Many people have written about the value and importance of Human connection. As humans, receiving expression of love and emotional connection from others help us feel worthy and lovable. Brené Brown made this point so clearly and beautifully with these words: “I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.” Many entrepreneurs have built phenomenal companies around this concept of human connection. For instance, the success of Facebook as a company is built around the universal need for human connection. In his 2017 letter to stockholders, Jeff Bezos of Amazon highlighted being obsessive customer focus as one of the secrets for the company. Like Facebook and Amazon, a new startup is hinging on the principle human connection to get people more connected on the road. CarWink is a lifestyle gadget that could help drivers communicate better with other drivers on the road. It is one of the products of Innovart, a startup formed in 2015. When released, CarWink will be the world's first car device allowing drivers to communicate with other drivers through animation.
According to the co-founder of the company, Wei Cheng Chou, CarWink was conceived under the idea that drivers need to communicate better while on the road. Traditionally, drivers are unable to communicate their gratitude and appreciation for good deeds of other drivers on the road. With the unique emoji feature of CarWink, drivers can now communicate their gratitude to other drivers.
Aside expression of gratitude and other emotions, CarWink can also be used to communicate instructions, guidance and one’s intent to other road users. For instance, with CarWink, you can practically communicate with the driver behind you things like: “right now there are passengers, police roadblocks, or even accidents ahead”. I also think gadget like CarWink could also take the place of your ‘baby in car’ sign. Whenever the device detects a threat – say, someone running a red light at the next intersection – it warns the driver.
CarWink might also help improve overall efficiency and safety of the roadways because it allows drivers to transmit vital information to the nearby motorist. Communicating your intentions with other drivers on the road creates a friendly and safe driving environment for everyone. It’s important to let other drivers around you know what you plan to do and securing their permission to proceed. That way, one can avoid a collision or car accident. Before now, the most obvious way drivers communicate with other motorist is through hand gesture, light, and horn. This method of communication is not only ineffective but also keeps drivers away from concentrating on the road. With CarWink’s hands-free voice control, drivers can now use a wide variety of pre-set phrases to show emojis and communicate with one another. The voice control transforms users’ thoughts and words, while driving, into LED display, allowing for a seamless driving experience. Users can also use the one-touch input by using the CarWink application. Messages from CarWink can clearly be seen by drivers up to two car lengths away.
Driving requires a tremendous level of focus to avoid putting other road users at risk. It is one of the most important attributes a driving instructor looks out for in a driving school. The onset of lifestyle technological tools like CarWink now makes it possible for drivers to keep their hands on the wheel and focus on driving while still communicating with the cars around them.