For Volkswagen, a bumper sticker should say more than just a clever proverb or a humorous quip. Volkswagen’s Electronics Research Laboratory is developing a high-tech bumper sticker that will let drivers indicate their mood. The wafer-thin, highly-flexible programmable foil sticker will display text and images like a computer screen. It will continuously update what the driver’s emotional state is, so that the following drivers will know.

This shows how Volkswagen, as well as other automakers, is hard at work to improve communication between drivers. “You can let the traffic behind you know how you are feeling or say whatever you want to say as the mood takes you”, says VW’s ERL based in Palo Alto California. Other ideas on the drawing boards include an on-board heart rate monitor or other vital signs monitor that lets other drivers know the driver’s condition.

Meanwhile, Steven Kozak, safety engineer at Ford Motor Corp. explains how communication between drivers can help drivers save up on fuel. Cars equipped with vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology driving on the same road can line up to a “platooning” pattern, similar to how a wedge of geese flies. This can considerably improve aerodynamics as the front vehicle will break the air and the following vehicles will experience less drag. The front vehicle wouldn’t realize the fuel savings, however.

Communication technologies like these can do wonders to help prevent road rage. A few months ago we featured an LED display that lets drivers display preprogrammed text messages like “Sorry”, “Thanks”, “Please”, “Please Call 911” and “Help”. The invention even won an award as outstanding new product design and invention from Popular Mechanics.