(c)iStock.com/WendellandCarolyn

The past year has seen significant and interesting progress in the sphere of car connectivity, which is becoming increasingly complex and more commonplace. This is being driven, in-part by consumer expectation for access to the internet wherever they are, and by the introduction of new regulations which is governing the implementation of technology, as the clever use of the web breaks down further barriers to communication.

During recent months, the march of Apple and their...

Picture credit: Volvo

The days when drivers act as individual entities on the road could be over in a matter of years thanks to the integration of swarm intelligence technology within car design. The idea behind it is to allow vehicles to work together and share data with others (i.e. act as a collective swarm) for the benefit of all and the wider transport infrastructure – ‘the cloud’.

The clear impact of this is far reaching - the travelling of more efficient and optimum routes, reduced...

Picture credit: Volvo

If, like me, you remember the original release of Back to the Future II in 1989, 2015 holds a particular place in the automotive imagination. Come this year, it promised us, there would be flying cars, roads in the sky and the small matter of on-board nuclear fusion generators.

But while some of the predictions encountered by Marty McFly et al have come to pass (wearable technology, video calling, 3D cinemas), and others been outstripped by reality...