Ford Reveals Voice Locking Wheel Nuts To Combat UK Car Crime
Car Crime, Technology, Vehicle SafetyIn its latest effort to cut car crime Ford has revealed its latest car security technological innovation, a voice-controlled locking wheel nut mechanism.
Video Credit: Ford
This brand-new technology will protect the wheels of Ford owners by creating a unique bolt and lock mechanism out of your own voice pattern, preventing a bolt from being copied or cloned.
Ford engineers record the driver’s voice, before this is converted into a printable pattern indented onto the wheel nut using 3D printing technology. The nut and key are produced at the same time before being separated after the production process.
Image Credit: Ford
Image Credit: Ford
Image Credit: Ford
This clever technology will help make significant improvements in reducing Ford car theft, as thieves will have greater difficulty removing the nuts to gain access to the alloy wheel sets.
Beyond the unique voice-controlled design - which can include your initials or pattern taken from a special interest – the use of an uneven design will ensure thieves cannot take a wax imprint of the wheel nut pattern.
Currently, would-be-thieves can simply jack up a car and remove the wheels, with a recent spate of wheel thefts taking place in Birmingham. Alloy wheels are a popular and easy upgrade for car enthusiasts. This means they are in high demand for criminals as they present an easy opportunity to make money, with some sets costing over £1,000.
Raphael Koch, Ford Advanced Materials and Processes research engineer, said: “It’s one of the worst experiences for a driver, to find their car up on blocks with all four wheels gone.
“Some alloy wheels can cost thousands to replace, but these unique rim nuts will stop thieves in their tracks.
“Making wheels more secure and offering more product personalisation are further proof that 3D printing is a game-changer for car production.”
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