Telematics is an interdisciplinary field encompassing telecommunications, vehicular technologies, electrical engineering, and computer science. Telematics can involve any of the following:
Hybrid Synergy Drive (HSD), also known as Toyota Hybrid System II, is the brand name of Toyota Motor Corporation for the hybrid car drive train technology used in vehicles with the Toyota and Lexus marques. First introduced on the Prius, the technology is an option on several other Toyota and Lexus vehicles and has been adapted for the electric drive system of the hydrogen-powered Mirai, and for a plug-in hybrid version of the Prius. Previously, Toyota also licensed its HSD technology to Nissan for use in its Nissan Altima Hybrid. Its parts supplier Aisin Seiki Co. offers similar hybrid transmissions to other car companies.
Toyota Motor Corporation's U family is a family of automatic front-wheel drive/rear-wheel drive/four-wheel drive transmissions found in later vehicle models.
Traffic reporting is the near real-time distribution of information about road conditions such as traffic congestion, detours, and traffic collisions. The reports help drivers anticipate and avoid traffic problems. Traffic reports, especially in cities, may also report on major delays to mass transit that does not necessarily involve roads. In addition to periodic broadcast reports, traffic information can be transmitted to GPS units, smartphones, and personal computers.
Calty Design Research Incorporated is a Toyota design studio established in 1973. They have two facilities: one in Newport Beach, California for concept designs, and another in Ann Arbor, Michigan for production designs. Calty provides both interior and exterior styling proposals for future Toyota vehicles and advanced design, production color and wheel design concepts for Toyota's product development operations.
Advanced Automatic Collision Notification (AACN) is the successor to Automatic Collision Notification (ACN). To develop procedures that will help emergency medical responders better and more quickly determine if a motorist needs care at a trauma center after a vehicle crash, Center for Disease Control and the CDC Foundation recently partnered with OnStar and the GM Foundation. Through this partnership, CDC conducted a vehicle telematics initiative to develop evidence-based protocols for the emergency medical community to effectively use automotive telemetry data.
Lexus Link, launched October, 2000, is a subscription-based safety and security service from Lexus. It has been offered as a factory-installed option, available on certain Lexus models, offering call-center-based telematics services to owners with equipped vehicles in the United States and Canada. The second-generation Lexus Link system utilizes a dedicated cellular phone, Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) technology and 24-hour live-operator support. In 2009, an expanded system with added functionality, Lexus Enform with Safety Connect, succeeded Lexus Link.
In-car Internet refers to Internet service provided in a car. Internet access can be provided by tethering a mobile phone, or with a mobile hotspot, whether portable or built into the car. Built in systems have existed since 2008 and include:
Remote Touch is a vehicle interface system present in some Lexus cars for use in conjunction with in-car information, configuration, and entertainment systems. The Remote Touch controller, which is similar to a computer mouse or joystick, allows the driver to operate an on-screen cursor on the vehicle's GPS navigation system screen.
The Lexus HS is a dedicated hybrid vehicle introduced by Lexus as a new compact executive car sedan in 2009. Built on the Toyota New MC platform, it is classified as a compact under Japanese regulations concerning vehicle exterior dimensions and engine displacement. Unveiled at the North American International Auto Show in January 2009, the HS 250h went on sale in July 2009 in Japan, followed by the United States in August 2009 as a 2010 model. The HS 250h represented the first dedicated hybrid vehicle in the Lexus lineup, as well as the first offered with an inline-four gasoline engine. Bioplastic materials are used for the vehicle interior. With a total length of 4,700 mm (190 in), the Lexus HS is slightly larger than the Lexus IS, but still smaller than the mid-size Lexus ES.
Safety Connect is a subscription-based telematics system introduced by Toyota Motor Corporation in 2009 for its Toyota-branded and Lexus models. The system provides communications, roadside assistance, car safety, remote diagnostics, and other services. Unlike the earlier Lexus Link service offered on Lexus models, the Safety Connect system is proprietary and not licensed from GM's OnStar service. Safety Connect began to be offered on vehicles in the middle of 2009. For Toyota vehicles, the Safety Connect service is offered including the aforementioned features as part of the Toyota Entune telematics package, while Lexus models receive the Lexus Enform telematics system with Safety Connect, adding hands free calling, and destination assistance services.
G-Book is a telematics subscription service provided by Toyota Motor Corporation in Japan for its Toyota- and Lexus-branded vehicles. G-Book allows users to link with cellphones. personal digital assistants (PDA)'s, personal computers (PC) and G-Book equipped cars across Japan. It is based on the former GAZOO infrastructure of Toyota's membership-based information service and membership system, and it provides interactive information services via vehicle installed touch-screen wireless communication terminals. It also incorporates information from Toyota Mapmaster Inc. which updates digital mapping information and is used by various international companies.
The Toyota Camry (XV30) is a mid-size car produced by Toyota from June 2001 to January 2006. The XV30 series represented the fifth generation of the Toyota Camry in all markets outside Japan, which followed a different generational lineage. The XV30 range is split into different model codes indicative of the engine. Four-cylinder models utilize the ACV30 and ACV35 codes, with MCV30 (3.0-liter) and MCV31 (3.3-liter) designating the six-cylinder versions.
The third generation Toyota Prius debuted as a compact liftback manufactured and marketed by Toyota, having launched in 2009 for model year 2010 at the January 2009 North American International Auto Show. Internally designated as model XW30 and replacing the XW20 series, sales began in Japan on May 18, 2009.
CarWings, renamed NissanConnect in 2015, and also branded as Infiniti InTouch is a vehicle telematics service offered by the Nissan Motor Company to drivers in Japan, the United States, Canada, Great Britain, and most other countries where the LEAF is sold. It provides mobile connectivity for on-demand traffic information services and internet provided maps displayed inside select Nissan vehicles. The service began in December 1997, having been installed in the 1997 Nissan Cedric, Nissan Gloria, Nissan President, Nissan Cima and the Nissan Elgrand.
The Toyota New Global Architecture are modular automobile platforms that underpin various Toyota and Lexus models starting with the fourth-generation Prius in late 2015. TNGA platforms accommodate different vehicle sizes and also front-, rear- and all-wheel drive configurations.
The Dynamic Force engines are a family of internal combustion engines developed by Toyota under the brand's Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) strategy. The engines can be fueled by petrol (gasoline) or ethanol and can be combined with electric motors in a hybrid drivetrain. The engines were developed alongside the TNGA family of vehicle platforms, as part of a company-wide effort to simplify the vehicles being produced by Toyota.
Toyota vehicles in Japan are distributed to numerous dealership chains throughout the country. Up to May 2020, each dealership chain had a different product offering, with some models restricted to one chain to maintain exclusivity. Since May 2020, every Toyota model in Japan was available in all dealership chains. Current dealership chains include Toyota Store, Toyopet Store, Toyota Corolla Store and Netz Store.
Toyota Motor Korea Co., Ltd. is the South Korean subsidiary of Japan-based conglomerate Toyota, which specializes in the sales and distribution of Toyota and Lexus automobiles in South Korea.
