Renault and has developed a prototype for a digital car maintenance 'book', using Blockchain technology, in collaboration with Microsoft and Viseo.
Blockchain technology ensures data in the car passport is stored in a secure and transparent manner.
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Currently, information about customers and their vehicles is spread across multiple information systems maintained by automakers, insurers, repair shops, and so on. A digital book, with open architecture, gathers all important information in one place accessible by the customer. If an owner wants to sell a vehicle, he/she can make information about the history of the vehicle more transparent by authorising the potential buyer to access all the data, creating more trust between the buyer and the seller, Renault thinks.
"This digital car maintenance book will enable us to provide our customers with new services in an ecosystem alongside insurers and dealers. Blockchain technology is able to create a reliable trust protocol," said Elie Elbaz, digital and connected vehicles director for Renault. "Beyond this project, this technology will be a major step forward for connected vehicles and the micro-transactions and security requirements associated with them."
Microsoft provided access to its Azure Blockchain technology, an "open, agile and cost-effective platform and toolset used to develop and deploy the solution".
Viseo, a consulting firm with expertise in Blockchain, oversaw the overall technological implementation of the project (working closely with BitSe, a Chinese start-up) as well as the user design.
"We believe in the potential of the Blockchain technology, especially for what it can bring in the evolution of the transparency of relationships between economic partners of a B2B ecosystem. We have dedicated teams in our digital factories, which allows us to incubate projects such as the one conducted with Renault. We have been able to deliver in a few weeks a complete digital asset ready to scale-up," said managing director Eric Perrier.
Renault and its RCI Bank and Services subsidiary were able to access expertise that is not yet commonly available, enabling them to grasp the various technological options and identify business opportunities early on in the process.
