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Jaguar Land Rover tech tracks brainwaves, heart, lungs

Jaguar Land Rover has been on a bit of a tech kick lately, and its latest is called Mind Sense, which uses biometric sensors to monitor and enhance the driver's level of alertness. Jaguar is installing brainwave sensors adapted from NASA into the steering wheel of an XJ sedan, along with medical-grade heart and respiratory sensors in the seat. Together, the sensors would determine if the driver is focused on the road, dozing off, merely thinking about something else, or if the driver's stress level suddenly peaks. The system would enable the vehicle to better prepare for an emergency, or for a future autonomous vehicle to hand off control to a better-prepared driver where needed. At the same time, JLR is also working on an enhanced infotainment system designed to reduce the amount of time the driver's hands are off the wheel and their eyes are off the road. The system determines which control they're reaching for on the display and engages it while their finger is still in mid-air, deploying an ultrasonic pulse to provide artificial haptic feedback without actually having to touch anything. Finally, a new haptic accelerator pedal is under development that could alert the driver to respond to an impending situation without overloading the senses with chimes and beeps. These latest developments follow the demonstration of a remote-control system installed on a Range Rover Sport, and follow in a long line of new technologies under development by the British automaker. JAGUAR LAND ROVER ROAD SAFETY RESEARCH INCLUDES BRAIN WAVE MONITORING TO IMPROVE DRIVER CONCENTRATION AND REDUCE ACCIDENTS - Jaguar Land Rover's pioneering Mind Sense project is researching measuring brainwaves to monitor driver concentration in the car - Researchers are developing a Wellness Seat in a Jaguar XJ which analyses the driver's heart rate and breathing to monitor driver health and stress - Touchscreens that predict which button you want to press as the user's fingers are in mid-air - to minimise time spent with eyes off the road - Jaguar Land Rover researchers use new haptic accelerator pedal to communicate hazards to the driver Whitley, UK: Jaguar Land Rover has revealed a range of new road safety technology research projects that are being developed to reduce the number of accidents caused by drivers who are stressed, distracted and not concentrating on the road ahead.

European automakers gear up for Brazilian production

Brazil is the place to be, apparently. Toyota has been investing in the South American country, as has BMW, which announced a $261 million investment in October 2012, on the heels of an Audi factory announcement in San José Chiapa. The high-end immigration is only set to continue, as Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar-Land Rover have both announced plans to set up manufacturing operations there.
Mercedes is the big news here, as its new facility will see the German manufacturer invest 170-million euros for production of its next-generation C-Class and upcoming GLA-Class. "Brazil is an important future market. With our local production we accept the challenge and take on the competition," noted Andreas Renschler, Management Board member for Production and Procurement at Mercedes-Benz Cars and Mercedes-Benz Vans. Production is expected to begin by 2016.
Jaguar-Land Rover, meanwhile, isn't so concrete in its plans. The news of its investment in South America comes from a job posting for a plant quality manager in Brazil that was picked up by the UK's AutoCar. "Portuguese language skills will be definite advantage" for interested candidates, according to the job listing. The want ad follows on the heels of remarks by Jaguar Land Rover's Dr. Ralph Speth, who said there are "very intensive discussions" with Brazil's government. Unlike Mercedes, there's no mention of which vehicles will be produced in South America, although AutoCar thinks the Freelander, sold in the US as the LR2, is a leading contender.

Jaguar Land Rover creates new Special Operations division for halo vehicles, bespoke commissions

Jaguar Land Rover has announced that a new division of the British manufacturer will be dedicated to "bespoke commissions," as well as heritage products and apparel. Oh, and the new Special Operations division will also be behind JLR's halo cars from now on.
It's that last one that is the most tantalizing, as the last real halo product to see production from Jaguar was the XJ220. The Range Rover, meanwhile, has always had its own kind of halo reputation, although the Land Rover brand itself has never really gotten into the game with a dedicated model.
According to JLR, the new halo models will focus on ultra-high performance and luxury with a limited run of vehicles. The bespoke models, meanwhile, will give the wealthiest customers full sway over how vehicles are outfitted, with unique paints, trims and other accessories. The new SpecOps division will be run by John Edwards.