Japanese researchers from academic and business circles are joining forces on a government-sponsored project to develop an "Internet car," project planners said Monday.

It is hoped that the car will be capable of sending information on traffic and weather conditions relating to the area in which it is traveling, the planners said.

They said the project, which is to be launched by Keio University in fiscal 2001, marks the first experiment in applying Internet Protocol version 6, a next-generation Internet technology, to vehicles.

The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry will cover 1 billion yen of the estimated 2 billion yen in expenses that the project is expected to incur.

Researchers from companies including Toyota Motor Corp., NEC Corp. and Denso Corp. are expected to join the project, in which the planners aim to run around 2,000 Internet cars at an experiment site in Aichi Prefecture, they said.

The ministry and the project planners hope to put the cars into actual use some time after fiscal 2002.

IPv6 is a new, upgraded IP version designed to succeed the current IPv4.

One major difference between IPv4 and IPv6 involves the upgrading of IP addresses from 32 bits to 128 bits, allowing the Internet to grow both in terms of the number of hosts connected and the total amount of data transmitted.

Researchers say that with IPv6, each electric appliance -- or even part of the appliance -- can be assigned an IP address through which data can be transmitted. According to researchers, this will allow just a brake pad, for example, to send information on its rate of wear.

The project planners said the Internet car they aim to create will be able to provide drivers with wide-ranging access to the Internet in order for them to enjoy a diverse range of music and video information. It will also enable drivers to make reservations for restaurants or hotels, and to pay tolls automatically on so-called intelligent transportation systems, which are currently being developed, they said.

The car envisioned will also be able to send information on traffic conditions via the speed at which it is moving, or detailed weather information on the area it is traveling through based on the movement of its windshield wipers and an attached thermometer, the planners said.

"I would like to tell everybody that the Internet application is not limited to computers now. It is spreading to many areas," said Jun Murai, a Keio University professor involved in the project.