Auto Robot CoPilot#
The co-pilot that watches the road ahead of you, by car or by motorbike, even without a satnav#
Project presentation and proposals for the future. Version 1.3, September 2026
The examples are set in Milan with illustrative data; the black-box figures come from real test drives (places not shown).
๐ฆ The key message: Auto Robot CoPilot recognises your routes by itself and warns you about roadworks, slowdowns and speed cameras based on the direction you're heading, automatically, without setting a route.
๐ฃ๏ธ And it doesn't just warn you: it helps you avoid queues, roadworks, speed cameras, tolls you don't need and the potholes you've reported. It picks the right road and tells you what it avoids: "โ Avoids Viale Fulvio Testi (queue, roadworks)".
๐๐๏ธ For the car and for the motorbike. The first time you open it you choose Car, Motorbike or Both: each has its own profile. In the car, the map is always on screen and the voice turns the music down; on the motorbike, vibration, beep and voice alerts from your phone, a radar view you can read at a glance and glove mode with big buttons. If you use both, you switch between them with one tap.
๐ก Your ideas count. This is a test version: if you have an idea, a proposal or something is missing, write to us from the app, Settings โ Help โ ๐ก Suggest an improvement; for bugs use ๐ Report a problem. Type or dictate, tap Send and the message goes straight to the developer, no email needed. We read everything and the best ideas make it into the next versions.
Part A: presentation#
1. The problem#
People who drive the same road every day don't set up the satnav, because they already know the way. But Google Maps and other satnavs only warn you about queues and roadworks if you set a route.
The result: you're driving along calmly and suddenly find a queue, roadworks or a closed road in front of you, when it's too late to take another road.
2. The solution#
Auto Robot CoPilot is an app for cars and motorbikes that works out by itself where you're going and warns you by voice, only about what's in your direction:
- ๐ท fixed speed cameras
- ๐ queues and standstill traffic
- ๐ง roadworks and lane closures
- โ road closures
- ๐ฅ accidents
Nothing to set up: open the app and the assistant starts by itself.
It doesn't just warn you: it helps you avoid#
When you say where you're going (or it recognises a usual trip), Auto Robot CoPilot compares the roads using live traffic and takes you on the one that avoids the problems:
| Avoids | How |
|---|---|
| ๐ Queues | Live TomTom traffic; if there's a queue on your usual road it offers "๐ Faster route: โN min" |
| ๐ง Roadworks and road closures | The recommended route says what it avoids: "โ Avoids Viale Fulvio Testi (roadworks)". If during the trip the road further ahead is closed (or, in the car, a queue costs at least 5 minutes) it suggests another road: "โ Problem on the route: there's another road" |
| ๐ฆ๏ธ Weather along the route | When you choose the destination you see the weather on arrival and, if thunderstorms, hail, snow, heavy rain, fog or strong wind are forecast along the way, a yellow box says what, when and where: "โ ๏ธ heavy rain on the route around 08:15 (at km 23)". On the motorbike it adds "think about going or pack rain gear"; when you set off the voice says it once. Open-Meteo forecasts for the time you'll pass. |
| ๐ท Speed cameras | Counts the speed cameras on each alternative (over 5,000 in Italy, even without internet) |
| ๐ฐ Tolls | On daily trips it hides toll motorways; "Avoid toll roads" switch |
| ๐ณ๏ธ Potholes | The ones you report with one tap: it warns you when you pass that way again |
The icon tells the story: a friendly robot at the bottom, a road leading to the horizon, and white radar waves picking out a yellow hazard triangle, on a blue-green background.
3. How it works, in 3 steps#
| # | Step | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Works out where you're going | When you really set off (above 15 km/h) it guesses the trip from your habits (where you start, what time, what day); then it confirms it from the road you take (e.g. Viale Zara) and from your usual routes |
| 2 | Looks ahead | Checks the road ahead of you with live TomTom data and OpenStreetMap speed cameras, ignoring the opposite carriageway |
| 3 | Warns you at the right moment, without nagging | Only about problems on your route, about 2.5 minutes of driving ahead. If it doesn't know where you're going it stays almost silent: only speed cameras and nearby problems on the same road |
It helps, it doesn't nag: the black-box figures#
On a home โ work test drive, in the morning and with no destination, the previous version gave 12 traffic alerts: nearly all on roads never driven (ring road, motorway, streets in other districts), some 10โ15 km away, plus a speed camera facing the other way. With the version 0.6 rules (Smart mode, route prediction, alerts within 1.5โ4 km, speed cameras matched to the direction of travel) none of those 12 alerts would have been spoken. On another test drive in town, 5 alerts out of 6 really were about the road being driven.
4. Main features (version 1.3)#
| Feature | In short |
|---|---|
| ๐ Redesigned top box (new in 1.3) | When you follow a route, name, minutes, arrival time and weather sit at the top: in full when stopped, on a single line while moving; the โ at the top ends the route. At the bottom only the "โ Active ๐๏ธ" pill remains, with the round ๐ผ/๐๏ธ trip type button (no km/h, the speedometer already shows it). The mode is always visible: ๐๏ธ on a blue circle or ๐ on an orange circle in the events panel, with a border of the same colour |
| ๐งญ Clearer route preview (1.3) | The card starts reduced at the top (alternatives with the extra minutes and Start), the map below stays clear; โ opens the details. The chosen route is highlighted and only it shows events and minutes; thin, light alternatives; small icons from far away. The Back button closes the preview (and "Your trips") and the ๐ฏ reset closes the preview and ends the route you started |
| ๐ Quick slide guide (1.3) | On first launch and from Settings; swipe with your finger or use Next / Back |
| ๐ Satnav-style screen (new in 1.1) | Instead of the dot, a red car seen from above or a blue motorbike with rider, turning in your direction of travel; while you're moving it sits lower down to show more of the road ahead. Big, sharp MapTiler map, big icons, thicker route lines |
| ๐ Speedometer with speed limit (new in 1.1) | Round speedometer at the bottom left with the road's speed limit sign taken from TomTom (if it isn't known: 130 on motorways, 110 on expressways; with a speed camera within 1.5 km its limit applies). More than 3 km/h over the limit a red ring surrounds the speedometer (since 1.3.6), on motorways and expressways too |
| ๐ Sound 300 m before a speed camera (new in 1.1) | In the vehicle profile (car and motorbike separate): ๐ None, Beep, Double (default), 3 tones, Siren; tap a choice to hear it straight away. It depends on your speed: within the limit just one sound at 300 m; over the limit it repeats every 2.5 seconds from 400 m until you slow down or pass the speed camera |
| ๐ท Speed camera voice alert in metres (new in 1.1) | No longer "N seconds before": in the vehicle profile choose 300, 500 (default), 800 or 1000 m ("Speed camera in 500 metres, limit 50") |
| ๐ท Speed camera panel (new in 1.1) | Within 1 km of a speed camera, at the top left: speed limit sign, metres left and "๐ท 97 km/h", your speed, the one the speed camera would measure. Over the limit it turns red |
| Speed shown like the dashboard (new in 1.1) | The dashboard always shows a bit more, by law: choose GPS (real, default), +5%, +8% or +10%. It only changes the number shown; limits and alerts always use the real speed |
| ๐ Zoom and highlighted road (new in 1.1) | The map starts slightly more zoomed in; pinch-zoom doesn't detach the map from your position and is remembered (+ / โ too). With no route the last stretch driven (about 800 m) is blue with a white border; with a route the next 600 m are bright light blue and the line is thicker |
| ๐ Bin and โญ places on the map (new in 1.1) | Every itinerary and every trip in the history has its own small bin (deletes only that one, with confirmation). Tap home, work or a โญ on the map: โ๏ธ Rename, ๐ Move (then press and hold the new spot), ๐ Delete |
| โฑ Time left to arrival (new in 1.1) | With a usual route recognised or guessed (e.g. Home โ Work) or chosen, the status panel shows "20 min" in large type, then the arrival time and the km; on the radar "โฑ Left 20 min". It takes real traffic into account (TomTom) and is on screen only, not spoken |
| โ Problem on the route (new in 1.1) | Road closed further ahead or, in the car, a queue costing at least 5 minutes: the app looks for another road and suggests it ("Problem on the way to Work: here's another road"). Roadworks with the road still passable stay an alert; on the motorbike queues stay yellow and don't change the road |
| โค New bottom bar (1.1) | โ Settings, the big "โค Where to?" button, ๐/๐๏ธ and the round red โ / green โถ button to stop or start the assistant; the ๐ผ/๐๏ธ trip type is a round button in the status panel |
| ๐งญ Route preview (new in 1.1) | Cards for the alternatives with "+7 min" and a green / yellow / red bar; km in large type, main roads ("Via SS7bis, Via โฆ"), traffic delay, speed cameras, tolls and a big Start button |
| ๐ถ Trip reliability (new in 1.1) | 5-notch bar on the tile of each learned itinerary: from "just learned" (1 trip) to "excellent reliability" (10 or more) |
| ๐ค Voice dictation (new in 1.1) | Microphone ๐ค in "Where to?": say your destination and the search starts (Android speech recognition, free, no extra permissions). Suggestions and reports can be dictated with the microphone too |
| ๐จ New look (new in 1.1) | At the top, the next problem shown large (coloured tile, distance, what and where, "+N" opens the list; on the motorbike queues are "passable with care"); speedometer next to the panel with route and arrival time; drawn icons; blue for actions, yellow for minor problems, red for blockages and speed cameras; "N speed cameras on the route" and "No tolls" / "Toll" labels on the route card |
| ๐ก Radar view | Instead of the map, a radar you can read at a glance: green with a few small arcs when the road is clear, red bars (speed cameras, queues) or orange ones (roadworks) that grow as you get closer; distance and road in the middle, speed (red over the limit) and limit sign at the top; with a route "โฑ Left 20 min". The background is slightly see-through so you can glimpse the map. Speed camera voice and sound work just like on the map (see below) |
| ๐ฎ Guesses where you're going | When you really set off (above 15 km/h), it uses your habits (place, time, day) to switch on the likely route, if you've made it at least 2 times: "Heading to Work? I will only warn you about problems on this route." While stationary it suggests no route; if you take another road it goes quiet again. Out loud it only says the destination ("Usual route recognised: Work", "You have arrived: Work"); on screen it stays "Home โ Work". In 1.1 it also recognises occasional trips (e.g. the beach, including those saved from the history) when you start driving them, it's tolerant (a side street to buy cigarettes or a different roundabout won't make it lose the route) and usual routes are shared between car and motorbike |
| ๐คซ Smart mode | Without a destination: only speed cameras and nearby problems on the same road. Alternatively "The whole road ahead" or "Only my routes" |
| ๐ท Speed cameras facing the right way | 1,283 speed cameras with direction of travel (583 from the one-way carriageway in OpenStreetMap); for the others the app learns which side of the road they're on. Never hidden: if they seem to be for the other direction it warns with "maybe for the other direction" |
| ๐บ๏ธ Map like a satnav | MapTiler map with OpenStreetMap data. Blue route with the part already driven in grey, alternatives with "+2 min", automatic framing, orientation of your choice (direction / north / free), only the events along the route |
| ๐๏ธ Map layers and ๐ My trips | The layers button opens a grid of tiles with big icons and one word (Cameras, Traffic, Motorways, Trips, Radar) plus the orientation (Auto, Heading, North, Free); your usual trips in purple with current problems ("โ ๏ธ 1 ยท ๐ท 2") |
| โ Report | Yellow round button on the map: speed camera, pothole, rough road, other. It stays on the phone and warns you when you pass that way again |
| ๐ Home and ๐ผ Work by themselves | After one day of there-and-back it works out where you spend the night (home) and where you arrive in the morning (work) and asks you to confirm; one trip there and one back, even on different roads, are enough for a usual route |
| โ Screen your way | Button column can be dragged to the right or left, top and bottom panels can be moved with a handle |
| โฑ Arrival and rest | "12 min ยท 8.2 km ยท arrive 17:18" with real traffic, on screen only; ends automatically when you stop at your destination ("You have arrived: Work"); after a long stop it rests using minimal battery and restarts by itself |
| Alerts without a route | Recognises direction and routes by itself. Voice only above ~15 km/h for 10 s, only for what's in your direction; in town, side streets only if straight ahead |
| Car and Motorbike | First choice with big icons (๐ / ๐๏ธ / Both). Separate profiles: voice, beep, vibration, keep screen on, battery saver, speed-camera voice alert distance (in metres) and 300 m sound; usual routes are shared. On the motorbike, vibration, beep and voice from the phone, radar view and glove mode; queues in yellow, closures in red |
| ๐งค Glove mode (motorbike) | On the bike, bigger buttons (about 64โ68 dp) with more space between them. On the map only โ settings, โ report, ๐ก radar and ๐ฏ re-centre (zoom, layers, favourites and the handle are for the car or when stopped); at the bottom a bigger "โค Where to?", ๐/๐๏ธ and โ /โถ; a bigger ๐ผ/๐๏ธ button. In the car nothing changes |
| ๐ โ ๐๏ธ Car/motorbike switch (1.1) | With Both and the assistant on, the bottom bar has a blue ๐๏ธ MOTORBIKE or orange ๐ CAR button: one tap switches to the other vehicle and its colour always shows the mode (the status panel only says Active / Paused); when you switch, a big box in the middle shows "๐ โ ๐๏ธ Motorbike mode" (or "๐๏ธ โ ๐ Car mode") for about 2 seconds |
| Auto start | Starts by itself when you open the app or choose a destination; opening the app wakes it up straight away if it's paused. After a stop it rests and restarts by itself when you move (in deep rest, balanced location accurate to about 100 m, and a restart after at least 400 m or at vehicle speed) or as soon as it connects to the car's Bluetooth (recognised on first connection). Only if you switched it off with Stop do you need to tap the "Are you driving?" notification when you connect to the car |
| Alerts your way | Identical events on the same road grouped together, optional "Caution", 1 to 3 repeats for speed cameras and traffic |
| Offline speed cameras | 5,176 fixed Italian speed cameras already in the app, plus the lists for other countries downloaded from our website (a little at a time, updated every week) |
| Live traffic | Queues, roadworks, closures and accidents from TomTom |
| Clean screen | MapTiler map with big icons by type and round buttons with drawn icons (+, โ, layers, list, radar, favourites, ๐ฏ, โ). Icons and short labels instead of long text: explanations open only with โ. Compact events panel: when closed, big chips with an icon and a number for each type (or "โ No problems in the area"), a round list button that opens the list (blue with โฒ to close it) and a round "โ" button that shrinks it to a pill; events can be set aside (โ Seen) or muted (๐). Essential status panel: Active / Paused, red round โ to end the route, small โ ๏ธ for technical notices. The ๐ฏ crosshair goes back to start (follows your position, normal zoom, lists closed, panels back in place) and panels never cover the map buttons. The events panel starts shrunk to a pill and remembers whether you open or close it |
| "Where to?" (optional) | Big rounded search box, ๐ Home, ๐ผ Work and โญ Favourites shortcuts (one tap = routes), suggestions as you type, up to 3 routes with live traffic, roads crossed, slowdowns and speed cameras; the recommended one explains why ("โ Avoids Viale Fulvio Testiโฆ"). At the top, ๐ผ Daily and ๐๏ธ Occasional buttons for the trip type |
| Tolls and routes on the map | Each route says whether it's a toll road ("๐ฐ Toll road: A4 (38 km)") or toll-free. "Avoid toll roads" switch. With "๐บ๏ธ See routes on the map" the alternatives appear together in different colours (green recommended, blue, purple) with toll sections dashed in orange |
| More roads to choose from | Up to 5 alternatives, including local roads and the shortest route ("๐ Shortest", often through the centre). On ๐ผ daily trips toll routes are hidden: "๐ฐ Also show toll routes" |
| ๐ณ๏ธ Report pothole | One tap on the ๐ณ๏ธ button while driving saves the pothole, road and direction. When you pass again in the same direction: "Pothole in 200 metres". You can also add or delete one by pressing and holding on the map |
| Daily or occasional trips | Second first-launch choice with two icons: ๐ผ Daily (work, home: learns your routes and suggests faster ones) or ๐๏ธ Occasional (beach, days out: alerts in your direction of travel without turning the trip into a habit). Switch any time with the round ๐ผ/๐๏ธ button in the status panel at the bottom |
| My itineraries | Places, saved trips and usual routes as icon tiles, like on a computer desktop (3 per row, short name, reliability bar), split into ๐ผ Daily and ๐๏ธ Occasional. One tap and you're off; press and hold for the options: Go, Map, Rename, Move, Home/Work, Delete (with confirmation). Home, work and favourites have drawn icons. A trip from the history can be saved as an itinerary with one tap. A small bin in the corner deletes only that itinerary (with confirmation); every trip in the history has its bin too |
| ๐ง Learns YOUR roads | Every daily trip is remembered; different roads to the same destination stay separate (e.g. going home: via Viale Monza or via Viale Fulvio Testi). In "Where to?" they appear as "๐ง Your route" with the time worked out from current traffic along your road, and they're recommended if they're at most 3 minutes slower than the fastest. If you leave the recommended route for one of your own, the app follows it without insisting |
| ๐ท Speed checks visible before you set off | Each suggested route shows how many fixed speed checks you'll pass and, with one tap, where: road, distance and limit |
| ๐ Clear privacy | "Privacy and data" section in the app, location notice on first launch, "Delete all my data" button, link to the full privacy policy (autorobotcopilot.web.app/privacy). Fewer permissions: location, notifications and, only for the car's Bluetooth, nearby devices |
| ๐ก Suggestions and ๐ reports, no email (1.1) | In Settings โ Help: type or dictate, optionally attach the app screen, the latest app errors and up to 3 images from the gallery (๐ผ๏ธ Add images from the phone, no permissions) and with Send the message goes straight to the developer, to a Firebase database in Europe (Milan) that the app can only write to. The report after a crash is sent the same way |
| Places and usual routes | ๐ Home, ๐ผ Work, โญ with a long press. Trip history. After 2 similar trips it learns the route ("Home โ Work") and the usual time; if there's a better alternative it offers "๐ Faster route: โN min" |
| Explore mode | See roadworks, queues and speed cameras in any area before you set off |
| Smart battery use | Active, Paused, Resting and Off states. Works with the screen off. The notification doesn't appear on the lock screen |
| 6 languages | Italiano, English, Espaรฑol, Franรงais, Deutsch, Portuguรชs; voice and TomTom descriptions in the same language |
| Reliability | 35 automated tests on the logic in all 6 languages. Error reporting after a crash ("Send report", without location) and "Report a problem" |
๐ก The radar view, readable at a glance#
Designed for the motorbike (but useful in the car too): tap ๐ก on the map (or ๐๏ธ โ Radar) and instead of the map you get a radar watching the road ahead. The background is slightly see-through, so you can glimpse the map underneath.
| What you see | What it means |
|---|---|
| 3 small green arcs and "Road clear" | No problems ahead |
| Red arcs (speed cameras, queues), orange (roadworks), purple (closures); on the motorbike queues are yellow | There's a problem: more bars lit = closer (1 bar beyond 3 km, 5 bars under 300 m) |
| In the centre symbol, distance in large type and road | How far the next problem is, and where |
| At the top the speed (as chosen in "Speed shown") and the speed limit sign | The speed turns red if you're over the limit |
| "โฑ Left 20 min" | Time to arrival, with a recognised or chosen route |
With a speed camera ahead the voice warns you at the distance you chose (e.g. 500 m) and the 300 m sound repeats every 2.5 seconds if you're over the limit, just like on the map. ๐บ๏ธ Map at the bottom takes you back to the map.
5. An example story: Milan, Monday morning#
Luca lives in Sesto San Giovanni and works in Porta Nuova. As on every other day, he sets off without a satnav. On Viale Fulvio Testi he runs into roadworks and standstill traffic that nobody had warned him about: 12 minutes lost.
With Auto Robot CoPilot: - as soon as he really sets off, the app works out he's going to work (it's Monday, 07:50, and he's leaving from home) and tells him: "Heading to Work? I will only warn you about problems on this route."; on the status panel a large "20 min" appears with the arrival time; - 3 km before the roadworks: "Roadworks in 3 kilometres on Viale Fulvio Testi, about 12 minutes delay", and meanwhile it offers "๐ Faster route: โ8 min" via Viale Monza, a road Luca often takes and that the app has learnt; - it doesn't tell him about the queue on the ring road or roadworks in another district: they're not on his way.
In the evening, in "Where to?", the three roads home at rush hour are about the same (22โ24 minutes) and the app says so clearly, explaining that the recommended one avoids the speed camera on the Tangenziale Nord.
Illustrative example: the same situation was checked with real traffic data on a test drive.
6. Who it's for#
- Commuters who drive the same homeโwork route every day
- Motorcyclists, with vibration, beep and voice alerts from the phone, the radar view and glove mode
- People who ride both a car and a motorbike: two profiles, switch between them with one tap
- People who work on the road: sales reps, technicians, couriers, field staff
- Anyone driving in familiar areas who never opens the satnav
- Anyone who wants fewer surprises and less stress behind the wheel
7. What makes it different#
| Google Maps | Waze | Auto Robot CoPilot | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alerts without setting a route | โ Limited | โ ๏ธ Partial | โ Yes, built for this |
| Recognises your trips and suggests the fastest | โ ๏ธ | โ | โ |
| For cars and motorbikes: motorbike profile with radar view and glove mode | โ | โ | โ |
| Short, configurable voice, 6 languages | โ ๏ธ | โ ๏ธ | โ |
| Offline speed cameras | โ | โ | โ 5,176 included |
| Low-power pause when stationary and restarts by itself | โ | โ | โ |
| No account required | โ Google | โ Account recommended | โ |
8. How it's built#
- Kotlin Multiplatform: the logic (alerts, routes, voice, languages) lives in a shared module used by Android and iPhone. The iPhone app is ready, with the same main features, and is under review by Apple: it's coming soon to the App Store.
- Android app installed and tested on a Samsung S22 Ultra (Android 16).
- Data: 5,176 fixed Italian speed cameras from OpenStreetMap built into the app (they work offline) plus online updates; traffic, search and routes from TomTom (free plan: 2,500 requests a day); map from MapTiler (OpenStreetMap data, free plan).
- Google Play: published free as an open test in Italy, in 6 languages.
9. Roadmap#
Done (v1.3) โ top box and clearer route preview#
- โ Redesigned top box: with a route, name, minutes, arrival time and weather at the top (in full when stopped, a single line while moving), โ at the top to end it; at the bottom only the "โ Active ๐๏ธ" pill with the round ๐ผ/๐๏ธ trip type button
- โ Mode always visible: ๐๏ธ on a blue circle or ๐ on an orange circle in the events panel, with a border of the same colour
- โ ๐ฏ reset that also closes the preview and ends the route you started; closing the preview or "Your trips" returns the map to its normal view
- โ Clearer route preview: reduced card at the top (extra minutes and Start), โ for the details, chosen route highlighted, thin and light alternatives, small icons from far away; the Back button closes the preview instead of leaving the app
- โ "Your trips" can be reduced to see the trips on the map
- โ Favourite places: Rename, Move (pin you drag with your finger), Delete
- โ Search with the province abbreviation ("Cetara (SA)", not spoken) and a keyboard that closes by itself
- โ Weather on arrival for the recommended route in the "Routes to โฆ" list ("โ๏ธ 22ยฐ on arrival (10:00)")
- โ Trips from "Where to?" start as Occasional; after 2โ3 times the same trip becomes a favourite by itself
- โ Limit near speed cameras taken from the right stretch, read recently
- โ ๐ Quick slide guide on first launch and from Settings
- โ In the car, more compact map buttons that no longer cover the speedometer
- โ Privacy policy updated in 6 languages (MapTiler, Open-Meteo, suggestions database in Europe โ Milan)
Done (v1.1) โ satnav-style screen and restart fixed#
- โ On the motorbike queues are a minor problem in yellow ("passable with care"), closed roads and accidents stay red; a switch for each profile
- โ Vehicle icon instead of the dot: red car seen from above or blue motorbike with rider, facing the direction of travel; lower down the screen while you're moving
- โ Bigger, sharper MapTiler map (OpenStreetMap data), bigger icons, thicker route lines
- โ Speedometer with the road's speed limit from TomTom (130 on motorways and 110 on expressways if it isn't known; near a speed camera its limit applies) and a red dial over the limit
- โ Sound 300 m before a speed camera, chosen in the vehicle profile: ๐ None, Beep, Double, 3 tones, Siren
- โ Time left to arrival on screen only ("20 min", arrival time, km; "โฑ Left 20 min" on the radar), with real traffic
- โ Problem on the route: closed road or heavy queue in the car โ another road suggested
- โ Shorter voice (destination only) and trip guessed only when you really set off (above 15 km/h) and if made at least 2 times
- โ New bottom bar: โ, "โค Where to?", ๐/๐๏ธ, round โ /โถ button (the ๐ผ/๐๏ธ trip type is in the status panel)
- โ Clearer car โ motorbike switch: blue ๐๏ธ MOTORBIKE / orange ๐ CAR button that always shows the mode and a "๐ โ ๐๏ธ Motorbike mode" box in the middle for about 2 seconds
- โ Route preview with "+N min" cards, green/yellow/red bar, main roads, delay, speed cameras and the Start button
- โ "Where to?" redesigned: round โ button, big search box, ๐ ๐ผ โญ shortcuts, itineraries as tiles like desktop icons (tap = go, press and hold = options), 5-notch reliability bar
- โ Explanations only on request (the โ icon): clear icons and short labels throughout the app
- โ Restarting after a pause fixed: opening the app wakes the assistant; deep rest with balanced location (~100 m) and restart beyond 400 m or at vehicle speed; positions received while paused recorded in the black box
- โ Activity recognition removed ("Physical activity" permission) because of Google Play's rules; "Are you driving?" remains with the car's Bluetooth
- โ Suggestions and reports sent from the app, no email (with optional screenshot, latest app errors and up to 3 images from the gallery); link to the full privacy policy
- โ Published on Google Play as an open test in Italy, free, in 6 languages
- โ Voice dictation: ๐ค in "Where to?" to say your destination, and in suggestions and reports to dictate the text
- โ New look: next problem shown large at the top, speedometer next to route and arrival time, drawn icons, blue / yellow / red colours, speed camera and toll labels on the route card
- โ Icon-based interface: map layers as tiles (Cameras, Traffic, Motorways, Trips, Radar + Auto / Heading / North / Free orientation), round map buttons, ๐ผ/๐๏ธ trip type in the status panel, closed events shown as big chips with an icon and a number, with a round button to open the list
- โ Simpler panels: events panel with a list button (blue โฒ to close it), a "โ" button that shrinks it to a pill and "โ No problems in the area"; status panel with just Active / Paused, a red round โ to end the route and โ ๏ธ for technical notices; ๐ฏ crosshair "back to start"; map buttons never covered
- โ Glove mode on the motorbike: bigger, well-spaced buttons, only the essential ones on the map (โ, โ, ๐ก, ๐ฏ), a bigger "โค Where to?"; nothing changes in the car
- โ Clearer speed cameras: voice alert in metres (300 / 500 / 800 / 1000 m), 300 m sound that repeats every 2.5 s from 400 m if you're over the limit, panel at the top left with limit, metres and "๐ท 97 km/h" (red over the limit)
- โ Speed shown like the dashboard (GPS, +5%, +8%, +10%), only in the number shown
- โ Remembered zoom without detaching the map, highlighted road (last 800 m in blue, next 600 m of the route in bright light blue)
- โ Route recognition for occasional trips too, tolerant of small detours, usual routes shared between car and motorbike
- โ "Where to?" with the ๐ผ Daily / ๐๏ธ Occasional buttons, bin on itineraries and history, places menu on the map (Rename, Move, Delete), events panel starting as a pill, see-through radar view, notification hidden on the lock screen
Done (v1.0) โ from the weekend road test#
- โ Radar view with green/red proximity bars and the limit sign
- โ Shortcuts and detours handled: the usual route is paused silently and resumes when you get back on it
- โ Speed cameras only when you're close; direction of travel learnt "by vote"; no speed cameras in the departure summary
- โ Route prediction only if the time of day matches
- โ Automatic map pointing straight ahead when moving, automatically goes back to following you; screen on even on the motorbike
- โ Events at the top and status at the bottom; "Events hidden ยท tap to reopen"; "Back to the app" fixed at the top
- โ My trips drawn thin and below the events, with only the problems along those trips; motorway events hidden if you're not using the motorway
Done (v0.9)#
- โ Restarts as soon as you connect to the car's Bluetooth, recognised on first connection
- โ Presentation and guide with examples set in Milan (reconstructed screens)
Done (v0.8)#
- โ Home and work worked out by themselves after one day of there-and-back, with confirmation; a usual route after just one trip there and one back
- โ Report as a yellow round โ button, button column that can be dragged to the left too, panels movable with a handle
- โ 47 automated tests
Done (v0.7)#
- โ Route choice by tapping the map (line or minutes label), legend highlighting the choice; "See routes on the map" at the top and bottom of the list
- โ Smooth, precise location dot: moves continuously with the map, snaps to the road on the route, doesn't jump when paused. Stationary test: 302 fixes in 5 minutes, all within 2.5 m
- โ Full black box for testing: GPS every second, what was ahead and what was left unsaid, events received, choices in the app, battery
- โ 46 automated tests
Done (v0.6)#
- โ Helps without nagging: Smart mode, first alert at 1.5โ4 km, 15 s between alerts
- โ Guesses the route at departure from your habits
- โ Speed cameras with direction of travel (updated OSM data + learning)
- โ Satnav-style map: part already driven in grey, alternatives with minutes, framing, orientation, layers, my trips
- โ ๐ฃ Report (speed camera, pothole, rough road, other), โญ favourite place, single top panel with ๐ and โ End
- โ Rest instead of switching off, restarts by itself; route ends when you stop at your destination
- โ 45 automated tests
Done (v0.4)#
- โ New name: Auto Robot CoPilot
- โ Learning your roads (separate variants, "๐ง Your route", follows your road without recalculating)
- โ Speed checks listed for each route before you set off
- โ Privacy: section in the app, location notice, "Delete all my data", document PRIVACY_E_NORMATIVA.md (Italian)
Done (v0.3)#
- โ Alerts without a route, in your direction, with new voice rules
- โ Car / Motorbike / Both choice and separate profiles
- โ "Helps you avoid": up to 5 alternatives including the shortest route, tolls hidden on daily trips, ๐ณ๏ธ Report pothole button
- โ Tolls shown, "Avoid toll roads" option and colour-coded alternative routes on the map
- โ ๐ผ Daily or ๐๏ธ Occasional trips, itineraries split into categories and selectable, "Back to the app" in settings
- โ Auto start and "Detect when I'm driving" (the latter removed in 1.1 and back, as an option, in 1.3.7)
- โ "Where to?" with 3 alternatives, live traffic and an explained recommended route
- โ Places, trip history, usual routes with typical time and "Faster route"
- โ Compact panels, grouped events, "Seen" and mute
- โ 6 languages, 35 automated tests, error reporting
- โ New icon: robot with white radar waves
Next steps#
| Phase | Goal |
|---|---|
| v0.6.x | Road testing of Smart mode and route prediction, Tutor sections (Italian average-speed cameras), legal opinion and public privacy policy |
| v0.5 | Departure-time advice before you leave home, iPhone app on the shared module |
| v0.8 | Android Auto and CarPlay, community reports (roadworks, potholes and queues only: no police patrols or mobile speed cameras in real time, which are banned under art. 45 of the Codice della Strada, the Italian Highway Code) |
| v1.0 | Conversational voice ("robot co-pilot") and release on the app stores, after the trademark check |
| Beyond | The robot co-pilot: a character, and a physical gadget on the dashboard |
โ ๏ธ The name, before publishing. "CoPilot" is similar to Microsoft Copilot. Before publishing on Google Play and the App Store it's worth doing a trademark check (a search on EUIPO/UIBM, the EU and Italian trademark registers, and if needed advice from a consultant) and having an alternative name ready.
Part B: proposals for the future, the robot co-pilot#
The long-term goal is "a robot that helps you drive", just like the one in the icon: a co-pilot that knows you, talks to you, warns you and advises you, without you ever touching the phone.
The proposals are grouped by priority (โญโญโญ = high) and timeframe.
Short term (1โ3 months)#
| Proposal | Priority | How to build it |
|---|---|---|
| Road testing | โญโญโญ | Full black box (GPS every second, events ahead with position, alerts spoken and held back, battery), analysis after every weekend of testing to assess useful alerts, false alarms and missed alerts, especially for usual routes and the new voice rules |
| Audible speeding alert | โญโญ | โ The road's limit (TomTom) and the red speedometer are already there (1.1). Still to add a sound or voice alert when you go over it, with a configurable tolerance |
| Tutor (average-speed checks) | โญโญโญ | Tutor sections from OSM (enforcement=average_speed) or from a curated list. Average speed worked out from the start of the section, with an alert if it goes over the limit |
| Break reminder | โญโญ | Counts continuous driving time. After 2 hours: "You've been driving for two hours, how about a break?", with the nearest service area taken from OSM |
| Translation review | โญโญ | Have the 6 languages checked by native speakers |
Ideas from similar apps (Radarbot, CamSam)#
Looking at the store pages of Radarbot (over 50 million downloads) and CamSam (over 5 million), these are the features still missing:
| Feature | How they do it | Our proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Road speed limit and speeding alert | Limit sign always visible, sound when you go over | โ Done (1.1): limit from TomTom and red speedometer; the speeding sound is still missing |
| Tutor (average speed) | They show the average over the section | Tutor sections from OSM, average calculated from the start of the section |
| Traffic-light cameras and ZTL (limited traffic zones) | Separate categories | OSM data (enforcement), a category you can switch on or off |
| Proximity bars (CamSam) | Green/red bars at the top of the screen | โ Done: radar view |
| Works on top of other apps | Alerts with Google Maps or Waze open | Floating bubble over other apps |
| Bluetooth start | Auto start on connection | โ Done (v0.9) |
| Wear OS / Android Auto | Apps for watch and car | In the next steps |
| Community reports | Mobile speed cameras, police, helicopters, drones | Roadworks, potholes and queues only: real-time patrols and mobile speed cameras are a legal risk in Italy (art. 45 of the Codice della Strada, which bans devices that detect speed checks) |
Medium term (3โ9 months)#
| Proposal | Priority | How to build it |
|---|---|---|
| Departure-time advice ("If you leave now you'll hit 15 minutes of queues, better in 20 minutes") | โญโญโญ | The usual time is already learnt from your usual routes: shortly before, the app queries TomTom Routing with traffic and sends a notification |
| Potholes: automatic detection and sharing | โญโญ | The "๐ณ๏ธ Report pothole" button is already there. Next step: detect bumps automatically with the accelerometer, report them by voice ("pothole!") and share potholes between users |
| iPhone app | โญโญโญ | Done: same main features as Android on the shared module; under review by Apple, coming soon to the App Store |
| Voice conversation ("What's ahead?", "How long to get home?") | โญโญโญ | Speech recognition with a wake word or a button on the steering wheel/handlebars. An LLM interprets the question and calls the app's functions (events, route, arrival time); the answer is read out by text-to-speech. See "Artificial intelligence: Gemini and Llama" below |
| Android Auto and CarPlay | โญโญ | Android for Cars library and CarPlay framework (navigation/POI category), with alerts and map on the car's display |
| Community reports (mobile speed cameras, hazards) | โญโญ | Big button or voice command ("speed camera here"), with a small server to share reports. Automatic expiry and confirmations from other users |
| Weather, ice, fog | โ Done (1.2) | Weather API (e.g. Open-Meteo, free) along the road ahead. Alert if the temperature is close to 0 ยฐC, or there's fog or heavy rain (very useful on a motorbike) |
| Fuel and EV charging | โญ | Fuel prices from MIMIT open data (Italian Ministry of Enterprise) and charging points from OpenChargeMap. A suggestion when you're near a good-value station on your route |
Artificial intelligence: Gemini and Llama (research from 26 September 2026)#
| Option | Where it runs | On the Galaxy S22 Ultra | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Nano (ML Kit GenAI / AICore) | On the phone | โ No: needs a Galaxy S24 or newer (or recent Pixels) | Free, private, no internet | New phones only |
| Gemma or Llama with LiteRT-LM (Google AI Edge) | On the phone | โ Yes (small models, e.g. Gemma 3 1B, on CPU/GPU) | Private, offline | Model of hundreds of MB, battery use, slower |
| Gemini API (cloud) | On Google's servers | โ Yes | Very capable | Cost per request, needs internet, location data sent to Google |
Conclusion. To decide which alerts to give you, AI isn't needed and would do worse: it's a matter of geometry (which road you're on, where you're going, what's on the route) and habits, and the v0.6 rules handle it instantly, predictably, for free and without draining the battery. AI is useful for talking to the robot co-pilot: open questions, natural answers, explanations ("why are you sending me this way?"). Proposal: first Gemma/Llama on the phone for the phrasing (privacy), with Gemini Nano where available.
Sources: ML Kit GenAI (Google), Gemini Nano on Android, LiteRT-LM, LLM Inference on Android.
Long term (beyond 9 months)#
| Proposal | Priority | How to build it |
|---|---|---|
| "Robot co-pilot" character with a name, avatar and personality | โญโญ | The robot in the icon becomes an animated avatar that changes expression (relaxed, alert, alarmed). Phrases in a recognisable style that the user can choose: plain or playful |
| Physical gadget on the dashboard | โญ | A small robot with an ESP32, a speaker and a LED ring, connected to the phone via Bluetooth LE: green when the road is clear, yellow for roadworks, red for a queue or speed camera. It can turn its "head" with a servo and talk |
| A co-pilot ever more attuned to your habits | โญโญ | Beyond the routes and times it already learns: usual stops, favourite alternative roads, proactive advice ("Viale Fulvio Testi is blocked today, you're better off going via Viale Monza") |
| Trip summary | โญ | At the end of a trip: time, delays avoided, alerts received, any times you went over the limit |
| Release on the app stores | โญโญโญ | Google Play and App Store, with a privacy policy and a trademark check on "Auto Robot CoPilot" before launch |
How much to charge: similar apps#
Prices on Google Play Italy in September 2026 (VAT included; they may change with promotions).
| App | Free | Paid version | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radarbot (50M+ downloads) | Yes, with ads | Gold: no ads, offline, Android Auto, traffic, Bluetooth start | โฌ4.99/month or โฌ35.99/year, 7-day trial |
| CamSam (5M+) | Yes | PLUS: background, widget, Bluetooth | โฌ4.99 one-off |
| Coyote (5M+) | No (trial only) | Community alerts, navigation | โฌ7.99/month or โฌ65.99/year |
| TomTom GO Navigation (10M+) | Trial only | Offline maps, traffic, speed cameras | about โฌ19.99/year |
| Sygic (50M+) | Basic version free | Premium+: offline, speed cameras, traffic | about โฌ29.99/year (often on offer) |
| Calimoto (motorbike, 1M+) | Free route planning | Voice navigation, offline, speed cameras | โฌ59.99/year |
| REVER / Scenic (motorbike) | Yes | Navigation, offline, twisty routes | from โฌ7.99 to โฌ59.90 |
| Waze, TomTom AmiGO | All free | โ | โฌ0 (Waze with ads) |
The choice: free first, then (maybe) paid 1. Phase 1, now: everything free and with no ads. First with friends (closed test), now on Google Play as an open test in Italy, then for everyone. The aim is to collect bug reports and suggestions (Settings โ Report a problem, Play Store reviews) and fix the bugs. 2. Phase 2, a future version: optional Premium, only once the app is stable and people are using it. Proposal: โฌ2.99/month or โฌ19.99/year with a 7-day trial, for traffic and roadworks on all learnt routes, route prediction, "helps you avoid", radar view and Bluetooth start. Fixed speed cameras and alerts on the active route stay free forever. 3. Even as a paid app it would cost less than Radarbot Gold (โฌ35.99), Coyote (โฌ65.99) and Calimoto (โฌ59.99), and it would remain the only one designed for both cars and motorbikes.
โ ๏ธ Google Play rule: an app published for free cannot later become a paid download. You can, however, add an in-app subscription (Premium) at any time. That's why we're starting free, and any Premium will be an optional subscription.
What's actually left: Google keeps about 15% (from 30 June 2026 in the EU: a 10% service fee plus 5% if you use its billing) and Google pays over the 22% Italian VAT. On โฌ19.99/year about โฌ13.90 is left; on โฌ2.99/month about โฌ2.08.
Costs to factor in before selling - VAT number (Partita IVA, the Italian VAT registration) and an accountant: to get paid by Google Play you need a merchant payments profile. - TomTom traffic: beyond the free quota it's pay-as-you-go (routing about $0.75 per 1,000 requests; the price for incidents needs checking in the TomTom dashboard). With many users you need a small server that downloads traffic once per area and shares it with everyone, so the cost doesn't grow with every user. - Map: the public OpenStreetMap servers aren't allowed for a commercial app, which is why, from 1.1, the map comes from MapTiler. For now the free plan is enough; with many users, or for commercial use, a paid plan is needed (about $20โ30 a month to start, to be checked on the MapTiler website). - Name and speed cameras: trademark check ("CoPilot") and a legal opinion on art. 45 of the Codice della Strada (the Italian Highway Code rule on speed-camera detection devices) before selling.
Sources: Google Play store pages of the apps, radarbot.com, mycoyote.net, calimoto.com, sygic.com, Google Play Console Help, docs.tomtom.com/pricing, maptiler.com, stadiamaps.com.
Privacy: a principle to keep#
The app saves your itineraries to improve them, not to collect your data. It learns your routes like other apps do, but doesn't take them to a server: it uses them only on your phone to suggest the best road. Details, regulations (GDPR, Google Play, art. 45 of the Codice della Strada) and a comparison with Waze, Google Maps, Coyote and Radarbot in PRIVACY_E_NORMATIVA.md (Italian).
- All driving data stays on the phone: trips, places, usual routes, preferences.
- No account required.
- External services only receive the coordinates needed for each request, never the history: TomTom gets those for traffic, routes and search; MapTiler gets the map area to download (and, as with any internet service, the IP address).
- Suggestions, reports and error reports are sent only if the user taps Send and go to a Google Firebase database in Europe (Milan) that the app can only write to: text, phone model, app version, language, car/motorbike and, if ticked, the screenshot (which may show the map and position) and the latest app errors, plus up to 3 images chosen by the user from the gallery (no access permission). The trip log (with positions, for testing) is also sent only if the user sends it.
- Delete all my data in the settings.
- Offline: speed cameras, the chosen route, itineraries, potholes and already downloaded events work even without signal.
- Future features (community reports, LLM) must be optional and anonymous.
Things to fix and current limits#
| Limit | Why it matters | Possible fix |
|---|---|---|
| Road testing | Suggestions on usual routes and the new voice rules still need testing on real trips | Systematic tests on the home โ work route, in town and on the motorbike |
| Machine translations | The 6 languages were machine-translated and may sound unnatural | Review by native speakers |
| Alerts in town | With many junctions the app may still warn about events on nearby roads | Follow the road graph more closely (roads connected to the current one) |
| Starting when switched off | If the assistant is fully off (Stop), Android needs a tap to switch GPS on | Solved in practice: after a stop it rests and restarts by itself (movement, opening the app, car Bluetooth); when off, the "Are you driving?" notification with the car's Bluetooth. In 1.1 the restart after a night was fixed: still to be verified on the road |
| Optional activity recognition | Removed in 1.1 because of Google Play's rules, it came back in 1.3.7 as an optional permission ("Physical activity"): without it the app relies on the motion sensor | Light waiting mode with a GPS check of at most one minute (restarts above ~20 km/h, motorbike included), opening the app or the car's Bluetooth |
| Speed-camera coverage on OSM | Some are missing or out of date | User reports, comparison with other open sources |
| No mobile speed cameras or Tutor | They're among the most requested alerts | See the Tutor and community-report proposals |
| Free TomTom quota (2,500 requests a day) | Enough for one user, not for many | Caching, requests only when needed, paid plan or intermediate server |
| iPhone not on the App Store yet | The iPhone version is ready but still under review by Apple | It arrives on the App Store as soon as Apple approves it |
| Name similar to Microsoft Copilot | Possible trademark issue on publishing | Trademark check before publishing |
| Battery on some phones | Samsung and others may close the app in the background | Guide to the "Unrestricted" setting on first launch |
โ๏ธ Legal note. In Italy, apps that report speed cameras are legal, whereas radar detectors are not. The assistant is an aid: the limit shown on the road signs always applies, and drivers must not use the phone while driving.