In embedded chips and connected car news tips this week are VINLI, PSA, Tesla, VW,Udacity, AAA, MOST, Cypress, Anvu and Velodyne.
VINLI Connected Car Sales Partnership
VINLI announced that it has two new distributors: Meineke Car Care, a chain of car maintenance and repair shops, and Cox Automotive, a distributor to 40,000 dealers across the U.S. Cox Automotive is also an investor in Vinli.
PSA, which represents brands Peugeot, DS and Citroën, will work with fm Bollore to launch a car sharing service in Los Angeles.
Tesla Tidbits
Elon Musk said that the Tesla will push at the software update for Autopilot v8.0 on September 21 “if no last minute issues are discovered”.
Meanwhile, Mobileye execs reported in that Tesla was pushing the envelope using Mobileye cameras for the Tesla Autopilot. Tesla Motors also promised that drivers would not allowed to take their hands off the steering wheel using Autopilot. Mobileye continually voiced safety concerns which Tesla ignored
NEW VW AI
The Volkswagen Group continues to drive the digital transformation forward and is expanding its competence with regard to artificial intelligence (AI), not only with a view to using this key technology in the field of autonomous driving and in production, but also to speed up corporate processes. To that end, Prof. Patrick van der Smagt will be joining the team of AI experts and data scientists at the Volkswagen Group’s Data Lab in Munich from October, and will lead the AI team. Van der Smagt is Associate Professor at Technische Universität München and one of Europe’s leading experts in deep learning and robotics.
New VW Cybersecurity
Volkswagen announced it will partner with form a new cybersecrity company, called Cymotive Technologies.Former head of the Israeli Security Services Yuval Diskin, 27-year Israel Ministry of Defense veteran Tsafrir Kats and Claremont University professor Tamir Bechor will lead Volkswagen’s group.
Self-Driving Car Engineer Program
Udacity announced a new Self-Driving Car Engineer Nanodegree program. It require three 12-week terms that cost $800 each ($2,400 in total). The course covers a range of topics, such as deep-learning, computer vision, sensor fusion, localization, and controllers. Udacity has its very own self-driving car that students will be able to work on to test out their code remotely. The company is working with Mercedes-Benz and NVIDIA.
More Investment in Abalta
Abalta Technologies, Inc. announced that Japan’s biggest digital mapmaker, Zenrin Company Ltd, is making a substantial investment in the US-based supplier of connected vehicle solutions. The new relationship, which takes full advantage of both companies’ strong market positions and product portfolios, will allow Abalta to continue to deliver significant growth while operating independently.
Yang to Lead AAA Foundations for Traffic Safey
Dr. C. Y. David Yang, a leading expert in transportation and traffic safety research, has been selected to be the new executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Dr. Yang joins the Foundation after having served most recently as the Human Factors Team Leader with the Federal Highway Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, where he transformed the Human Factors Laboratory into a world-class research facility with state-of-the-art tools and top-notch researchers.
MOST Microchips Power Toyota & Lexus
Microchip Technology announced that its MOST50 Intelligent Network Interface Controllers (INICs) are powering the infotainment systems of Toyota Motor Corporation’s new Lexus GS line of luxury sedans. The new GS line is the latest Toyota brand to use MOST50 in their infotainment system. The Lexus GS is using Microchip’s OS81092 INIC. The carmaker is one of more than 30 manufacturers to rely on Media Oriented Systems Transport (MOST®) technology to transport video, audio, packet and control data throughout the vehicle.
Faraday Future Picks AMAG
AMAG Technology, the security solution provider specializing in access control, intrusion detection, video management, policy-based identity solutions and visitor management, announces that Faraday Future has selected AMAG’s Symmetry Enterprise Access Control System and Symmetry CompleteView Video Management System to secure its headquarter building in Gardena, California. AMAG’s Symmetry products will be installed in its soon-to-be-built world-class, environmentally-friendly manufacturing facility in North Las Vegas, Nevada
Cypress Samples Traveo Family
Cypress Semiconductor Corp announced it is sampling new devices in its single-power-supply Traveo automotive microcontroller (MCU) family that provides secure, high-speed networking for body electronics applications. The new S6J342xxx series supports the Controller Area Network Flexible Data-rate (CAN FD) standard for high-speed, in-vehicle networking, enabling large amounts of data to be exchanged between each CAN node. The MCUs address the critical need to secure data on in-vehicle networks with enhanced Secure Hardware Extension (eSHE) support, preventing unauthorized connections to electronic control units (ECUs). The new Traveo series continues Cypress’s expansion of its broad automotive portfolio that includes MCUs, wireless radios, memories, capacitive-touch solutions and Power Management ICs (PMICs).
The Traveo S6J342xxx series leverage Cypress’s 40nm embedded charge-trap (eCT™) Flash technology for higher performance and reliability. The series delivers rich features and more cost-efficient implementations for body control modules, heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, collision warning systems, gateways and lighting applications. The MCUs are based on an ARM® Cortex®-R5 core with robust, 132-MHz performance and feature up to 1MB of high-density embedded flash for application storage. A unique partial wake-up mode allows the MCUs to minimize average power consumption.
Luxoft Buys Pelagicore
Luxoft Holding announced that it has acquired Pelagicore AB, a leader in open source software (OSS) platforms and services for in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) and human machine interface (HMI) development. The company serves a number of blue-chip corporations and enjoys industry recognition as thought leaders in the HMI space with deep expertise in open source technologies, the cross-platform user interface (UI) development framework Qt, and in IVI systems. Its product portfolio facilitates richer user experiences (UX) and user interfaces (UI) in line with the next generation of consumer
Anvu Standards for Video
Avnu Alliance, the industry consortium driving open, standards-based deterministic networking, announces that their Automotive Ethernet AVB Functional and Interoperability Specification (derived from the Avnu Automotive Profile), is now available to the public.
Months of effort within the Avnu working groups, including experts in automotive systems, network switching, and time sensitive systems resulted in the Avnu Alliance Automotive Ethernet AVB Functional and Interoperability Specification. This document defines a common baseline among multiple standard options within the Ethernet AVB set of standards with additional functionality required by automotive devices, and forms the foundation for a streamlined certification process for those functions the representatives agreed should be common and interoperable. The Avnu Automotive Profile simplifies the specification process for Automotive OEMs, and enables faster time-to-market, better reuse, lower costs, and easier integration for global automotive manufacturers.
New 3D Puck from Velodyne
Velodyne LiDAR Inc., the recognized global leader in Light, Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology, today unveiled its new Puck Hi-Res sensor, a version of the company’s groundbreaking LiDAR Puck that provides higher resolution in captured 3D images, which allows objects to be identified at greater distances. Puck Hi-Res is the third new LiDAR sensor released by the company this year, joining the standard VLP-16 Puck and the Puck LITE.
Expanding on Velodyne LiDAR’s VLP-16 Puck, a 16-channel, real-time 3D LiDAR sensor that weighs just 830 grams, Puck Hi-Res is used in applications that require greater resolution in the captured 3D image. Puck Hi-Res retains the VLP-16 Puck’s 360° horizontal field-of-view (FoV) and 100-meter range, but delivers a 20° vertical FoV for a tighter channel distribution – 1.33° between channels instead of 2.00° – to deliver greater details in the 3D image at longer ranges. This will enable the host system to not only detect, but also better discern, objects at these greater distances.
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