The first automobile in history hit the roads on New Year's Eve of 1879. Developed by the German engineer Carl Benz, they sported details like an automatic intake slide, a controlled exhaust valve, and a high-voltage electrical vibrator ignition with a spark plug. However, they lacked an essential element that many modern automobiles have: Car keys.
Security and access control came a long way from the wooden sticks used as keys in Ancient Egypt and Babylon some 6,000 years ago. Modern access control systems are no longer just keys and locks, but sophisticated ecosystems with high-tech components that interact with each other.
Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology is as old as the radio. It was first used in 1901, by the Italian innovator Guglielmo Marconi, who sent Morse code sequences across the Atlantic Ocean using spark-gap radio transmitters.