Mach-e Voice Commands

[MikeC]

I submitted the following ideas to Ford to improve the voice commands:-

1) Voice command to switch on/off the heated seats.

2) Voice command to switch on/off the heated steering wheel.

3) Voice command to switch on/off the heated rear window.

4) Voice command to switch on/off the heated windscreen.

5) Voice command to switch on/off max defrost.

Ford rejected my idea, not giving any specific reason, apart from what seems like a standard/automated answer shown below:-

‘If your idea was eligible for review per the Rules, Terms and Conditions of our website, evaluation has been based on many factors, but two major elements are: 1) improvement upon current technology, and 2) cost. Our technical specialists have reviewed your idea and concluded that Ford will not be investigating further development of your particular idea, nor acquiring any rights on your behalf.’

Anything you have to do which distracts you from concentrating on driving is a real safety issue.  Many accidents are caused due to driving distraction. When my ‘butt’ is burning and I want to turn off the heated seat, I have to press the touch screen twice, which I find is a big distraction. From Ford’s response, it would seem that safety is not particularly high on their priority list…I sincerely hope not! Everything on the Mach-e’s central screen is software controlled, so to improve the Voice Commands is purely down to writing additional code.

You can use the Voice Command to set the temperature (e.g. Set temperature to 22degC) which saves you having to look down at the screen to change the temperature which is a detraction from driving. Accessing Voice Commands is activated by either pressing the button on the steering wheel or using a Voice Command to activate Voice Commands (I use ‘ok Ford’). 

As I understand it, Ford are looking at using Alexa and maybe Siri (?) to add Voice Commands.

The FordPass App could therefore be linked to the central screen with the above Voice Commands added to the App. This means your Phone needs to be in non sleep mode and the Alexa App open for Alexa voice commands to work.

[MikeC]

Hello Ford,

Posted my above message on the 13th Feb and so far nobody has commented. I would appreciate it if you could say something….is it a worthy idea or not?

Thanks in advance.

[MikeC]

Hello @Darren. Any chance in getting a response?

[Darren]

Hi @MikeC, apologies the status looks like it didn't update correctly but your idea has been moved to investigating. At present we are running a process where we review on a monthly basis once the idea has had time to circulate in this space and gain visibility to other users. We will be reaching out to the appropriate teams to gain a feasibility for this and either way will post back with an answer once we hear, hopefully within the next week. 

[MikeC]

Hi @Darren , Many thanks 👍

[JeffsHP]

Hi Mike I really appreciate your comments:

I don't own a Ford I have rented a Ford Edge 4 times in the last year.  The screen activation of the heated seats and steering wheel are dangerous and difficult to activate or deactivate while driving.  Vehicle movement makes precise location of the button on the screen almost impossible without multiple attempts.  If it weren't for the presence of my wife as copilot, I could easily envision the inattention from the road resulting in an accident.  Thank goodness for the enhanced cruise control with lane centering to keep eyes on the road while trying to activate the heated seats, steering wheel or temperature controls especially while driving solo.  I agree with your suggestions such as voice activation or at least a physical shelf or lip to stabilize the hand while locating the controls or return to the old school of physical button with a tactile surface on the steering wheel. 

[MikeC]

Hi Jeff, many thanks. I just find it extremely annoying that one of Ford’s reasons for not implementing the voice commands as stated in my original post is ‘cost’. It feels like they are putting a price on the cost of a human life. I would have thought by now in these days of wonderful technology that anything that caused driver distraction would have been better thought out. As you say a physical button would have been great, with easy access to switch off ‘everything heated’. We have a physical button to the left of the light switch for max defrost, together with the touch screen icon, so why not have an easy access physical button to switch off ‘everything heated’ (or better still…….you guessed it, Voice Commands 😀). Maybe with the rumours about Alexa coming we’ll eventually have it 🤞.