Advertising Agency Saatchi & Saatchi had the idea to turn the Toyota IQ into a mouse, so it could move a cursor on a giant screen and operate a computer.

The idea posed a technological challenge. At the time, there were ways to track a car’s movements. But there was no known method for turning the car into a fully functioning mouse, with the ability to click, draw and drag. So working with a web developer, the agency devised custom software to make it possible.

The feat required a large indoor space, a web cam, two laptops, an LED for the car, and a projection screen.

The camera tracked the light on the car and translated its position into X-Y co-ordinates. The first laptop sent these co-ordinates to the second laptop 30 times per second. The second laptop read these co-ordinates and moved its mouse cursor in real-time. That image was then projected onto the large screen.