Aftermarket Insider - March/April 2010 - (Page 26)

MARKET RESEARCH LateSt and greateSt Telematics Trendline: Following the Growth of Automotive Telematics BY DER EK K AUFM AN , C3 NE T W ORK , I NC. Telematics Trendline is a series of monthly articles by Derek Kaufman, C3 Network, Inc., designed to inform AAIA members about the trends in telematics applications for both the retail automotive and commercial trucking industries. For the full February article, or for more of the series, visit www.aftermarket.org. Digital power Station We have had the pleasure to hear the Bongiovi Acoustics Digital Power Station (DPS) in action over the last few weeks. This innovative technology will provide aftermarket companies with studio quality sound without the expense of high-end speakers and subwoofer hardware. If you are working on a telematics solution involving sound, you’ll want to check this out. DPS analyzes the source of a recording and then digitally processes it to optimize the frequency response of your speakers, the capability of the vehicle’s head unit amplifier and the acoustic properties of the passenger compartment. The result is incredibly rich sound even from base line speaker systems. DPS’s ability to enhance the base register, in fact, can do much of the work of a subwoofer without actually having one installed. The demonstration we saw recently showed how DPS analyzes the source material. From Frank Sinatra to the Talking Heads, the “before and after” quality of the sound was very impressive. You can even download a plug in for iTunes and compressed mp3 files. Check it out at www.bongioviacoustics.com. local Motors The content of the Trendline is generated from first-hand interviews and interaction with products as much as possible. But this month, we want to pass along an article we read recently in Wired magazine that we think has direct application to the development of aftermarket telematics products. The article is in the February edition (Edition 18.02) and is entitled Atoms are the New Bits by Chris Anderson. In it, you can read about Local Motors (www.local-motors.com) and maybe think about how this open-collaboration design and micro-manufacturing company might be a prototype for the future of aftermarket telematics. This is a story about the power of crowd sourcing. Designers, engineers and just plain enthusiasts join product design teams to brainstorm the features of a given product. Local Motors acts like a portal and a connector to source hardware that the virtual team cannot generate. Now take that idea and think about how we might create a similar portal to develop aftermarket telematics devices and applications. Who does what and how do you get paid? We will be traveling to Local Motors to learn more soon and we’ll keep you informed along the way. For now, know that there are companies like 26 | AFTERMARKET INSIDER | MARCH • APRIL 2010 http://www.aftermarket.org/Publications/Telematics-Trendline.aspx

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Aftermarket Insider - March/April 2010

Aftermarket Insider - March/April 2010
Contents
President's Message
NCCM 2010: A Slam-Dunk Opportunity for the Aftermarket
AAHIP: Just What the Doctor Ordered
Association News
Learning to DRIVE
Member Profile
Toolbox
Market Research
Inside Technology
Association News
AAPEX News
Company Profile
Market Research

Aftermarket Insider - March/April 2010