When Volkswagen showed us its prototype gesture-based control setup for issuing infotainment system commands and the like at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, we were impressed. The technology worked nearly flawlessly, even if the various hand motion commands made the user look like they were popping and locking. In fact, the interface was so slick, we declared it very nearly ready for production—a sentiment with which, according to Auto Express, Volkswagen appears to agree.
The tech is slated to hit the Volkswagen Golf in 2016, and it probably wouldn’t arrive in the U.S. until the following year, right on schedule for the seventh-generation Golf’s mid-cycle refresh for our market. The news comes from VW’s head of powertrain development, Dr. Heinz-Jakob Neusser. The development isn’t hugely surprising, given how Volkswagen will begin transitioning to the second generation version of its MIB modular infotainment system, dubbed MIB II, next year, and that upgraded system likely would be able to handle the complex gesture-control functionality.
At the heart of the gesture-control system is a 3D camera mounted in the headliner near the rearview mirror. The gesture controls we demo’d could be used to open and close the sunroof, call up power-seat controls on the central touch screen, and more. To initiate touch controls, the user simply holds a hand aloft near the headliner until a dedicated menu appears on-screen; they then swipe their pointed index finger through the air to scroll through this menu, and a forceful “button push” motion selects the desired menu. In addition to gesture control, MIB II will also debut VW’s Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and MirrorLink phone-mirroring integration. The future is coming, and it’s waving its hands furiously.
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