Ever wish you could control drive-up ATMs from a car’s touchscreen? Ford might be trying to make it happen.

Picture the scenario. Given recent weather conditions in much of the U.S., it isn’t a difficult one to imagine. It’s winter, your region is in the midst of a polar vortex, and it’s zero degrees Fahrenheit outside, or colder. You’re on your way home from work in the evening and you need a little cash, but it’s so dog-gone cold that you hate the prospect of even dropping your power window enough to reach out, insert your ATM card, and go through the sequence of keystrokes while your delicate little hands are getting flash-frozen. But what if you could control drive-up ATMs from a car’s touchscreen?

If the patent application published last Thursday by Ford Global Technologies, the division of Ford Motor Company that manages their technological innovations and patents, ever comes to fruition, the day may come when you can do all the button pushing from inside your car, with no need to roll the window down until you’re ready for the drive-up ATM to spit out your crisp, green Federal Reserve Notes.

In the application, Ford calls the technology they are trying to patent “In Vehicle Banking Enabled by Near Field Communication.” Here’s the jargony, patent-ese version of how Ford Global Technologies describes, in the patent application, how the new, more comfy drive-up ATM usage scenario will work:

An automated teller machine includes a controller. The controller may be configured to transmit via inductive coupling a session key in response to receiving a signal from a nomadic device. The controller may then establish a connection with a vehicle infotainment system (VIS) using the session key and receive from the VIS, a PIN number and a request to dispense funds via the connection. After which, the controller may inhibit release of the funds until a confirmation is received via inductive coupling from the nomadic device.

The likely plain-English translation of this description is that your in-car infotainment system will say “Hi” to the ATM via a wireless connection, enabling you to enter your PIN and do all your button pushing from the climate-controlled comfort of your Ford vehicle’s touchscreen, presumably while your favorite Pandora station plays on as your background soundtrack.

Then, once the transaction details are all entered and you’re ready to pull your cash, you’ll be able to tap a prompt on your touch screen to tell the ATM to release the funds, so that you can roll your window down and make a quick grab for the dough, then close your window again and be on your way.

So is this a frivolous luxury? It all depends on your perspective and the surrounding situation. In the midst of a polar vortex, for example, every moment of warmth counts when you have to be out and about.

That said, as with any patent application, there’s no guarantee that anything like this technology will ever show up in a production vehicle.

It’s an interesting capability to think about, though.