Ford files patent to allow self-driving cars to drive away from their owners
Cars with electronics are nothing new but, as advanced tech like AI and 'always connected' systems begin to be integrated into vehicles, we're beginning to see the automotive industry look at how far it can push this stuff. The most egregious recent example has been BMW's attempts to nickel-and-dime customers of its expensive cars(opens in new tab) with microtransactions (which has rather brilliantly led to car owners pirating their own vehicles' features(opens in new tab)), but now the Ford Motor Company says hold my beer.
Ford applied for a US patent in August 2021 which was published last week on February 23 (thanks, TheDrive(opens in new tab)). It's called «Systems and Methods to Repossess a Vehicle»(opens in new tab) and goes into detail on a proposed system that would allow Ford, in circumstances where customers are behind on payments, to gradually crimp the car's functionality and make the owner's life unpleasant before, in extreme scenarios, the car just… drives itself away to a repossession lot or a dump.
Yes: In the future, if Ford says so, you may well see your car just take off.
The patent says that the system will implement an escalating series of steps, and we're about to get a little dystopian here. If an owner begins to miss payments on their car, Ford's system will begin to disable «functionality of one or more components of the vehicle» which includes almost everything from window controls to the god damn engine.
«Every time the owner is in the vehicle» the system can begin to play an «incessant and unpleasant sound»
The vehicle will warn its owner in stages and strip-back functionality before driving away. Initially the system will target minor features like «cruise control, automated window controls,
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