Bangalore, February 13 2017: Things are coming together -- literally-- in 2017 -- and Indian innovation is making IT happen. A survey by technology watcher Gartner last week,  estimates that some  8.4 billion connected 'things' will be in use worldwide  this year and   two-out-of-three or 5.2 billion,  will be used by lay consumers.
Making this connected lifestyle  happen,  is a combo of two technologies: Artificial Intelligence(AI)  and Internet of Things ( IoT). Another tech major, Accenture, has coined a new mantra:  'AI is the new UI' -- or Universal Interface that makes technology happen for the people.  Unsaid in all this,  is another fact:  Indian brains are making a lot of this   happen.  From smart cars to smart meters to smart wearables -- there is a desi hand, often a startup  behind many global developments. We report on one such innovation below and  link you to two more elsewhere in the piece
Stick a dongle under the dashboard and 'smarten' your ride!
Most car makes made  in the last 10 years,  have a very useful connector under the dashboard,   that few  owners know about. In Indian cars, it may not be visible and  may be behind a panel. It is a mandatory 16-pin connector called the On Board Diagnostics  (OBD) panel,  that  monitors emissions, mileage, speed, and other useful data. It is used by mechanics, during servicing, but now, products are coming that enable  car owners to tap into this connector, stick a data dongle  and   monitor a variety of  car functions.
At a recent Nokia Innovation  expo in Bangalore,    telecom product company Sasken, showed a soon-to -be-launched   Connected Car Gateway,  harnessing the OBD  to optimize  car  performance -- and also do other things like vehicle tracking,   route mapping, emergency breakdown calls,  activating  home appliances and  anti-theft alarm.... all with a mobile phone. The  made-in-India car gateway  created waves  at the CES Las Vegas last month.
Reliance Jio engineers in Navi Mumbai,    are also in advanced stages of crafting a product tapping into the OBD -- and adding  some more car-related services to the MyJio app.  It looks as if 2017 will be the year when  car owners in India   go under the hood  and  get smart!
More Indian smart developments that we reported up in recent days:
Smart T-Shirt tells you where to go!
A truly smart water meter