Ford Motor Company has made no secret of the fact that it wants to allow drivers to be able to manage certain aspects of their health while driving. That may sound odd, but consider how much time many people spend the car stuck in traffic, being able to manage health conditions while in your vehicle might be a good thing for some people. One of the ways Ford is helping people manage their health while in the car is via Sync Voice Control.
Sync Voice Control works with Ford Sync AppLink enabled vehicles where drivers can launch apps and use them via voice commands, never having to touch their mobile device. Ford has announced that drivers can now access the Allergy Alert app using AppLink. This is a big deal for the millions of people around the world who suffer from allergies or asthma.
The Allergy Alert app allows drivers to get the current forecast for allergens, pollen, asthma, flu, and UV conditions while driving. Knowing what sort of allergens are in the air in a strange location is a big deal for drivers who suffer from asthma. Using the app and AppLink drivers can use their voice to get details from the application, including current location updates, specific pollens that are in the air, and asthma score on a scale of 0 to 12.
To get the details the driver can simply say “pollen” and get a rundown of what specific pollens are in the air, the command “Flu” gives details on the current and upcoming flu index, saying “UV” will tell the driver about the UV risk for the day. The driver can also enter three zip codes into the application settings to get statistics about different areas using their voice.
“We are attempting to create the car that cares,” says Gary Strumolo, global manager of Ford Research and Innovation. “We want to change the paradigm that in-car connectivity systems such as SYNC can only be used for information and entertainment purposes. Health and wellness are key issues for our customers outside of the car; therefore, we want to leverage our connectivity platform to improve their time behind the wheel. The trend in mobile health is all about knowing potential health concerns before they happen so that they don’t surprise a person, even while driving.”
