Orange and Valeo demonstrate NFC car key concept

Automotive components supplier Valeo has partnered with Orange to demonstrate a near field communication-based solution for sharing vehicles between several drivers.

The concept is designed to be used by either individuals or companies managing a fleet of vehicles and involves equipping each vehicle with NFC readers, designed by Valeo, that are installed in both the car door and the dashboard.

Drivers pre-book their usage of a vehicle via a dedicated website and are then sent a temporary, non-transferable key over-the-air to their NFC phone. When they get to the vehicle, they touch their phone to the car door to unlock it and touch it again to the dashboard to start the vehicle.

Advantages of the solution, says Valeo, include “avoiding any risk of losing keys thanks to virtual key transfer, and controlling and restricting the use of keys. In addition, management of vehicle loaning from the car-sharing site is optimized, the cost of use and maintenance can be shared, and the fleet’s carbon footprint is considerably reduced.”

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