Tesla 'Dog Mode' Will Stop Pets From Overheating In Cars, Elon Musk Says (nzherald.co.nz)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his fleet of electric vehicles will be getting a "dog mode" to protect pets from overheating. The feature, which will be rolled out next week, will be able to detect when a pet is locked inside the car -- and keep the temperature at a safe level. The New Zealand Herald reports: There will also likely be a display or some form of communication to inform passers-by that the dog is safe. The feature was added after Musk was inundated with tweets from customers. In October, one Tesla driver asked him: "Can you put a dog mode on the Tesla Model 3. "Where the music plays and the air conditioning is on, with a display on screen saying 'I'm fine my owner will be right back?'" Musk replied: "Yes."

'Dog mode' will likely be an extension of Tesla's Cabin Overheat Protection System. This already prevents temperatures inside the car from reaching unsafe levels when kids or pets are inside. But the screen in Tesla models is likely to now flash a message to pedestrians informing them that the pet inside is safe. The "dog mode" update will be launched at the same time as a "sentry mode" -- designed to ward off would-be thieves. Sentry Mode will use the dashcam to record footage in the event of an attempted break-in. And it is rumored the car will play loud classical music through the stereo system to draw attention to the intruder and encourage passersby to call the police.

Comments

Toddler mode

[quenda]

It is really "toddler mode", they just can't call it that for legal reasons.

On a related note, I know some parents who put their baby in the car and drove laps just to get the baby to sleep. Now they can stay home while the car does that!

Evolution of the feature

[steveha]

Using the Tesla mobile app, it has been possible for at least a couple years to leave the air conditioning on inside the car while leaving the car. I read about a Tesla owner who had a note taped to his car window: "This is a Tesla and its air conditioning is running. The dog is fine. Please don't break my window."

More recently Tesla added a feature where you could use the touchscreen to do the same thing. In the climate controls dialog there is a button, "leave climate control running when car is stopped."

Now the screen will be used to display a message telling people that the pets are fine, please don't break the window. Why not!

This is one of those emergent features that nobody predicted years ago.

Another one: Elon Musk wanted the Model 3 to have a clean look, so Tesla engineers wound up inventing a computer-controlled steerable air blower for the dashboard. You don't have to touch louvers to direct the air, you use a GUI on the touchscreen. This not only looks cleaner, but the computer remembers the air settings per driver, so if a husband and wife want different settings the car just handles it.

One day someone on Twitter said "Hey Elon Musk, when I use the mobile app to turn on the air conditioning and cool down my Model 3 when it's been parked in the sun on a hot day, how about pointing the air blowers at the seats to cool them down?" And Elon Musk replied "Great idea, I'll make it happen." (Quotes paraphrased from memory.)