BMW has transformed its 5 Series Sedan into a futuristic concept vehicle that can drive and park itself, understand gestures and even receive drone deliveries on the road.
The German automotive brand has utilised connected home technologies into its conceptual car prototype, unveiled this week at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
Its aim is to demonstrate how the next generation of personal vehicles will not only feature automated driving, but will also be able to connect up with the owners' other electronic devices, via the internet of things.
"Connectivity means extensive data sharing, which is not only important for safe and convenient mobility with a highly automated element but opens up other possibilities too," said BMW.
"For example, intelligent connectivity between the vehicle, the driver and the outside world also creates new opportunities for drivers to plan their personal mobility experience and integrate it with the rest of their daily life."
Featuring a futuristic exterior with concealed wheels and strip lighting, the modified Sedan is linked up to BMW's digital platform, the Open Mobility Cloud.
Users can connect to this using smartphones and smartwatches, or via digital touch points on the car.
This system is able to recognise different methods of communication.
It includes voice recognition, as well as a gesture-control system, allows users to give different types of instruction or to source information about their surroundings.
One of the major features the car could offer in the future is Amazon En-Route Delivery.
By order goods through the app, drivers could schedule drone deliveries further along the route.
An intelligent automated driving mode is included, which is able to notify drivers in advance about which sections of the route can be fully automated.
This makes it easy to plan other activities – in fact, visuals of the car show a bookshelf integrated into the interior.
For sections of the road where the driver takes control, information systems can help to make the journey easier, for instance, real-time traffic light information will let drivers know how long they have before the next green.
Another feature is a robot valet parking service – a fully automated parking procedure, similar to the one that Faraday Future is also presenting at CES.
The driver is sent a text notification once the car is parked.
BMW is among a number of automotive brands presenting at CES, which runs from 5 to 8 January 2017. For example, Toyota is showing a concept car equipped with an artificial intelligence system.
But this isn't the first radical concept BMW has revealed in the past year – the company has also come up with a motorcycle that can't fall over, a shared MINI that changes colour depending on its user and a shape-shifting car with artificial intelligence.
The company ranked 67th in the Dezeen Hot List, a countdown of the hottest brands, designers and architects in the world.