Seemingly "cool" but actually "dangerous" virtual car buttons and other designs are criticized as "useless innovation"

(Source: Economic Information Daily)

Under the sweeping trend of electrification and intelligent development, in recent years, more and more automakers have reduced the number of physical buttons, instead integrating functions into large screens in the center of the cockpit. They are essentially going for “cool factor,” and even gear switching has to be controlled on the large screen, which has led to safety risks and accidents making frequent appearances on trending topics online.

Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology launched a public solicitation of comments on the mandatory national standard titled “Symbols for Automotive Controls, Indicators, and Signal Devices,” aiming to reduce the occurrence of such risks from the source of the standard. In the view of many industry insiders, the design of in-car virtual buttons appears innovative, but it has a “fails to deliver” feel. Driving a car is not a trivial matter—“getting there” is the goal, and “getting there safely” is even more critical. Automotive innovation can never cross the safety bottom line. Innovation that detaches from safety is ultimately “fake innovation.”

Key functions “handled by touch” draw complaints

Not long ago, a car owner, while driving at highway speeds, used a voice prompt saying “Turn off all reading lights.” As a result, along with the outdoor headlights, they were all shut off, leading to an accident and sparking a wide public debate about the relationship between automotive innovation and safety. Public opinion generally holds that a key function like the headlight switch should be controlled by physical buttons to avoid the risks caused by mistaken operation at critical moments.

After the incident, the relevant executives of Lynk & Co who were involved responded on their personal social media platform. They said they have already completed an optimization plan for the voice control, and delivered the update via cloud push. Going forward, while the vehicle is in driving status, the headlights will only be able to be turned off via manual control.

With the rapid development of automotive electrification and intelligence, the central large screen is becoming standard equipment for more and more vehicles. To make cars look more technologically advanced and futuristic, many brand models have integrated multiple control functions such as air conditioning and lighting into the large screen, and some models have also changed the gear-shifting function to virtual buttons. This left veteran technician Gu Ming, who has worked in the industry for more than 20 years, puzzled: “Holding a physical gear lever was convenient in the first place. Without the gear lever, the automaker may cut costs, but to shift gears or turn on/off the air conditioning, you have to operate the screen several times. Not only is it a hassle—what if the screen freezes?”

New energy vehicles are even more “fond” of touch-based virtual buttons. Zhu Yifang, chief expert at the China Automotive Technology and Research Center Co., Ltd., and minister of the New Energy Vehicle Research Department at CATARC (China Automotive Technology and Research Center), said this is because a new type of electronic and electrical architecture provides the technical foundation for creating virtual buttons and centralized control. Moreover, by integrating control, companies can significantly reduce costs related to the design and production of physical buttons. At the same time, many younger consumers do indeed prefer minimalist interiors with a tech vibe. Influenced by factors such as road bumps, lighting conditions, and touch sensitivity, virtual buttons are also prone to accidental taps, leading to longer operation time.

Gu’s confusion represents the sentiments of many in the public. Media reports say that after WM Motor submitted a bankruptcy restructuring application, many WM owners on social media complained about service suspension issues in the car-machine system and the mobile app. Even if traditional automakers face business difficulties, it does not affect the vehicle’s day-to-day use. However, for models that use a large screen as the operating command center, once the system goes down, vehicle users may very likely lose control of the car.

Dongmen Jiannan, head of automotive safety content at the automotive information platform Dongchedi, believes that during driving, drivers need to maintain a high level of attention. The more convenient it is to operate functions such as air conditioning, lighting, and gear shifting, the more it can enable maximum release of functionality while still safeguarding safety; otherwise, such innovation loses its value.

Amid the frequent occurrence of issues like these, relevant authorities have already begun to pay close attention. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has launched the public solicitation of comments on the mandatory national standard “Symbols for Automotive Controls, Indicators, and Signal Devices,” and clearly proposed that items such as turning signal lights on/off, window raising/lowering, and activation of integrated driving assistance systems should be equipped with physical operating controls.

This revision adds types of physical operating controls and technical requirements, aiming to improve driving safety—ensuring that, during driving, key controls are reachable, usable, and basically operable by blind touch, so that drivers can perceive the trigger results of controls without overly relying on vision. It reduces distraction caused by displays and further ensures the reliability and operational effectiveness of the controls.

Beyond China, overseas countries are also strengthening attention to physical automotive buttons. The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) has formally implemented new rules for driver control interfaces, requiring that five key safety functions—turn signal lights, wipers, hazard warning lights (hazards), the horn, and eCall emergency calling (SOS)—must be operated via physical buttons/knobs, and that relying solely on touchscreens is prohibited. Non-compliant models will directly lose 1 star, with no room for appeals or software-update remedies. It is effectively like putting a “tightened safety leash” on “fails-to-deliver automotive innovations.”

Some “quirky” “innovations” raise questions

Just how much risk is hidden in using touchscreens to operate key automotive functions? Scientific research provides the answer.

A study jointly conducted by the University of Washington and the Toyota Research Institute shows that operating touchscreen devices while driving easily distracts attention and leads to danger. The researchers selected 16 participants, had them complete tests in a high-fidelity driving simulator, and tracked and recorded multiple indicators including participants’ eye movements, hand actions, pupil dilation, and skin conductance.

The study’s participants were not engaged in obvious distraction behaviors like texting or scrolling short videos. Instead, they were performing everyday driving-related operations that automakers pre-configured and that drivers might need to carry out while driving—for example, adjusting volume, switching multimedia content, and so on. Previously, operations that could be completed by pressing a single button now require drivers to simultaneously invest visual attention, hand movement, and cognitive resources.

The study results show that compared with operations while parked, operating the touchscreen while driving causes a drop of more than 58% in both operation targeting precision and speed. Meanwhile, once a driver starts using the touchscreen, the vehicle’s lane departure magnitude increases by more than 40%. Drivers fall into a situation where everything suffers: driving skills become less familiar, and touchscreen operation efficiency also decreases.

It’s not just virtual buttons—over the past few years, so-called “innovations” in the intelligent area of automobiles have been overturning the history of the industry spanning hundreds of years, yet they have been widely criticized by the public.

A half-steering-wheel design is one example. Its design inspiration comes from F1 racing, where this design exists because of the limited cockpit space and the real-world need for fast reactions at high speed. Nowadays, some new energy models, relying on a unique look created by the missing lower portion of the steering wheel, were once labeled as futuristic and high-end. But in reality, when turning or making a U-turn, it is easy to swing the steering wheel too loosely. New drivers struggle to precisely control the steering angle. In addition, when airbags deploy, there are also risks that are hard to predict.

Electronic side mirrors have also appeared on multiple models in recent years. Some netizens complained: a physical side mirror is a piece of glass that has matured beyond measure. You don’t need electricity; it doesn’t lag, doesn’t go black, doesn’t delay, and if it breaks, replacing it is cheap. But an electronic side mirror requires a camera, a screen, power supply, and algorithms. It is affected in rainy days, at night, and under strong light conditions. It can lag and drop frames in low temperatures, and once it gets damaged in a crash, the replacement cost is shocking.

There are also hidden door handles that have been criticized for a long time. Testing shows that the success rate of hidden door handles popping out after a side impact is only 67%, far lower than the 98% of traditional mechanical handles. In low temperatures, this design is even more prone to freezing and failing. Zhu Yifang said: It cannot be denied that hidden door handles have certain positive roles in enhancing the car’s sense of technology and reducing aerodynamic drag. However, under extreme conditions such as high temperatures, frigid weather, and accidents, there may be situations where operation is inconvenient or even fails. With new national regulations now in place, starting in 2027, all new cars’ door handles must be equipped with mechanical release devices.

“Safety” is always the development bottom line

Hands-free door opening, headlight projections, in-car toilets… automotive “innovations” like these have sparked widespread discussion online. Such “innovations” have drawn attention from the industry and regulators.

Volkswagen said it will push its models to return to physical buttons. Multiple domestic new energy brands are also moving toward making automotive buttons physical. With clear regulatory standards for hidden door handles, virtual automotive buttons, and so on, it is believed that such “fails-to-deliver innovations” will gradually exit the historical stage.

It is understandable for the industry to “compete” in interiors and “compete” in configurations. But what kind of automotive innovation does the public really need? Dongmen Jiannan said that the risks caused by “fails-to-deliver innovations” should not be borne by consumers. Safety and reliability will always be the bottom line for innovation in the auto industry. If the bottom line is breached, all innovation will become like water without a source and trees without a root.

Taking car control buttons as an example, it is not the case that anything virtual is necessarily bad. Dongmen Jiannan and other industry insiders believe that physical buttons can separate high-frequency functions (such as lighting and wipers) from low-frequency functions (such as menu settings). Through a zoned design, drivers can quickly locate key functions in emergencies, reducing the probability of misoperation. At the same time, reliability is even more pronounced in extreme conditions.

Today, the auto industry still has many pain points, and the range issue of new energy vehicles is one of them. If people can further solve range anxiety, the adoption rate of new energy vehicles will reach a new level. At the same time, there are also many controversies about the safety of driver assistance. Lei Jun, Chairman and CEO of Xiaomi Group, suggested clarifying the main responsibility of automakers, strengthening accountability for how production and sales companies correctly publicize and guide driver assistance features, and for implementing responsibilities such as informing and training users, so as to jointly create an ecosystem for safety management of intelligent connected vehicles.

Innovation built on the basic premise of safety has no end point. Li Shufu, Chairman of Geely Holding Group, suggested that automakers should stick to internal (endogenous) development. While consolidating cost and pricing advantages, they should focus on technological innovation, quality improvement, service optimization, brand building, and corporate ethics development, using core competitiveness to drive high-quality development in the automotive industry.

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