ATX Group said it‘s developed a natural language “Browse By Voice” capability for drivers who want to surf the web without taking their hands off the wheel. The firm said drivers only to speak a search phrase, such as “What‘s the weather in Boston?” when a Google or Yahoo search engine main page is displayed on an in-vehicle display.
ATX said its voice platform should enable drivers to send text messages or emails without typing, and manage social networking, in addition to performing searches. “Voice is a natural method to converse in the car,” said Dr. Tom Schalk, ATX vice president of voice technologies. “Extending this to the Internet makes sense. We’re not only interested in finding the best and safest way to enable drivers to browse while driving, but we’re also interested in enabling other functionality in mobile devices such as outbound texting.”
Am I missing something? An advance in the deployment of in-vehicle speech recognition technology is to be applauded - especially one that involves natural language, doesn’t get hung up on regional pronunciations, need special training, etc. But search? If I type “weather in Boston,” Google gives me about 23,600,000 results. How do you comb through all of that data hands-free?
Dash Navigation‘s recent decision to stop marketing its traffic-centric, subscription-based, connected PND confirms the low perceived value of traffic service, according to ABI Research. “Current traffic solutions suffer from a lack of quality and reliability, with dissatisfied customers increasingly reluctant to keep paying recurring fees, according to ABI.
“While there is certainly an issue with convincing consumers to pay monthly fees for navigation content services, in the case of traffic the priority should be to increase the value of the offer before exploring new business models,” says ABI Research director Dominique Bonte.
“Predictive traffic makes time-dependent routing possible and provides customers with more trustworthy information, allowing them to prepare their trips more efficiently on Internet mapping sites and to calculate a more accurate Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA).
Texas Instruments has added two devices to its TAS54xx family of Class-D audio amplifiers. With greater integration and channel flexibility, the new amplifiers can reduce the system costs for automotive head units and external amplifier applications by as much as 50% without affecting electromagnetic compliance or audio performance. The amplifiers are scheduled for AEC-Q100 qualification
The TAS5412, with single-ended inputs, and the TAS5422, with differential inputs, provide improved system design flexibility when combined with TI’s existing four-channel amplifier devices, TAS5414A and TAS5424A. Car audio system architects can optimize designs that require two or six channels by matching the number of speakers more efficiently while maintaining high levels of integration. The new TAS5412 and TAS5422 are also designed to operate in car audio systems without a microcontroller, for system- level cost savings.
The TAS5412 and TAS5422 use the same patent-pending EMC technology as the TAS54×4A, which surpasses CISPR-25 Level 5 and many OEM-specific requirements, to ensure that high-power audio systems do not compromise vehicle operation. The TAS5412 and TAS5422 support higher voltage and current capabilities, enabling a higher maximum output power for applications where feature densities and system configurations require reduction in heat from the audio power amplifier. TI said the amplifiers incorporate patented PWM designs that provide excellent power supply rejection in the harsh electrical environment common in automotive applications.
The TAS5412 and TAS5422 are sampling now with volume production scheduled for the first quarter of 2009. The TAS5412 is $5.30 and the TAS5422 is $5.80 in 1000-piece quantities.
BMW Group Research and Technology (www.bmwgroup.com) and NXP Semiconductors (www.nxp.com) have developed a prototype of a multifunctional car key the capabilities of which include contactless payment, personalized access control, and applications such as public transport e-ticketing.
Powered by NXP’s SmartMX security chip, the prototype allows drivers to perform quick, secure and convenient electronic payments with a car key, creating new usage scenarios for future consumers. NXP will demonstrate the car key prototype during the CARTES & IDentification show in Paris November 4-6.
Strategy Analytics‘ report,”Automotive Microcontrollers: Market Demand and Product Directions,” predicts that 32-bit devices will account for 58% of the $7.6 billion automotive MCU market by 2015 and that high-end MCUs will be key enablers of future emissions-controlling powertrain technology, advanced safety and driver assistance systems, and multimedia entertainment products. So that‘s what Freescale focused on at Convergence 2008:
Freescale FlexRay and BMW
Freescale‘s FlexRay controller technology was first implemented last year in the BMW X5 Sports Activity Vehicle, which was the first standard-production vehicle to use the FlexRay protocol. The Integrated Chassis Management (ICM) system in the BMW X6 Sports Activity Coupe, which manages the vehicle‘s drivetrain and suspension functions, uses two 32-bit Freescale Power Architecture MCUs. As with the X5, Freescale FlexRay controller technology is used in BMW‘s optional Adaptive Drive, which allows drivers to select a sporting or a more comfortable ride with the press of a button.
OmniVision announced at Convergence 2008 that it has begun volume shipments of its ¼-inch OV7710 (color) and OV7211 (b/w) VGA CMOS CameraChip sensors to automotive customers. Of course it declined to say which ones, or to specify display-based and/or signal processing applications beyond mentioning its “dual static overlay function enabling on-screen reference frames and guiding systems for rear view and parking assist cameras. “
Senior product marketing manager Inayat Khajasha said the company has design wins for lane departure warning and forward looking cameras, a video event recorder, blind spot detection, 360° view, rear-view, and occupant sensing for airbag deployment. Prospects are evaluating OmniVision products for automatic headlight dimming and bending; front, rear, and side view sensing for park assist, and adaptive cruise control, where radar and lidar are more common. Khajasha said OmniVision is working on sensors to prevent windows and sunroofs from closing on tiny fingers, and “forgotten baby” sensors.
Also in the works, due to ship next March, are OmniVision‘s single-chip high dynamic range (HDR) sensors, the OV10620 (color) and OV10121 (b/w). Both offer automatic adaptation in low and high contrast settings.
The MathWorks chose Convergence 2008 to announce Simulink Fixed Point version 6, which supports 128-bit (versus 32-bit) word lengths among other enhancements. According to Wensi Jin, automotive marketing manager for both North America and the Asia Pacific region, the application is designed to do the non-creative, repetitive, heavy lifting - including code generation - involved in converting floating point models to run on typically less costly fixed point processors. It‘s also said to create more efficient workflows in less time.
“Silicon space is getting more diverse,” Jin says. “It‘s no longer a case of choosing between a micro and a DSP. New ECUs have a lot of silicon options, and (Simulink Fixed Point version 6) supports design engineers deciding what goes on a micro and what goes on a DSP.”
Jin adds, referring to 128-bit support, “When hardware moves, design tools have to also. Otherwise you don‘t get the advantage of the hardware.” The new version works with floating point designs built in
Simulink, Stateflow, Embedded MATLAB functions, Signal Processing Blockset, and Video and Image Processing Blockset. It‘s available for Microsoft Windows, Solaris, Linux, and Macintosh platforms. Prices start at $1k.
Renesas (www.renesas.com) attracted some 300 customers and partners to its first Developers Conference, held in San Diego. More than 80 technical sessions were scheduled, with topics including CAN and FlexRay connectivity.
It used the conference to debut a system-on-chip, the SH77721, that it said is the first product in a new SH-NaviJ series. Microprocessor marketing manager Paul Sykes described the SH-NaviJ as a new SuperH processor tailored for low-end through mid-range car information terminals, including small portable navigation devices and dashboard-mounted car navigation systems.
Renesas‘ SH-Navi processors are being used in many high-end nav system designs, according to Sykes, and the new SoC leverages the same basic architecture and bus structure, CPU, graphics processor, and IP. The SH77721 lets developers “migrate desirable capabilities downward” into lower-priced mainstream products.
The SH77721 uses a fast (333MHz, 599 MIPS, 2.3 GFLOPS) 32-bit superscalar SH-4A CPU core with cache and a floating point unit (FPU). Software written for devices with SH-4 CPUs can be used as is or repurposed with modifications to shorten development time.
Sykes said on-chip peripheral functions have been selected and fine-tuned for mainstream navigation, and screen displays can rival those of high-end systems. The graphics processor has 2D and 3D drawing capabilities for creating recognizable map objects and distinctive GUI icons. Features include 2D bold-line drawing and anti-aliasing, and 3D triangle drawing and texture mapping. The 3D graphics library has an industry standard interface and API while the 2D library is GDI-Sub compliant with Microsoft’s Windows Automotive 5.0 Service Pack 2.
The SH77721 also features a USB v2.0 High Speed host/function interface, SD card host interface, GPS baseband processing module, FM multiplex decoder, and CAN in-vehicle LAN interface, all to help lower component counts. It operates from -40°C to +85x{02da}C.
The SH77721 is packaged in a 23mm x 23mm, 440-pin BGA, with is less than half the size of the 33mm x 33mm, 520-pin BGA that houses the SH7770. To decrease chip size, the SH77721 has fewer channels for the sound interface, DMAC and SCIF. Also, it can work with just one DDR333-type DDR2 SDRAM chip instead of the four external DDR1 memory chips required by the SH7770 SH-Navi. In addition to a 16-bit DDR2 memory interface, the SH77721 has a 32-bit extension bus for connections to external flash memory or SRAM. Its memory can be shared by various function modules, which minimizes if not eliminates the need for external memory chips.
The SH77721 features on-chip debugging at 333MHz. Development tools include the E10A-USB emulator, and the High-performance Embedded Workshop IDE with C compiler and project management capabilities. A new reference platform is also available. It includes application-oriented peripheral circuits and provides a user-system actual-device verification environment. The SoC is $47 in sample quantities, and should be available in Q4 of 2008.
Chrysler plans to brand all of its in-vehicle interconnection technologies “UConnect,” as in UConnect phone, UConnect tunes, UConnect gps, UConnect studios, and UConnect web.
For the latter, Chrysler is partnering with Autonet Mobile and Mopar to offer aftermarket in-vehicle Internet connectivity on all Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles, beginning in August.
Chrysler has used the UConnect identity for hands-free Bluetooth connectivity for some time. Mopar offers an aftermarket system, and Chrysler will offer a factory installed version on the Chrysler 300, Aspen, PT Cruiser, Sebring and Town & Country; Dodge Avenger, Grand Caravan, Caliber, Challenger, Charger, Dakota, Durango, Journey, Nitro, and Ram, and the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Commander, Compass, Liberty, and Patriot.
UConnect phone will automatically download up to 1,000 phone book entries from supported phones. It recognizes three languages, and is capable of learning. Voice commands can be used to manage onboard phone book entries, select radio stations, and access voice mail. The microphone in the rearview mirror can also be used to record and store up to three 30-second voice memos. On select vehicles, UConnect phone will also include an iPod interface (Universal Customer Interface connector).
Similar to MyGIG, UConnect tunes includes a 30-gigabyte hard drive for ripping up to 6,700 songs from CD or USB memory devices in MP3, AAC or WMA file formats. It can also store photos, and show movies while the vehicle is in Park. It will be available on the Chrysler 300, Aspen, Sebring and Town & Country; Dodge Avenger, Caliber, Grand Caravan, Challenger, Charger, Journey, Nitro and Ram 1500, and the Jeep Commander, Compass, Grand Cherokee, Liberty and Patriot
Chrysler‘s navigation/real-time traffic system, UConnect gps, will be available on the Chrysler 300, Aspen, Sebring and Town & Country; Dodge Avenger, Caliber, Grand Caravan, Challenger, Charger, Journey, Nitro and Ram; Jeep Commander, Compass, Grand Cherokee, Liberty and Patriot. It will feature a touch screen, and a voice recognition system with a 100,000-word vocabulary, so users can enter destinations while the vehicle is moving.
UConnect studios refers to SIRIUS Backseat TV and SiRIUS satellite radio, which offer three channels of family TV fare and 130 channels of music, information and entertainment respectively. The two can be taken together or separately. Programming is available for front seat viewing on UConnect tunes or UConnect GPS screens when the vehicle is in Park. The TV feature, which now includes 9-inch screens that swivel, is available for the Chrysler 300, Aspen and Town & Country; Dodge Grand Caravan, Charger, Durango, Journey and Ram 1500, and the Jeep Commander and Grand Cherokee. SIRIUS satellite radio is available for all Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles.
Mopar will offer UConnect Web at a suggested retail price of $449 plus $35-50 for installation. Autonet Mobile offers service at $29 per-month plus a $35 activation fee. The service promises to transform a vehicle into a mobile hot spot with a 100-foot radius. WiFi-enabled devices will be able to connect with the Internet wherever cellular service is available. The service runs over integrated 3G and 2.5G (EVDO, 1xRTT) cellular data networks. Internet access speeds are said to range from 400-800 Kbps/sec., with upload speeds averaging 400 Kbps/sec. The WiFi connection is secured with WEP encryption, MAC address restriction,or WAN port restriction.
Safety-related automotive technology traditionally ranks high in J.D. Power and Associates U.S. Automotive Emerging Technology Study, but safety features began to slip last year and their slide relative to non-safety features accelerated in the 2008 study, just released.
J.D. Power surveyed more than 19,000 U.S. consumers in April to gauge their level of interest in 20 emerging automotive technologies before and after specifying average market prices.
Premium sound and heated/cooled front seats proved more popular than collision mitigation, enhanced adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning systems. Premium sound and heated/cooled seats ranked sixth and seventh before their respective $500 and $700 prices were revealed. They slipped to eighth and twelfth place respectively after their prices were known. Collision mitigation, with an average price of $1,500, dropped from #11 to #17; enhanced adaptive cruise control, priced at $800, held steady in thirteenth place, and lane departure warning, at $500, stepped up from #18 to #14.
J.D. Power defined collision mitigation as an automated safety system that monitors external conditions around the vehicle and uses visual, physical and audible cues to warn the driver of a potential collision before automatically applying the braking system, tightening seat belts and moving the driver‘s seat into the optimal crash position. The firm described an enhanced adaptive cruise control system as one able to bring the vehicle to a stop if necessary to avoid a collision.
Satellite and HD radio both gained consumer interest when their prices ($12.95 per-month and $200 respectively) were known. Satellite radio climbed from #14 to #7, while HD jumped from #15 to #6.
Prior to revealing the average market price, consumers said they are either “definitely” or “probably” interested in features as follows:
Blind spot detection 76%, backup assist 74%, navigation system 73%, active cornering headlight system 73%, hybrid-electric capability 72%, premium surround sound 67%, heated/cooled front seats 67%, central control unit 67%, personal assistance safety devices 65%, portable navigation device 65%, collision mitigation system 62%,
remote vehicle diagnostics 61%, enhanced adaptive cruise control 60%, satellite radio 58%, HD radio 57%, wireless connectivity system 57%, in-vehicle Internet 54%, lane departure warning system 46%, rear-seat entertainment system 43%, and clean diesel engine 37%.
The rank order after prices were known was backup assist; active cornering headlight system; wireless connectivity system; blind spot detection; remote vehicle diagnostics; HD radio; satellite radio; a three-way tie among central control unit, premium surround sound and hybrid electric capability; personal assistance safety services; heated/cooled front seats; enhanced adaptive cruise control; a tie among portable navigation device, lane departure warning system, and clean diesel engine; collision mitigation system; navigation system; in-vehicle Internet, and rear-seat entertainment.
Mike Marshall, the firm‘s director of automotive emerging technologies, noted that hybrid-electric powertrain technology in vehicles garners high interest among consumers both before and after the average market price ($5,000) is revealed. Consumer interest of 72% before the price is known is considerably higher than 58% reported in the 2005 study. Interest remains high at 46% in the current study after the price is revealed.
“High consumer interest in hybrid-electric powertrain technology may be reflective of not only rising gas prices but also a heightened effort among consumers to be more environmentally conscious,” said Marshall.
“Clean diesel technology, however, garners relatively low interest in comparison. One explanation for this may derive from a lack of education with the technology. Many consumers cannot differentiate between clean diesel and traditional diesel fuel–which in the past had a negative connotation with unpleasant vehicle emissions. As consumers become more educated in the benefits of clean diesel through increased product offers launching later this year, interest in the technology may increase.”
“Wireless connectivity, in particular, makes a considerable jump in the rankings after the average price point of $200 is revealed,” Marshall added. “Consumer interest is likely heightened by the fact that more states may prohibit the use of cell phones while driving. Wireless connectivity will potentially become a necessity rather than a luxury as time goes on.”
Marshall said the rapid acceleration of interest in non-safety features was the biggest surprise in this year‘s survey. He attributed relatively low consumer interest in clean diesel technology to lack of awareness and latent misconceptions about diesel technology currently available. He suggested that OEMs planning to launch diesel vehicles would do well to educate potential buyers.
“OEMs also need to start looking at vehicle interiors and infotainment as an extension of a consumer‘s lifestyle,” he said. “They need to ask themselves what consumers do - how they are informed and entertained, and how they communicate - and then enable consumers to do those same things when they are in their vehicles while maintaining a safe environment.
“The automotive industry is facing incredible challenges in this regard,” Marshall continued, “and if anything, those challenges are going to get worse due to the speed at which consumer technology is changing. Developers have to move away from a focus on specific devices and look at the functions - information, entertainment and communication - and how to accommodate them.”
This blog focuses on issues and trends in the design and deployment of automotive electronics products, including chips, embedded systems, network topologies, standards, and system components for infotainment, telematics, ADAS, and more. It's a forum for engineers at every link in the value chain.
