ROBOTS that can clean your car, a pop-up protection tent for your motor and a transforming boot.

These are just some of the wacky inventions that could find their way onto your next car.

13 Kia Ideas Festival showcases future of motoring

The crazy creations were given life at the annual Kia Ideas Festival with teams presenting projects during an X Factor-style contest.

The brightest young Korean minds are given the chance to come up with prototypes to present to top bosses.

And projects can be anything related to the car - from personal mobility to in-car gadgets.

Last year, the winner was Sketchbook - tech that turned a car window into a smart screen allowing you to doodle on it - just like misted-up glass.

You can then save, upload or share the image.

It proved so popular it could even find its way onto buses to be used at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

So what took the title this year and will be assessed by Kia's top engineers to see if it can make production? Read on to find out.



Belt up

13 Thinker Belt buckles up for you Credit: Kia

The Thinker Belt takes the problem of not fastening your seatbelt out of your hands.

An automated system draws the belt down over your shoulder and across your lap when you sit down.

It'll then auto-release when you stop - or after you've had an accident.



My little helper

13 Romo is the Korean version of Asimo Credit: Kia

You've all seen Asimo - Honda's little robot that plays football with Barack Obama. Well now meet Romo.

This fella has a back seat so he can trundle around to pick up deliveries or take the rubbish out.

Romo's "hands" mean he can do your sweeping up too.



Booty call

13 Fluidity Space allows your boot to shape into whatever you need Credit: Kia

13 Fluidity Space can even double up as a massage bed Credit: Kia

This shape-shifting technology - known as Fluidity Space - transforms your boot to suit what you've loaded in it.

Using balls on pillars, you can control the shape with a smartphone app and change the design to your shopping, a massage bed or even rock your baby to sleep.

Smile like you mean it

13 System uses a child voice to coach better driving Credit: Kia

13 Smile Taxi rewards safe driving Credit: Kia

Using a child on the infotainment screen, this Smile Taxi system aims to improve driving.

If you're safe you'll earn coins and take a higherplace on the leaderboard - bringing gamification to cars for the good of road safety.

If you drive erratically, you'll get told off by the on-screen child and fall down the rankings.

Spit and polish

13 Cleaning robots can bring sparkle to your motor Credit: Kia

13 Dust Buster lives in the front of your car behind the grille Credit: Kia

Fed up of washing your car? Then Dust Buster could be the answer.

Living in a hidden bay behind your grille, the little robots use vacuums and polishing discs to crawl over your motor to give it a clean.

Sit back and watch your neighbour with his buckets and sponge get jealous.

Give me shelter

13 Shelter mixes a tent with traditional car cover to protect your motor Credit: Kia

13 The storage might need refining... Credit: Kia

If you've got a precious motor you want to keep safe from rain and snow and you don't have a garage then a car cover is the next best thing.

But you don't really want to carry it around with you - so that's where Shelter can help you out.

Granted it looks a bit clumsy folded up on the roof when it's not in use but imagine the reaction when you park up in the supermarket and deploy your tent.

No more car park dents for you.

Appy days

13 Motonoff are robotic wheels that can power regular wheels Credit: Kia

Fed up with peddling your bicycle or want some help with a wheelchair? Then Motonoff might be the future.

The battery-powered robotic wheels can be attached to a bike or wheelchair to power them.

And the idea is you rent the Motonoff so you don't need to splash out on the pricey gadget.

Better still you can control the system using an app on your phone.



Winner: Sounds good

13 Winner was Sympony that can translate sign language Credit: Kia

It might not look the most glamorous but the winner was arguably the most rewarding.

Sympony is a system designed to help those with hearing difficulties.

The clever software - that could be built into the car's infotainment system - analyses noises and then visualises these into the car with lights and vibrations for those hard of hearing.

An LED light bar would glow green for an approaching ambulance and blue for a police car.

And Sympony can also interpret sign language for sat nav instructions like "take me home" or convert messages into texts. Clever.