Mercedes-Benz A-CLASS SEDAN 2020 Voice Control User Manual

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class Sedan 2020’s voice control is the newest advancement in automobile technology. This intelligent feature raises the bar for driving convenience with its cutting-edge innovation and flawless integration. Imagine a situation where you can easily communicate with your car, letting it know your preferences and requests while still keeping your hands securely on the wheel and your eyes on the road. The 2020 Mercedes-Benz A-Class Sedan’s Voice Control system specifically provides this. The Voice Control system is your intuitive co-pilot, constantly prepared to help you with different parts of your journey. It was meticulously designed and is powered by cutting-edge artificial intelligence. Interactions with your A-Class Sedan feel natural and intuitive thanks to the sophisticated technology that underpins this extraordinary feature’s ability to interpret natural language. The Voice Control adjusts to your demands, boosting the driving experience for everyone on board, whether you’re a tech-savvy enthusiast or someone looking for simplicity. Stay in touch, stay on task, and remain secure as you interact with your car in ways you never thought possible.

Notes on operating safety

WARNING
Risk of distraction from information systems and communications equipment
If you operate information and communication equipment integrated in the vehicle when driving, you will be distracted from the traffic situation. This could also cause you to lose control of the vehicle.

1. Only operate this equipment when the traffic situation permits.
2. If you cannot be sure of this, stop the vehicle whilst paying attention to road and traffic conditions and operate the equipment with the vehicle stationary.

WARNING
Risk of an accident from operating mobile communication equipment while the vehicle is in motion
Mobile communications devices distract the driver from the traffic situation. This could also cause the driver to lose control of the vehicle.

1. As the driver, only operate mobile communications devices when the vehicle is stationary.
2. As a vehicle occupant, only use mobile communications devices in the areas intended for this purpose, e.g. in the rear passenger compartment.

WARNING
Risk of injury due to objects being stowed incorrectly
If objects in the vehicle interior are stowed incorrectly, they can slide or be thrown around and hit vehicle occupants. In addition, cup holders, open stowage spaces and mobile phone receptacles cannot always retain all objects they contain.

There is a risk of injury, particularly in the event of sudden braking or a sudden change in direction.

1. Always stow objects so that they cannot be thrown around in such situations.
2. Always make sure that objects do not protrude from stowage spaces, luggage nets or stowage nets.
3. Close the lockable stowage spaces before starting a journey.
4. Always stow and secure heavy, hard, pointed, sharp-edged, fragile or bulky objects in the trunk/load compartment.

For your own safety, always observe the follow‐ing points when operating mobile communications equipment and especially your voice con‐trol system:

1. Observe the legal requirements for the country in which you are driving.
2. While driving, only operate mobile communications equipment and your voice control system when the traffic conditions permit it. You may otherwise be distracted from the traffic conditions and cause an accident, injuring yourself and others.
3. If you use the voice control system in an emergency your voice can change and your telephone call, e.g. an emergency call, can thereby be unnecessarily delayed.
4. Familiarize yourself with the voice control system functions before starting the journey.
5. Comply with the loading guidelines

Operation

Overview of operating the multifunction steering wheel
The Voice Control System is operational approximately thirty seconds after the ignition is switched on.

1. Press the rocker switch up: starts the dialog
2. Press the control knob:switches the sound off or on (ends the dialog)
3. Turn the control knob up/down: increases/decreases the volume
4. Press the rocker switch down:rejects/ends a call (ends the dialog)

Conducting a dialog
For the dialog with the Voice Control System, you can use complete sentences of colloquial language as voice commands, such as, for example, “Please show me the list of the last calls” or “How warm is it outside?”. It is not necessary to first change to the relevant application such as “Telephone” or “Vehicle function”.

1. To activate or continue dialog by using a keyword: say “Hello Mercedes” to activate the Voice Control System. Voice activation must be switched on in the multimedia system. For this, it is not necessary to press up therocker switch on the multifunction steering wheel. Voice activation can also be directly combined with a voice command, e.g. “Hi Mercedes, how fast can I drive?”.
2. Press the rocker switch up on the multifunction steering wheel. You can say a voice command after an acoustic signal.
3. To correct an entry: say the Correction voice command.
4. To select an entry from the selection list: say the line number or the contents.
5. To browse the selection list: say the Next or Back voice command.
6. To interrupt the dialog: say the Pause voice command.
   The dialog can be continued with the “Hello Mercedes” voice command or by pressing up therocker switch on the multifunction steering wheel.
7. To jump to the preceding dialog: say the Back voice command.
8. To jump back to the top dialog level: say the Home voice command.
9. To cancel the dialog: say the Close voice command or press the orbutton on the multifunction steering wheel.
10. To interrupt a voice output: speak in the middle of a voice dialog when the system is still answering.
    The voice output is shortened and the con‐clusion is reached more quickly.

The Speak During Voice Output option must be switched on in the multimedia system for this.

Overview of operable functions in the Voice Control System
You can use the Voice Control System to operate the following functions depending on the vehicle equipment:

1. Telephone
2. Text messages
3. Navigation
4. Address book
5. Radio
6. Media
7. Vehicle functions
8. Weather

Full functionality is only available for you with activation of online voice control.

Notes on the language setting
You can change the language of the Voice Con‐trol System via the system language settings. If the set system language is not supported by the Voice Control System, English will be selected.
The Voice Control System is available in English, French, Portuguese and Spanish.

Setting the Voice Control System (multimedia system)

Requirements:

1. For online voice control: your vehicle is connected with your Mercedes me user account.
2. There is an Internet connection.
3. For online use of contacts: online voice control is activated.

Switching voice activation of the Voice Control System on/off

1. Select Voice Activation “Hey Mercedes”.Depending on the previous status, the function is activated or deactivated.
   When the function is active, the “Hi Mercedes” voice command can activate the dialog.

Activating/deactivating online voice control

1. Activate Online Voice Control.
2. Online voice control is activated at the factory.
3. Select Online Voice Control Subscr..You will be connected with the Mercedes me portal.
4. Activate online voice control in the Mercedes me portal.

Activating contacts for online use

1. Select Contacts for Online Use. When the function is active, contacts will be found more easily and accurately using voice input. The quality of the enunciation of con‐tact names by the system will also be improved.

Switching on voice interruption

1. Select Speak During Voice Output. If the function is active, a command can be interjected during voice output of the sys‐tem.

Using the Voice Control System effectively

Voice Control System audible help functions
Using the corresponding voice commands you receive the following information and assistance in the following cases:

1. For optimal operation: say the Voice control tutorial voice command or call up the Digital Operator’s Manual with Could you go to the Voice Control System tutorial please?,
   for example. The full extent of the Digital Operator’s Manual is available when the vehicle is stationary. Here you can also find explanatory videos which introduce you to the functions of the Voice Control System.
2. Current application: on the multifunction steering wheel, press therocker switch up and say the Help voice command. You will receive suggestions and information about operation of the Voice Control System for the current application.
3. Continued dialog: say the Help voice command during a voice dialog. For every step of the dialog you receive matching information.
4. Specific function: say the voice command for the desired function, e.g. with “Hello Mercedes, I need help with the radio” or after pressing therocker switch on the multi‐function steering wheel up, say the Help for the telephone voice command, for example.

Notes on optimal use of the Voice Control System
Notes on how to improve recognition:

1. Activate online voice control.
2. Only operate the Voice Control System from the driver’s seat.
3. Say the voice commands coherently and clearly, but do not exaggerate the words.
4. Avoid loud noises that cause interference while making a voice command entry, e.g. the entertainment in the rear passenger compartment.
5. For telephone or address book entries:
   1. Only create sensible address book entries in the system/mobile phone, e.g. enter surname and first name in the correct field.
   2. Do not use any abbreviations, unnecessary spaces or special characters.
6. For radio station names: say the Read out station list voice command and say the desired station name in the way the voice output reads aloud to you.

To improve recognition, depending on the outside temperature, either the blowers for ventilation or heating are reduced when the Voice Control System is started.

Information on online voice control
Online voice control improves recognition and makes additional results available as a result of external information, e.g. information about POIs and about the weather. We therefore recommend that you activate online voice control. You will need a Mercedes me user account for this. If you do not yet have a user account you have to create one and connect it with your vehicle.
Then call up your Mercedes me user account. The Mercedes me services are shown and can be activated. In addition, online voice control must be activated.

Essential voice commands

Notes on the voice commands
Aside from the exact voice commands (see the “Voice command” column in the following tables) to call up specific functions, in most cases the Voice Control System also understands a great many paraphrases from daily usage. Examples of these are listed in the “Colloquial examples” col‐umn. For some languages however these exam‐ples are only available to a limited extent.
Content in angled brackets, e.g. <POI> or <contact>, is a placeholder which has to be completed by you with the desired term. The voice command Set <POI> as intermediate destination could, for example, be completed with: Set Mercedes-Benz Arena as intermediate destination.

Overview of switch voice commands
Switch voice commands can be used to open certain applications.

Switch voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Switch to navigation	I would like to go to navigation	Switches to navigation
Switch to address book	I would like to switch to the address book	Switches to the address book
Switch to telephone	I would like to switch to the phone	Switches to the telephone
Switch to messages	Can you switch to messages please?	Switches to the text message application
Switch to radio	I would like to switch to the radio	Switches to radio
Switch to media	I would like to switch to the media application	Switches to media
Switch to comfort	I would like to go to the comfort application	Switches to the comfort settings
Switch to vehicle info	I would like to go to the vehicle application	Switches to vehicle information
Switch to settings	I would like to go to the settings menu	Switches to the menu with the setting options

It is not necessary to first call up a menu in order to operate a function it contains with the Voice Control System. You can operate the function directly using voice input, e.g. call a contact or enter a destination for navigation. You can find further information in the overview tables for voice commands.

Overview of navigation voice commands
Using the navigation voice commands you can enter POIs and conventional addresses or navigate to your own contacts. You can also carry out important navigation settings directly. The following list offers just a small selection of the possible navigation commands. You will receive additional suggestions if you say Help for navigation.

Navigation voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Navigate to <address>	Navigate to Canal Street, New York	Starts route guidance to the desired address.
Navigate to <contact>	Drive/bring me to the contact address of John Doe	Starts route guidance to a contact from the address book.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Navigate to <3 word address>	The example is for the English lan‐ guage:   Drive to Parade.Help.Bleat	Starts route guidance to a 3 word address from what3words.   The example mentioned navigates you to the Empire State Building. Observe the following information: R 3 word addresses are language dependent. R Searching for a destination using 3 word addresses is not possible in all countries and in all languages. Additional information on 3 word addresses from what3words can be found in the Navigation section under “Entering the destination as a 3 word address”. The Empire State Building, for example, has the following 3 word addresses: R English: parade.help.bleat R French: commun.verbe.bisquer R Spanish: suertes.diga.pesca
Home	I would like to go home/I want to drive to my home address	Starts route guidance to the home address.
Work	I would like to navigate to work	Starts route guidance to work.
Enter POI	Take me to a POI	Enters a POI, e.g. Brandenburg Gate.
Navigate to <POI>	Navigate to “McDonald’s”	Starts route guidance to a POI.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Navigate to the online POI <POI>	Navigate to online POI “McDonald’s	Searches online for a POI and starts route guidance.
Start route guidance	Begin route guidance/Can you start route guidance?	Starts route guidance to a destination.
Cancel route guidance	Can you quit route guidance?	Cancels route guidance.
Restart route guidance	I would like to resume route guid- ance	Continues route guidance after a break.
Set <address> as intermediate des- tination	Set “9 Euclid Avenue in Cleveland” as an intermediate destination	Selects an intermediate destination for the route.
Set <contact> as intermediate des- tination	Set “John Doe” as intermediate des- tination	Selects an intermediate destination from the contacts for the route.
Set <POI> as intermediate destina- tion	Set “Trump Tower” as an intermedi- ate destination	Selects a POI as an intermediate destination for the route.
Enter address in <country>	I would like to enter a new address in “France”	Selects a destination in another country.
Enter ZIP code	Start route guidance to a new ZIP code	Enters a ZIP code.
Last destinations	Show the previous destinations	Selects a destination from the previous destinations.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Show alternative routes	Search for alternative routes	Shows one of the alternative routes calculated.
Driving recommendations on	Switch on driving recommendations	Switches on voice output for route guidance.
Driving recommendations off	Mute the driving instructions	Switches off voice output for route guidance.
Show traffic map	Switch on traffic jam info	Displays traffic information on the map.
Hide traffic map	Switch off the traffic jam messages	Hides the traffic information.
POI icons on	Show me point of interest icons on the map please	Displays the POI symbols on the map.
Hide POI icons	I would like to hide all POI symbols	Hides the POI symbols.

Overview of telephone voice commands
You can use the telephone voice commands to make phone calls or search through the address book. The following list offers just a small selec‐tion of the possible telephone commands. You will receive additional suggestions if you say Help for phone.

Telephone voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Call <telephone number>	I would like you to dial 0171xxxxxxx	Makes a telephone call by entering the telephone number directly.
Call <contact>	Call Jane Smith on her mobile	Makes a telephone call directly by entering a name from the address book.
Call Mercedes-Benz emergency call center	Could you call the Mercedes-Benz emergency center?	Triggers an emergency call to the Mercedes-Benz emergency call center.
Call Mercedes me	I’d like you to call the MB break- down assistance please	Places a call with Mercedes-Benz breakdown assistance.
Latest calls	Show me the list of missed calls	Shows the list of missed calls.
Previous calls	Show me the last calls	The list shows all outgoing, incoming and missed calls.
Incoming calls	Show me the calls received	Shows the list of incoming calls.
Outgoing calls	Show me the list of outgoing calls	Shows the list of outgoing calls.
Search for <contact>	Could you open the contact “John Doe”?	Opens the contact data of a contact in the address book.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Redial	Redial/Call last phone number	Makes a call to the last telephone number dialed.
Change phone	Could you please switch to the sec- ond phone?	Changes the primary telephone

Overview of radio voice commands
Radio voice commands can also be used when the radio application runs in the background and another application is visible in the foreground. The following list offers just a small selection of the possible radio voice commands. You will receive additional suggestions if you say Help for radio.

Radio voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Station <station name>	I would like to select station “Cool FM”	Selects the radio station.
Radio frequency <Frequency>	Go to station/radio frequency “eighty seven point five mega- hertz”.	Enters a radio frequency, e.g. in the FM waveband.
Next radio station	Call up the next radio station	Calls up the next radio station from the station list.
Previous station	Switch to the last radio station/to the previous program	Switches to the previous radio station.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Save radio station	Save the radio station, please	Saves the radio station currently playing.
Show station list	Please show me the list of all radio stations	Shows the radio list with the radio stations that can currently be received.
Read out radio station list	Please read out the radio program	Reads out the radio list with the radio stations that can currently be received.
Traffic information on	Switch on the traffic info	Switches on traffic announcements.
Traffic information off	I’d like to switch off traffic info	Switches off traffic announcements.
Radio info on	I want you to turn on additional radio station text	Switches on the radio text information for the radio station currently play‐ ing.
Radio info off	I want you to turn off additional radio station text	Switches off the radio text information for the radio station currently play‐ ing.
Change to radio favorites	Please show me the list of all favor- ite radio stations	Shows the favorites with the saved radio stations.

Overview of media player voice commands
Media player voice commands can also be used when the media player application runs in the background and another application is visible in the foreground. The following list offers just a small selection of the possible media player voice commands. You will receive additional sug‐gestions if you say Help for media or Help for player.

Media player voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Play <track/albums/artists/ composers/music genres>	Play “Yellow Submarine”	The names of all available tracks, albums, artists, composers or genres are accepted during the search. In the case of a clear search result the track found is played back immediately.
Play track <track>	Play song “So What”	The available tracks are played back.
Play album <album>	Play album “A Night at the Opera”	The available albums are played back.
Play artist <artist>	I want to listen to the artist “Madonna”	The available artists are played back.
Play composer <composer>	I’d like to hear the composer “Lud- wig van Beethoven”	The available composers are played back.
Play music genre <music genre>	I’d like to hear the music genre “Bebop”	The available music genres are played back.
Search for track <track>	I would like to search for the song “Sailing”	The names of all available tracks are accepted during the search. A selec‐ tion list appears from which you can select the desired music. If you wish to play all the tracks in a selection list, say “Play all tracks”.
Search for album <album>	Search for album “A Night at the Opera”	The names of all available albums are accepted during the search. A selection list appears from which you can select the desired music. If you wish to play all the tracks in a selection list, say “Play all tracks”.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Search for artist <artist>	I would like to search for the artist “Elton John”	The names of all available artists are accepted during the search. A selec‐ tion list appears from which you can select the desired music. If you wish to play all the tracks in a selection list, say “Play all tracks”.
Search for composer <composer>	Search for composer “Beethoven”	The names of all available composers are accepted during the search. A selection list appears from which you can select the desired music. If you wish to play all the tracks in a selection list, say “Play all tracks”.
Search for music genre <music genre>	Search for music genre “Classical”	The names of all available music genres are accepted during the search. A selection list appears from which you can select the desired music. If you wish to play all the tracks in a selection list, say “Play all tracks”.
Next track	Start the next song/video clip/film	Plays back the next track.
Previous track	Play the last song/track/clip again	Plays back the previous track.
Repeat this track	I’d like to listen to this track again	The current track is played back from the beginning.
Play similar music	I’d like to hear similar music	Plays back similar tracks.
Play random music	Play me a random track	Plays back random tracks.
Random playback on	Turn random playback on	Switches to random mode.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Random track list off	Switch off shuffle mode	Switches off random mode.
What am I listening to?	Which music is currently playing?	The information about the track currently playing is read aloud.

Overview of message voice commands
Messages can be created, edited and listened to using the message voice commands. The follow‐ing list offers just a small selection of the possi‐ble message commands. You will receive addi‐tional suggestions if you say Help for messaging.

Message voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Text message to <Name>	I would like to write a new text to “John Doe’s mobile number”	Creates a text message. All address book names are available.
Text message to <Name> <Text>	I would like you to write a new text to “Jane Doe” with the following text: “I am running late”	Writes a text message to the person mentioned. The content of the text can be spoken immediately if online voice control has been activated.
Read out new text messages	I would like you to read out the new text messages	Reads out new text messages.
Read out the last text message from <Name>	I would like you to read out the last text message from “John Doe”	Reads out the last text message from the person mentioned.

Overview of vehicle voice commands
You can use the vehicle voice commands to directly call up the corresponding menus for the vehicle settings and operate vehicle functions.The following list offers just a small selection of the possible vehicle voice commands. You will receive additional suggestions if you say Help for vehicle settings or Help for vehicle functions. If no seat or side is mentioned for commands that relate to a seat or side of vehicle then all actions are carried out automatically for the driver’s seat.

Vehicle voice commands

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Temperature colder	I would like to reduce the tempera- ture	Lowers the temperature of the air conditioning system.
Air recirculation on	I would like to activate the air circu- lation	Switches on air recirculation mode for the air conditioning system.
Automatic climate control driver on	I would like to switch on the auto- matic climate control for the driv- er’s seat	Switches on automatic climate control for the driver’s or front passenger side.
Ambient light blue	I would like to set the interior light- ing to blue	Switches the ambiance light, e.g. to blue.
Wave massage driver on	I would like to switch on the wave massage for the driver’s seat	Switches on the wave massage for the driver’s or front passenger seat.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Massage driver’s seat off	Switch the driver’s side massage off	Switches off the massage function for the driver’s or front passenger seat.
Seat heating driver on	I would like to switch on the seat heating for the driver’s seat	Switches on the seat heating for the driver’s or front passenger seat.
Seat heating front passenger level 2	Seat heating front-passenger on level 2	Sets the seat heating for the driver’s or front passenger seat to level 2.
Current speed limit	I would like to hear the speed limit	Calls up the current speed limit.
Outside temperature	I would like to find out what the temperature outside is like	Calls up the outside temperature.
Average consumption	What is the current average con- sumption?	Calls up average consumption.
Vehicle data	Can you please display the vehicle data menu?	Calls up the vehicle data.
Range	Tell me the current range	Calls up the current range data.
Assistance menu	Show me the driver assistance set- tings	Displays the assistance settings.

Voice command	Colloquial example	Function
Climate control menu	I would like to see the climate con- trol menu	Displays the climate control settings.
Light menu	I would like to change the light set- tings	Displays the light settings.
Seats menu	I would like to switch to seat menu	Displays the seat adjustment settings.
Massage menu	I would like to switch to the mas- sage seat menu	Displays the massage settings.
Next service	Tell me my next service appoint- ment	Calls up the next service due date.

FAQ

Useful Link

View Full Manual: Mercedes-Benz A-CLASS SEDAN 2020 User Manual
2020 Mercedes-Benz A-CLASS SEDAN Technical Data User Guide