Remember Christine, KITT and Herbie the Love Bug? Cars that drove themselves—autonomous they were called. What was restricted to fantasy and science fiction is now on the brink of reality, and Nissan hopes to become the leader in the self-driving car industry; it unveiled its NSC-2015 prototype at Japan’s CREATEC 2012 exposition this month. The electric car parks itself and can warn its owner if a burglar strikes.

The car—a modified version of the Nissan Leaf—operates through cloud computer services and can not only self-park, but also drive to the owner if summoned with a smartphone. Nissan has designed the car with a 360-degree camera, as well as a 4G mobile connection, which sets it apart from other self-parking vehicles that operate through GPS systems. The mobile connection enables the car to “see” its surroundings, as well as sync with smart phones to allow future updates as additional abilities are developed.

The Nissan-2015 self-parking ability mirrors a traditional valet. The driver can exit the car at a convenient location, such as a parking garage elevator or restaurant entrance, and the car will drive itself to a vacant parking space. When the driver is ready to depart, he or she simply presses some buttons on a smartphone and the car pulls out and picks up its party.
The car’s camera and sensors act as its security system, as well. They can transmit photos, video and alerts to the driver’s phone. The driver can opt to sound an alarm if necessary. According to Nissan, by the time the car debuts on the market, it may be able to actually make an arrest.

“The NSC-2015 is focused on time management and security,” said Nissan. To save time, the NSC-2015 parks itself and returns to pick you up. The self-parking function is expected to work only in parking lots designed for robotic cars. A smartphone connected to the Automated Valet Parking technology allows a driver to maintain full control, remotely.”

Nissan states the car’s features may reach production by 2015. Although self-driving cars are not currently legal, several states, including California, are working toward laws that accommodate the technology.

Samantha Lile

Samantha Lile is a 2002 Missouri State University graduate of journalism and mass media. She has served as a reporter and editor for various newspapers throughout her journalism career. She made the leap into writing full-time after working for a major financial institution since 2000.

Because of her banking background, Samantha is knowledgeable in finance reporting, but is also strong in commentaries, personal profiles, youth studies, horticulture, history and entertainment-related works.

Samantha lives in Ozark, Mo. with her husband of nine years, four dogs and two cats.

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