rather than a proprietary system built by a car company? Real-time apps like Waze being built directly into a car's nav system would be huge, and just imagine if you had an app that automatically finds you lowest gas prices and restaurant deals along your road trip route.

Better yet, imagine if the app had those retailers bid against each other to offer drivers low prices in real time, and when you find one you like, you could wave your hand at the dashboard and have your car pull over for you and pay automatically through your digital wallet. It's a big leap from what cars can do now, but it's not much of a jump from what smart devices are already doing every day.

We tend to assess cars based on their performance, looking at horsepower numbers or gas mileage ratings, or by how comfy their interiors are. But beyond the endless progression of more efficient engines and more sumptuous leather, manufacturers are racing to make cars smarter. And as they do so, driving is going to look and feel a lot more like using a phone.

@derektmead