I am sitting in the Red Carpet lounge here in Honolulu about to get on a flight that will take me to my home state of Michigan as special guest of the Ford Motor Company. I was contacted a month or so ago and asked if I would be willing to come out and tour facilities that are not normally scene by the general public. I have my standard load of HD Pro Cameras, Tripods, Wireless Microphones and several Digital cameras to capture what they let us film.
We have been given a schedule on what we will see and I want to share that with you know so you know what to expect in the Special Media Feed next week in regards to videos.
- Manufacturing Ergo Lab
- VIRTTEX Lab
- PowerWall, CAVE and iVR
- 2010-2011 Model Drive Opportunties
- Steering and Handling
- High Speed Track
- Product Review Center Safety and Technology Demos
Overall it will be a very big day. As a disclaimer Ford is paying for my airfare and lodging in Dearborn. I have opted to stay a few days later and will be paying for my Rental Car and additional lodging.
In recent days Ford continues to lead the way in innovative programs. Ford executives and students from the University of Michigan recently unveiled two Ford Fiesta cars that are equipped with customized applications to start out on an American Journey 2.0 with the first ever social media-connected road trip. Today they announced that they are testing a next-generation technology – originally developed for the Department of Defense and University of Iowa’s Virtual Soldier Research (VSR) Program – to simulate motion and provide feedback on forces against the human body – all done in a virtual avatar environment.
The new avatar – who goes by the name “Santos” – is an enhancement to Ford’s current virtual reality and design processes where human limits with dynamic motion can be fully seen and analyzed. Santos has been programmed with a complete biomechanical muscular system, so he is subject to the normal laws of physics.
I am not sure what surprises they have for us in Dearborn but I am going to make sure I get as much of the really cool stuff on tape as possible.