club Toyota - Spring/Summer 2017 English

SMALL TALK WITH FEELING
Cute, cuddly and compact, the Kirobo Mini just wants to
be friends. The miniature “communication partner” is designed
to provide companionship by engaging in casual conversation
with its owner.
It will be sold through Toyota dealerships in Japan in 2017,
and currently speaks Japanese only.
The little robot moves its head, blinks, uses hand gestures
and responds to human emotion. Small enough to fit into
the palm of your hand, it can go almost anywhere — and it
remembers where it has been.
It’s all made possible by connecting the Kirobo Mini via
Bluetooth to smartphones installed with a dedicated app.
A built-in camera enables the Kirobo Mini to recognize facial
expressions and adjust its communication content and
style accordingly.
It uses connected services to get information from the home
and vehicle to provide pertinent and companionable comments
such as “That was a long drive” and “Welcome home!”.
The Kirobo Mini is part of the Toyota Heart Project,
which aims to develop a distinctly human-like interaction
between people and machines. It’s based on the concept of
“Inspiring the Heart, Inspiring You” which is something that
Toyota applies on a daily basis to automobile manufacturing
and more.
What’s stopping you?
Maintenance and service of your braking system is vital.
Your Toyota Dealer uses Toyota Genuine braking components
and Quality Service to give you peace of mind every time you
brake. Speak to our expert Toyota service team about our brake
service and maintenance and stop with confidence.
RISKY THINKING ABOUT
AUTOMATED VEHICLES
Misconceptions about automated vehicles and
over-confidence in their technologies are cause
for alarm, according to the Traffic Injury Research
Foundation and the Toyota Canada Foundation.
The two groups partnered on a survey of more than
2,600 Canadians, exploring what they know about semiand
fully-automated vehicles, and what they think about
them. It seems that they don’t know nearly enough.
Almost one in six believe they would not have to be
an attentive driver or have to take unexpected control
of a semi-automated vehicle. Nearly a quarter say they
would drive one when tired or fatigued and 17 per cent
would engage in a non-driving activity like texting or
reading. Ten per cent would sleep or nap behind the wheel,
with nine per cent saying they would drink and drive.
While advanced active safety technology is meant to
enhance a driver’s control of a vehicle, it doesn’t replace
a knowledgeable and attentive driver, said Stephen Beatty,
Vice-President, Toyota Canada.
“This study tells us that we, as an industry, have lots of
work to do when it comes to educating drivers about the
capabilities and limitations of the technology,” he said.
The study also shed light on other key issues that
the advent of automated vehicles will bring, such as
insurance costs, collision liability and fault, and ethical
decision-making concerns that will shape the way
automated vehicles respond in an unavoidable collision.
TOYOTA HYBRIDS REACH 10 MILLION MARK
Since 2000, Canadians have purchased more than 130,000
Toyota hybrid vehicles, helping to push Toyota’s cumulative global
hybrid vehicles sales to more than 10 million vehicles.
Toyota sells 34 different hybrid models in more than 90 countries.
Last year was also a record setter for hybrid sales in Canada with
19,787 Toyota hybrids sold.
These tremendous sales numbers help prove the staying power
of this technology that has become part of a broader solution
to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants.
“When we launched Prius, no one even knew what
a hybrid was. Those who drove it were called geeks
or other names. Today, thanks to those early
adopters who gave Prius a chance, hybrids
have grown in popularity, and have ridden a
wave of success out of the unknown and into
the mainstream,” said Takeshi Uchiyamada,
Chairman of the Board of Directors at Toyota
1 IN 6
ALMOST
BELIEVE THEY WOULD
NOT HAVE TO BE AN
ATTENTIVE DRIVER
WHEN
NEARLY
17 PER CENT
WOULD ENGAGE IN A
NON-DRIVING ACTIVITY
A QUARTER
SAY THEY WOULD
DRIVE
LIKE TEXTING
OR READING
TIRED OR FATIGUED
Motor Corporation. “We are grateful to each and every one of our
customers who has helped us achieve this important milestone of
10 million hybrid sales." Toyota hybrids sold in Canada include the
Prius family, Camry Hybrid, RAV4 Hybrid and Highlander Hybrid.
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