CES 2020 – in hindsight

CES 2020 marked the announcement of Team Panasonic, featuring Olympic and Paralympic athletes Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, Sakura Kokumai and Lex Gillette. By working with these athletes, Panasonic is committed to helping each to achieve their goals that aim to make the world a better place for all. The Michael Phelps Foundation, for instance, has already helped 30,000 kids with its IM program, which it administers through the Boys and Girls Club of America.

The IM program is a comprehensive life skills curriculum using the basic principles Phelps applied throughout his career by using water-safety lessons as a catalyst to encourage healthy lifestyles and the pursuit of dreams. Panasonic is excited to support the Michael Phelps Foundation, and the social good projects of all those on Team Panasonic, to help even more folks in underserved demographics.

In 2015, Disney announced the development of an all-new Star Wars-themed land, planned for Disneyland® Resort in Anaheim, California and Walt Disney World® Resort near Orlando, Florida. The idea of this new land – and the prospect of transporting guests to a galaxy far, far away – created a tremendous amount of excitement.

Today, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is a reality. Set in the village of Black Spire Outpost on the wild frontier planet of Batuu, the land features shops, restaurants and two unique attractions: Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. The fan-favorite land is already one of the highest rated experiences at both parks and has been named one of Time’s World’s Greatest Places 2019, among other awards.

Early in the design process for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Walt Disney Imagineering approached Panasonic to discuss imaging solutions for the two attractions in the new land. To create Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Disney developed new projection systems with the help of Panasonic technology that was not yet on the market – ultimately creating an experience unlike anything seen before.

For more detail on how Panasonic’s projectors are helping Disney bring a distant galaxy to its parks, read the case study.

We were also excited to announce that Panasonic is working with Princess Cruises to help provide their passengers a truly immersive entertainment experience on board by installing our new PT-RQ50KU 3-Chip DLP® SOLID SHINE laser projectors – among the world's smallest – with 50,000 lumens and native 4K resolution. These projectors are compact, easy to transport and easy to install. The color is incredibly vibrant, and the reliability is impressive with 20,000 hours of maintenance-free projection. That’s over two years at sea.

We’re flying today more than ever before, and airlines look to us to help them tap into passengers’ increased demands for unique experiences. Our new Arc map platform turns the static inflight map into a geographic entertainment gateway delivered in 4K resolution, bringing personalization and interaction to the flight experience.

Panasonic’s offerings in avionics, used by over 2.7 billion air travelers every year, go beyond entertainment and extend into wellness. Imagine being able to adjust to distant time zones, feeling refreshed and ready to go when you land. Airlines can also install Serenity In-Seat to their premium cabin seats to reduce fatigue-causing low-frequency aircraft noise without the use of headphones. And our nanoe™ Air Cleanser reduces odors and improves air quality around passengers through ultra-fine, electrified water nanoparticles – 15,000 times finer than the width of a human hair.

Arc and Wellness are just a few examples of how we are much more than just the world’s leading supplier of inflight entertainment solutions. We are a company dedicated to redefining every aspect of the passenger experience.

In addition to making flights better and more enjoyable, Panasonic is equally committed to developing solutions for better mobility on our roadways. We do this through relentless innovation, a focus on the end user, and by working with partners who exemplify excellence such as Klipsch, Tropos Motors and the Utah Department of Transportation. Moving to better mobility means investing in smarter vehicles and roadways to create safer, more enjoyable driving experiences.

To put it simply, Panasonic is more than the world’s leading electric and hybrid electric vehicle battery supplier: It is a trusted provider of end-to-end mobility.

Klipsch, an industry leader in audio excellence, will be joining our ecosystem of audio partners that already includes Fender and ELS. Working together, Panasonic and Klipsch will be able to deliver truly moving sound and immersive experiences to automotive passengers. But the listening experience is just one critical experiential element of the entire eCockpit, which is continually changing and adapting in real time. We also introduced our next-gen infotainment, SkipGen 3.0, running on Google’s Android Automotive OS, Android 10. Paired with our cockpit domain controller, SPYDR, and wrapped in a stunning SC1 vision concept from Karma Automotive, we will be able to run up to 11 displays in any vehicle, including safety-conscious augmented reality head-up displays.

At Panasonic, our promise for a better life and better world doesn’t just mean making automobiles more enjoyable. It also means making vehicles more efficient – for the benefit not just of the companies who own them, but for the planet as well. It was with this in mind that we were thrilled to showcase electric compact utility vehicles by Tropos Motors, which have been equipped with Panasonic technology.

One vehicle on display was ABLE FRV, a low-cost, low maintenance fire protection vehicle that stands at 6 feet 5 inches tall. The vehicle is also equipped with a 125-gallon Kimtek Firelite Transport deluxe unit tank that is fully baffled to meet the National Fire Protection Association standards. The FRV has a low profile, a low center of gravity and a tight turning radius of 12.5 feet, so it is ideal to operate in tight spaces.

To help with emergency response information at the ready, the ABLE FRV equipped with a Panasonic TOUGHBOOK detachable pad to ensure the latest emergency routing, fire and neighborhood status is noted. All in, it is a great option for tight metro areas and budget-minded operations who need the capabilities of a full-sized pumper truck in a compact and environmentally friendly package.

Utah has an ambitious goal of zero annual traffic fatalities in the state. As part of this mission, UDOT has partnered with Panasonic to develop a next-generation intelligent transportation data ecosystem. The connected vehicle data ecosystem is being designed to share real-time, actionable information between vehicles and roadside infrastructure to increase the safety and efficiency of traffic flow.

For more information on how CIRRUS by Panasonic is helping Utah reach zero fatalities on its roadways, read our recent blog about the project.

These innovations, along with the others we showcased at CES this year, all support our partners’ digital evolutions and help create better experiences for their customers. They leverage over a century of Panasonic expertise in anticipating consumers’ needs and creating products for better living. At Panasonic, we are embracing change and the possibilities that come with it. Our passion for progress is what brought the innovations we shared at CES 2020, and it’s what moves us all to better experiences and a cleaner, safer world.

Want to see more coverage of Panasonic’s presence at CES 2020, including Michael Phelps’ highlights from our booth? Visit our CES page.