VEHICOM

Futuristic cockpit concepts are the distinguishing mark of automotive supplier Visteon. In the past the company already stood out with eye-catching designs like its e-Bee design where fully configurable TFT displays replaced traditional pointer instruments or with a concept that leaned on Artificial Intelligence (AI) to learn the driver's habits. Now it is 3-D gesture recognition that replaces conventional controls in the centre stack.

The new Horizon cockpit concept, which Visteon has been demonstrating to global vehicle manufacturers, blends three emerging technologies to transform the way a driver controls features such as interior temperature, audio and navigation.

Gesture control: A camera system maps the user's hand to replicate a virtual hand on the centre stack. Drivers then can operate certain vehicle controls simply by moving their hand or just a finger without making contact with the instrument cluster. For example, radio volume can be adjusted by making a turning motion with one’s hand.

Virtual touch screen: By integrating a pressure-sensitive touch pad, drivers can operate centre stack controls without having to physically reach for them. The touch pad recognizes the amount of pressure applied for improved responses. The touch pad can be implemented with any soft material, such as leather or cloth, allowing flexibility for its location.

Dual-layered display: High-resolution graphics present information on two separate planes, bringing only those controls with which the driver is interacting to the forefront. The driver can virtually “push” through the graphics on the first pane to access the second.

“The Horizon cockpit concept shows possibilities for combining real-time rendered 3-D graphics with advanced display technologies,” said Shadi Mere, innovation manager at Visteon. “By weaving together multiple emerging HMI input technologies, we’re able to deliver a distinctive cockpit system that delivers an intuitive and enjoyable driving experience.”

Drivers and passengers can feel safe from magnetic fields generated by electric-powered cars according to the findings of researchers from seven countries and led by SINTEF, the largest independent research organisation in Scandinavia.

The research results show that none of the vehicle types, including electric-powered cars as well as those powered by hydrogen, petrol and diesel fuels, expose passengers to higher electromagnetic fields than those recommended in international standards. In fact, field intensity is well below the recommended value.

SINTEF led the research project which involved nine other European companies and research institutes.

In addition to improving the publics confidence when it comes to magnetic fields in electric cars, the goal of the project was primarily to create a standardised method for measuring electromagnetic fields in such vehicles.

The International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) defines the limiting values of acceptable exposure to magnetic fields at different frequencies.

The intensity of magnetic fields in seven different electric cars, one hydrogen car and one petrol car were measured in order to ascertain whether they approach the recommended limiting values for human exposure. The measurements were carried out using real cars in a laboratory and during road tests.

The highest values in electric cars were measured near the floor, close to the battery itself and when starting the cars. In all cases, exposure to magnetic fields is lower than 20 per cent of the limiting value recommended by the ICNIRP. Measurements taken at head-height are less than two per cent of the same limiting value.

In the case of petrol and diesel powered cars, exposure was measured at around 10 per cent of the limiting value. In other words, there is little difference between electric cars and petrol and diesel cars. As a result the conclusion is that magnetic fields in electric cars are well below the limiting values, and that there is a good safety margin.

There is a good deal of public concern about exposure to magnetic fields. The subject crops up regularly in the media. With the number of electric-powered vehicles increasing, this project is very relevant, explained Kari Schjlberg-Henriksen, a physicist at SINTEF. There is absolutely no cause for concern. The difference between this research and similar earlier work is that we have taken into account what contributes to the magnetic fields. The rotation of the wheels themselves generates considerable magnetic fields, irrespective of vehicle type.

The EU-funded research project EM Safety is the most comprehensive study yet carried out to identify different sources of magnetic fields in electric cars. Seven countries have been involved in the project, in which universities, the car industry, research institutions and laboratories are represented.

Mercedes-Benz has selected the QNX CAR platform to power the infotainment system in the Mercedes-Benz Concept S-Class Coupé, an exciting new concept vehicle created to showcase Mercedes-Benz’ latest advancements in user experiences for the car.

The concept car’s infotainment system brings the Mercedes-Benz design philosophy to life with a fresh and refined approach to the all-digital instrument cluster and head unit. The digital dials are functional yet sensual in the use of 3D and light, complementing the new interior. The use of particle effects conveys a sense of emotion to the head unit’s main menu and mood-based selection of music, while the new Garmin map strikes a balance between form and function so that you arrive in style.

In automotive semiconductor rankings, Freescale continues to fall back from its former pole position EE Times Europe asked Steve Wainwright General Manager, Freescale EMEA, and Juergen Weyer, Vice President Automotive EMEA about the chipmaker's recipe to regain market share and their perspective on Internet of Things and the automobile.

EE Times Europe: Freescale has lost market share in the auto,otive semiconductor markets and dropped in semiconductor rankings. What is the reason for this decline and does Freescale have a strategy to better the situation?

Steve Wainwright: We at Freescale measure us against the Total Available Market (TAM), the total world of semiconductors. But there are two exceptions, and they are very important in terms of answering this question: Memories - this is a massively separate business, it has nothing to do with what we do, so we don't measure ourselves against that. The other thing is discretes, because we don't take part in the discrete transistor business. For instance we do not manufacture IGBTs. When you look at what is going on in the automotive business, you'll see that power electronics is playing a much bigger part than it did ever before. So when you look at absolute share, there is, if you will, a distortion because of the amount of power electronics that are happening. Take for example Infineon - without beating about the bush they are world leaders in IGBTs. With hybrid cars and electrically powered cars there is a lot of power electronics that we are not participating in. This clearly has an impact on market shares.

With an average of more than 100 Electronic Control Units (ECUs), modern vehicles are already computer networks on wheels. This high degree of 'electronisation' has consequences for the innovation in automotive technology: Already today, 90 percent of the innovation in this segment is associated to electronics and software, says a study from technology consultancy Invensity.

The focus on electronics in automotive innovation will continue to climb, believes Invensity automotive expert Sebastian Hetzel. "Today, autonomous driving, drive-by-wire and the electrification of the powertrain confront vehicle developers with new challenges."

The Invensity experts compared the ECU landscape in vehicles with the Programmable Logic Controllers in manufacturing environments which have reached as similar performance level. Nevertheless, automotive electronics has an edge over PLCs under the aspect of technological sophistication. Its custom-made, decentralised hardware makes them particularly suited for applications under spatial restrictions. In addition, automotive electronics is particularly resistant against heat, vibration and other adverse environmental factors. In addition, automotive electronics are designed to be used by end customers translates into far better usability. What's more, automotive electronics typically is less prone to faults since carmakers are very eager to avoid defamatory call-back actions. For this reason they have established extremely elaborate tests.

The new infotainment system in the 2014 Mazda 3 aims to future-proof the car to keep up with the ever-changing world of multimedia and smartphones while providing a safer and less distracting cabin environment.

At the launch of the new Mazda 3 in Los Angeles, the company’s general manager of production division, Ryuichi Umeshita, explained in detail the work that had gone into the car’s infotainment system.

Mazda has spent considerable effort designing a cabin that reduces driver distraction behind the wheel. Everything from the angle of information displays to text size has been analysed over and over to ensure a safe cabin environment. The three modes of distraction – visual distraction (eyes off road), cognitive distraction (wandering mind) and manual distraction (hands off wheel) – were key targets for Mazda’s human machine interface (HMI) designers.

Owners of the all-new 2015 Audi A3 can now use their smartphone to enhance their ownership experience with the Audi MMI® connect App. The App will synch directly with the available MMI® Navigation plus to elevate features both in and outside the car.

“This is the most advanced driver companion app Audi has ever launched,” said Anupam Malhotra, Senior Manager, Connected Vehicles for Audi of America. “The Audi connect Smartphone App features intuitive technology and easy-to-use features that not only increase functionality, but make the ownership experience fun and even more enjoyable.”

The MMI® connect App also works alongside owners’ existing myAudi accounts (my.AudiUSA.com). Key features include:

Online destinations

With functionality supported by Google Maps™, drivers can search for a destination in advance, send that destination to their car via myAudi, and program it in the MMI® Navigation system. The App also allows them to browse contacts or calendar entries for address details and send them to the car.

Picture destinations

With Picture destinations, drivers don’t even need an address. They can select any geo-coded picture from an existing picture album on their smartphone, or take a new picture on the spot, and send it to their car. Once in the car, drivers can browse through the photos and navigate to the destination where the photos were taken. This feature also makes it very convenient to drive to a friend or family member – friends and family simply send a geo-coded picture from their location and the App can be used to upload the image to the vehicle.

Music stream

When a passenger’s smartphone is connected to the MMI® system over the in-car Wi-Fi, it’s possible to access thousands of web radio stations, as well as any music stored on their smartphone. Using the MMI interface, vehicle occupants can browse top stations, select from their favorite radio stations, or go through playlists on their device. For passengers, the App offers additional functionality including radio station selection by genre, topic, country, or language, as well as free-text searches and storing favorites. These features are available once the smartphone is connected to the MMI® system over the available Wi-Fi. The App can also be used outside a vehicle to listen to web-radio (home, office, etc.).

Car finder

Thanks to Car finder, drivers can access their vehicle location through the App. When their smartphone is connected to the in-vehicle Wi-Fi, the MMI® connect App makes a note of where the car is parked, allowing drivers to easily navigate back to it from wherever they might be. The Car finder feature also allows users to take a photo of where they parked, which is stored with their vehicle location, to help recall area markers, garage levels, or other important information.

More about Audi MMI on http://www.audiusa.com/help/mmi

Carmaker BMW has announced online updates for road maps stored in the automotive navigation system. The move could be a step towards software updates over the air.

Market watchers like Machina Research already rank BMW as the top vendor in terms of connectivity. Now the Bavarian carmaker goes one step further and enables the navigation system embedded (Professional version) in BMW's Connected Drive concept to automatically keep street maps current. While most navigation system vendors offer an update once or twice a year, BMW downloads the data as often as required, and entirely without the driver being involved. Towards this end, a backend server establishes a data connection through the 3G or 4G modem installed in the vehicle.

The map download is not the only automatic data update for information material stored in the navigation system; a head unit app available later this year will poll the fuel price from the filling stations in the surrounding area. The Real-Time Traffic Information (RTTI) system already continuously updates traffic data relevant for the route calculation. The automatic map download however involves the hitherto largest amounts of data. For this reason, it is not unlikely that this feature could be a precursor to automatic updates of executable on-board software in the future.

It is almost scary how closely the automotive app space of today resembles mobile apps in the telco-dominated world of 2008.

In many cases, we can draw a one-on-one parallel between automotive apps and pre-iPhone mobile apps. QNX is the new Symbian. GENIVI is the new LiMo. Windows Embedded Automotive is the new Windows Mobile. Just like mobile operators in 2008, carmakers are very hopeful that apps under their control will bring significant new revenue streams from value-added services.

The car app market is not yet viable

However, automotive apps are still a minefield for developers. App developers face enormous fragmentation, small addressable markets and high friction in the distribution and monetization of their software. To be sure, there are multiple ways to develop apps for connected cars and to take them to market. But none one of these ways is yet mature enough to create a viable app market.

This point is driven home by the example of Pandora. The Internet radio’s automotive app is crucial to the company as half of all radio listening in North America happens in the car. This has driven Pandora to aggressively pursue a presence in the car over the past three years, with relative success.

Today, the Pandora app is one of the most popular and often among the first to be announced on new car models. However, this success has come at a great cost, requiring Pandora to partner with more than 30 major car brands and aftermarket manufacturers, and to create native integrations for almost every one of them. Even then, the four million unique users that Pandora has in the car are but a small percentage of Pandora’s overall user base.

A tipping point draws near 

Back in 2008, the same high-friction situation with mobile apps provided fertile ground for a revolution led by industry outsiders: Apple with iOS and Google with Android.

The recent introduction of Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Open Automotive Alliance seems to spell a similar direction for the automotive industry. And there is a realistic possibility that Apple and Google will break open the car app market and sweep away the existing app platforms with a dominant, over-the-top solution, just as they did in the smartphone world. To stay in control, carmakers will have to unlock the potential of third-party developers and break the trade-off between driver distraction and openness for novel app ideas. The eventual platform winner will construct an app acceptance process that is open, fast, smooth and efficient enough to last mere days, and at the same time guarantees driver safety. Can carmakers apply the lessons from the mobile telecom industry to fix the broken car app ecosystem?

Stijn Schuermans, senior business analyst, VisionMobile, a market analysis and strategy firm.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration passed a law yesterday forcing new cars in the US to come with standard backup cameras by May 2018, and if Tesla has its way, this could be just the beginning of changing how motorists see out of their vehicles. The electric car manufacturer has teamed up with the 12-member Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers lobbying group (which represents major companies like General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen) and filed a petition on Monday asking NHTSA for permission to replace sideview mirrors with cameras.

Currently, side mirrors are required on cars in the US, and they can't legally be replaced by camera technologies filling a similar role. The petitioners' chief argument is that sideview mirrors add drag and decrease fuel economy. According to Automotive News, Tesla founder Elon Musk has been lobbying for laws that allow automakers to use sideview camera systems exclusively for the last two years, but claims it's nearly impossible for a single person to change the regulations.

Sideview cameras have been on concept cars for decades, but augmenting external visibility with cameras and sensors has been a growing trend in production automotive technology over the last five years or so. Nissan uses its Around View Monitor to supplement mirrors with a bird's eye composite view of the vehicle during tight maneuvers, and the LaneWatch system from Honda displays a rear-facing passenger-side view to eliminate blind spots during lane changes. Tesla's early Model X concept (pictured above) had small pods on the side with cameras mounted in them, but more recent versions have switched to conventional mirrors.

Microsoft has revealed the concept of ‘Windows in the Car’, a proprietary Windows Phone-centric car integration system which is simlar to Apple’s own CarPlay. Quietly demonstrated at Build 2014 this past week, , Windows in the Car pares back the standard Windows Phone interface to suit center console touchscreens and safer use while on the move thanks to features like Cortana.The system essentially works as a mirror for what’s already on your Windows Phone, allowing users to access apps like Maps, Xbox Radio, and Spotify on in-dash screens as well as physical car settings like defrost.

Microsoft in the Car is currently powered by Mirrorlink, an existing interconnectivity standard for cars and mobile devices which already has the support of a number of cars from makers including Volkswagen, Honda, and Toyota (as well as Nokia Symbian phones and Sony’s Xperia Z). Because the system is effectively an extension of Windows Phone, developers will be able to build car-specific apps, all of which carry heavy tones of Windows 9.

However, Microsoft dresses MirrorLink up in a familiar Windows and Windows Phone suit, with a UI that’s a combination of the two. As with CarPlay, exactly which apps and which features are on offer are dependent on what’s deemed safe for in-car use: think streaming media from services like Pandora, Spotify, and Amazon Music, along with maps and calls, rather than checking your Outlook inbox.

Unlike CarPlay, however, which effectively puts a video-output from the iPhone 5s onto the dashboard display, Microsoft’s proposed system would apparently be more tightly integrated into the car’s own functionality. In one screen, controls for heating and windscreen defrosting are shown in among shortcuts for streaming media and notifications about the current speed limit. Whether that’s actually possible remains to be seen, but it would certainly help Microsoft differentiate itself from rivals.

Right now this conecpt is all still in the realms of demo-tech, and Microsoft isn’t saying when Windows in the Car might make it out of the labs and into your dashboard.

The average driver spends about an entire week per year caught up in traffic congestions. Increasingly the vehicles are equipped with electronic systems aiming at keeping the traffic flowing or finding alternative routes. Cooperative systems are better suited for this task, finds Frost & Sullivan. 

Cooperative systems include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications; both applications combined are called vehicle-to-x (V2X) communications. One of the core elements of these systems is the cooperative wireless ad-hoc network established between other vehicles and infrastructure, based on a modified version of the WiFi standard which itself has been baptized Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC). Current planning provides for system enhancements based on infrared communications and global satellite navigation systems (GNSS) as well as new solutions based mobile telecommunications networks, in particular LTE. Through these enhancements, V2X is connected to data networks that provide information about accidents, traffic stalls and congestions en route but beyond the reach of DSRC systems - and beyond the capabilities of advanced driver assistance systems since these can only process data provided by their sensors. Cooperative systems hence are more suited to keep the traffic going, says Prana Tharthirahan Natarajan, Transport Team leader for consulting firm Frost & Sullivan.

Against this background, Natarajan expects V2X systems to quickly gain acceptance over the years ahead. Among the carmakers, the expert regards Daimler and Volvo as the trailblazers. By 203, more than 40 percent of all vehicles will be equipped with V2X technology - a surprisingly high number given that most likely only new vehicles will be equipped and given longevity of cars already out there on the streets. Natarjans figure would also exceed the threshold of 20 percent required for the system to get off and running (an estimate of Volkswagen's director of electronic architecture, Volkmar Tanneberger).

USB sockets appear in an increasing number of car models as portable devices become more ubiquitous. The USB interface delivers power to portable devices via the 5V VBUS and ground lines. Depending on the USB version and the portable device, the VBUS sources up to 2.1A. In a car, this high VBUS current presents a challenge.

Having concluded the acquisition of the Automotive Telematics On-board unit Platform (ATOP) business from NXP Semiconductors, M2M technology provider Telit Wireless Solutions now announced to leverage this platform to offer telematics services for automotive OEM and tier ones markets. For this purpose, the company has launched Telit Automotive Solutions, a business unit focusing exclusively on Automotive OEM and Tier-one markets.

ATOP is an automotive grade solution for vehicle manufacturers to implement eCall or similar functionality from a single package. Through the acquisition of the platform, Telit as well as its customers potentially benefit from a reduction in complexity and costs in vehicle designs, customer data as well as regulatory compliance.

Telit plans to integrate the ATOP business including sales, engineering and support staff into its new business unit, expanding its market reach with solutions leveraging the engineering and sales expertise of both former entities, in particular in software-centric RFIs from Automotive and Telematics OEMs. The company achieved automotive-critical global ISO/TS16949 certification in July 2012 and maintains one of the industry's largest product portfolios for the automotive sector with emphasis on advanced technologies such as LTE and HSPA+. The new organization will be headed by industry veteran and long-time Telit executive, Dominikus Hierl as its CEO.

In the course of the acquisition, Telit also appointed Lars Reger, Head of Chip Development and General Manager for New Business in NXP’s automotive business division as a non-executive director of Telit. Industry analysts position automotive as the strongest growing segment for M2M over the next few years. According to ABI Research, module shipments to automotive OEMs are expected to grow from 6 million units in 2013 to 30 million in 2018. Regulatory initiatives like eCall in Europe, ERA GLONASS in Russia, or DENATRAN 245 in Brazil lend further credibility to the strength of the sector along with the much publicized “connected car” trend which is likely to lead to 100% penetration of the technology in the very near future.

Three Tesla Model S cars destroyed by fire after running over road debris did not represent a "defect trend" is the conclusion of a US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) report.

In December 2013 German safety officials also cleared Tesla of blame, saying "no manufacturer-related defects could be found."

A report produced by the NHTSA concluded that sudden fires starting in the bank of 7,000 batteries that power Tesla Model S sports sedans were the result of road debris that punctured the aluminum shield protecting the cars' battery packs, not a design or manufacturing defect.

The NHTSA has accepted Tesla's explanation that, under the right conditions, it is possible for objects passing under the car to get snagged on the leading edge of the plate protecting the batteries, then spike sharply upward if the opposite end digs into the pavement.

Tesla showed the NHTSA investigators a crash-test video the company shot using a three-ball trailer hitch - the same type that evidently fell from another vehicle before puncturing the battery shield of a Model S in November 2013. After passing over the debris the battery caught fire when the trailer hitch smashed through the battery shield and set off a "thermal runaway" reaction in the batteries, which overheated, caught fire, and destroyed the car.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has recently posted clips from the crash-test videos in a blog explaining the company's offer of a solution.

The danger of serious, even catastrophic, damage from hard objects passing underneath at high speed is common to every vehicle, but isn't likely to happen more often to Tesla drivers or be more catastrophic than for other cars on the road, NHTSA investigators concluded.

Tesla's problem in the Model S car fires was damage from debris, not battery design, the company told the NHTSA.

Tesla's solution was to reinforce shields protecting the batteries, and set a higher minimum clearance level in the software that controls the air-assisted active suspension that is designed to lower Model S Teslas at highway speeds to improve aerodynamics and efficiency.

Two-thirds of 2012-2013 Tesla Model S cars - including all three burned by battery fires - came with computer-controlled, air-assisted suspension systems that can be upgraded without a visit to the garage. A bigger fix does require refitting at a garage or dealership, but it will come free for Tesla customers, Musk wrote in his blog.