Sensory steering wheel keeps your eyes on the road

Jaguar Land Rover researches rapid heating and cooling of the steering wheel for use with turn-by-turn navigation
‘Sensory steering wheel’ helps reduce driver distraction by keeping eyes on the road
Drivers not paying attention is a major contributor to road accidents
Thermal changes could also be used to warn of approaching junctions and roads with poor visibility

A steering wheel developed by Jaguar Land Rover could help keep drivers’ eyes on the road – by using heat to tell drivers when to turn left or right.

The research, in partnership with Glasgow University, has created a ‘sensory steering wheel’, parts of which can be quickly heated and cooled to inform drivers where to turn, when to change lane or to warn of an approaching junction. This could be particularly useful when visibility is reduced through poor weather or the layout of the road.

The technology has also been applied to the gear-shift paddles to indicate when hand over from the driver to autonomous control in future self-driving vehicles is complete.