Pay attention to the following questions:
1. What problem is this trend going to solve?
2. How far has it been developed?
3. Which car manufacturers are working on it?
Text 2. CARS THAT COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER AND THE ROAD
Car manufacturers are seriously looking into and researching two technologies that would enable future cars to communicate with each other and with objects around them.
Imagine approaching an intersection* as another car runs a red light. You don't see them at first, but your car gets a signal from the other car that it's directly in your path and warns you of the potential collision, or even hits the brakes automatically to avoid an accident. A developing technology called Vehicle-to-Vehicle communication, or V2V, is being tested by automotive manufacturers like Ford as a way to help reduce the amount of accidents on the road.
V2V works by using wireless signals to send information back and forth between cars about their location, speed and direction. The information is then communicated to the cars around it in order to provide information on how to keep the vehicles safe distances from each other.
But researchers aren't only considering V2V communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, or V2I, is being tested as well. V2I would allow vehicles to communicate with things like road signs or traffic signals and provide information to the vehicle about safety issues. Incorporating V2I into vehicles, along with V2V systems, would reduce all target vehicle crashes by 81 percent.
intersection
Present the information from your text to the group.
Pay attention to the following questions:
1. What problem is this trend going to solve?
2. How far has it been developed?
3. Which car manufacturers are working on it?
Text 3. FLYING CARS
A Russian company has unveiled its futuristic flying car.Hoversurf, the firm behind the hoverbike, has unveiled the ‘Formula Project’ - a car with fold-out* wings which could help beat traffic jams.Using similar technology to its hoverbike the vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) vehicle can seat up to five people and is powered by 52 turbine propulsion units and 48 electric thrusters.The body is made up of 3D printed carbon fibre and metals, and thanks to its fold away wings, it can fit into a standard garage or parking space.Hoversurf says that the vehicle, which navigates using 3D vision technology, is "ready to use in real world”.Hoversurfaddsthat the vehicle is failsafe:“If the wing breaks, the copter will land. If the copter breaks, the plane will land.”
Hoversurf is not the only company attempting to make flying cars.Airbus has unveiled plans to create a vehicle which is part self-driving and part drone.The futuristic vehicle is essentially a pod that sits upon a wheeled-platform, and if, for example, the driver gets stuck in traffic, then the upper part can detach from the wheels and release its propellers, allowing it to take off.Airbus says the concept could help ease traffic congestion in the busiest cities.
Terrafugia (a Volvo-backed start up) has been working on a prototype for years featuring an in-built parachute system. The car, known as Transition, could go on the market in 2019.The hybrid-electric vehicles will have two seats, luggage storage, rear-view cameras and a built-in safety parachute system. It will be able to fly at speeds of 100 miles per hour and can reach heights of up to 10,000 feet.
*Fold-out – складной
** thruster – двигатель системы управления