Concepts are usually a stylish expression of the future, but Nissan is changing that up by unveiling a golf ball.
Before you dismiss it as yet another lifestyle product, know there’s more to this golf ball than meets the eye. In fact, it’s probably the most high-tech golf ball ever created as it was inspired by Nissan’s ProPILOT 2.0 driver assistance technology.
Designed to make putting a breeze, the golf ball “navigates its way across the green and into the cup on the first putt.” Nissan says it provides a “stress-free” golf experience as even a four year old comes out looking like a pro.
Before you start dreaming about making a fortune on side bets, know there are a few caveats. First and foremost, this is simply a concept and production has about as much of a chance as you scoring a hole-in-one.
Besides that, the golf ball needs to be guided by an overhead camera which detects the position of the ball and the cup. When a player hits the ball, it “calculates the correct route based on the ball’s movement and adjusts its trajectory.” In order to do this, the golf ball has been outfitted with an assortment of sensors and an internal electric motor.
There’s no word on how long the golf ball can travel, but Nissan created it to help promote the ProPILOT 2.0 semi-autonomous driving system that debuted in the Skyline. The system allows for so-called “ramp-to-ramp” driving as it can automatically drive the car on the highway from the entrance ramp to the exit ramp.