GM Patents a Smart Stop/Start Technology

As many car manufacturers have started using a fuel saving technology (better known as stop/start systems) quite frequently, not all drivers are happy with their efficiency, and GM wants to tackle this problem in perspective. The American carmaker has recently took out a patent for a know-how that is supposed to utilize GPS integrated in the stop/start solution, making it much smarter when it is required to switching off the engine.

Learn some basics about this technology

Owners of automatic cars (no older than 5 years) probably have a stop/start function integrated in their cars that is assumed to have a positive impact on fuel economy. But in reality, this tech frequently turns out to be quite annoying, as many drivers claim that it switches off engine power at every traffic light, causing driver’s discomfort. But it seems like GM knows how to solve this problem.

A stop/start system is a smart fuel-saving unit that, as you can guess from its name, is capable of starting and stopping the engine. When the engine heats up to some point, this technology shuts the engine off and restarts it when the car stops (like at a traffic light). There is no doubt that such technology can help drivers to save some fuel and, consequently, some money in the urban traffic with many stops, but it can also be a nerve-racking experience. Having the engine constantly switch on and off can drive crazy even the most patient drivers. Most stop/start solutions are supposed to be actuated when the car comes to a full stop, the brake pedal is pressed, and the driver shifts to D gear.

Interesting arguments against this technology

In theory, it is an extremely useful technology, but under real-life conditions, if the driver presses the brake pedal not hard enough, the engine can start again before its due time. Therefore, many drivers decide to switch off stop/start feature in their cars (if it’s possible), but many GM models do not entail this possibility.

Image from GM’s patent documents

According to the GM patent documents, the usage of GPS, cameras, and machine learning can help to mitigate shortcomings of this engineering technology and make it a bit smarter. GM wants to complement a standard technology with additional artificial mind. The car's control system will resort to GPS to evaluate the situation on the road. Thanks to this approach, the new technology is expected to remedy shortcomings of currently used systems.

Drivers must have plenty of patience until the new patent is implemented in practice by automotive engineers and hits the automotive market. It is interesting to note that shortcomings of existing stop/start solutions can be used as an advantage for cars that come with manual transmissions, which commonly do not have this kind of smart systems. But the GM’s patent has the potential to restore the trust of car owners who gave up on this technology and can become a golden ticket for the carmaker.