Most consumers are so accustomed to using handheld electronic devices in their daily lives that it makes them demand the same seamless level of service when they’re driving. For instance, people want hands-free calling capabilities and integration of their handheld devices with on-board electronics.
Voice control is emerging in response to this increase in driving complexity. “We [also] see increased applications for capacitive controls, haptic feedback and improved display resolution,” says GM’s Thibodeau. “Driver distraction regulation will only increase the demand for electronics to [address] active safety and autonomous vehicle operation solutions.
“General Motors is interested in many types of technologies that improve the features and functions associated with fuel economy enablers, active safety systems, security trends, and infotainment-telematics strategies,” adds Thibodeau. “We are looking to identify catalogs of hardware controllers that are prequalified to work as part of our Autosar [software] strategy.
“For example, we are looking for distributed battery management systems that are capable of handling high voltage,” Thibodeau points out. “New ICs will enable lower cost and higher reliability in the battery monitoring area for hybrid- and electric-propelled vehicles. We are also looking at a variety of sensing technologies that could be part of active safety and autonomous systems, including ultrasonic, radar and optical sensors.”
As electric vehicles emerge, they will have unique requirements. “In a gasoline vehicle, you can typically drive 400 miles or so on a tank, and unless you are truly in the middle of nowhere, finding someplace to refuel is not normally an issue,” says Riches. “However, in an EV with potentially only 100 miles of range, this is not the case. The vehicle will ideally need to know what your intended destination is, what the traffic and weather conditions are, and the location of public recharge points so that it can advise on the feasibility of your journey. What may be easily achieved in light traffic on a calm summer day could well be impossible [when travelling] into strong head-winds in heavy traffic that has been disrupted by snow and ice.”
Hard wiring in vehicles is extremely complex today, due to the wide variety of media (copper, fiber, coax, and power line) routing throughout a car. “New forms of Ethernet are now emerging that promise to deliver all of the characteristics for linking automotive electronics together with a single glass strand or wire pair,” says Joel Hoffmann, strategic market development manager in the Automotive Solutions Div. of Intel Corp. “This is an example of sharing innovation from the computing industry with automotive and reducing costs through re-use.
“In addition, heads-up displays will provide an alternative to traditional car dashes,” adds Hoffmann. “We’ll see more intelligent driver-assist functions for recognition, object detection, and collecting and analyzing sensor information to control speed, and potentially even stop a car.”
Further down the road, wireless technologies will emerge on the auto electronics scene. “But, the use of wireless technologies for communication between vehicle systems and sensors is still a long way off,” claims Riches. “Wired networks will prevail for many years yet. Only systems that truly need to be wireless, such as keyless entry systems and tire-pressure monitoring systems, will be wireless. Whenever you go wireless, you increase the possibility of security problems, and the vulnerability of wireless systems has been documented.” A
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