In connected car news this week were Lucid Motors, Mentor Graphics, TomTom, Tangible Solutions, DTS, MediaTek, Autologi Diagnostics, Volvo and AllGo.
Lucid Motors Chooses Casa Grande AZ
Lucid Motors announced Casa Grande, Arizona, as the location for our cutting-edge automotive factory. The announcement was made at two events, one at the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix, and another at Casa Grande City Hall.
The company chose Arizona and Casa Grande for their pro-business mindset, excellent workforce, forward-thinking academic institutions, proximity to Silicon Valley headquarters, strong regional supply chain, and availability of a suitable property.
Lucid Motors will break ground and begin hiring in the first half of 2017.
Mentor Graphics Approved by Toyota
Mentor Graphics Corporation announced that Toyota Motor Corporation has approved its Volcano VSTAR AUTOSAR basic software stack for use in all Toyota vehicles. With this approval, global Tier 1 automotive suppliers can now leverage Mentor’s fast, resource-efficient AUTOSAR stack for the design and development of advanced Electronic Control Units (ECUs) in next-generation Toyota models.
Supported by Volcano VSx™ design tools across the development cycle, Mentor’s Volcano VSTAR software stack provides scalable AUTOSAR 4 middleware which abstracts the application from the hardware-dependent layer for the rapid development of highly differentiated end-products.
Tangible 3D Metal Printing
Tangible Solutions announced that they will add 3D metal printing to their portfolio of capabilities. They will be integrating five Mlab cusing machines and one M2 cusing machine into their new 25,000 square feet facility in Fairborn, a suburb of Dayton, Ohio. This will render Tangible Solutions as one of the largest service providers of Concept Laser’s metal powder-bed technology in the country.
DTS, Inc. announced that 34 new model year 2017 cars will feature HD Radio™ receivers, including 14 arriving in 2016. HD Radio Technology is the only digital broadcast system approved by the FCC for AM/FM radio in the U.S., offering new FM channels, crystal-clear sound and advanced data services with no subscription fees.
New model year 2017 cars featuring HD Radio receivers arriving by the end of 2016 are:
- Acura: NSX
- Infiniti: QX30, Q60 and QX60
- Kia: Niro
- Lincoln: Continental
- Nissan: Pathfinder and GT-R
- Toyota: 86, Yaris iA and Corolla iM
- Volvo: S90 and V60
- Jaguar: F-Pace
Additionally, nearly 20 new makes and models will be debuting with HD Radio receivers in early 2017 from brands such as BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Jeep, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota, and more.
Cockpit Leaders
According to Persistence Market research global automotive cockpit electronics market was worth USD 31.1 billion in 2013 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.0% during 2014 to 2020, to reach an estimated value of USD 61.5 billion in 2020.
The major players in the automotive cockpit electronics industry include Continental, Denso, Visteon, Harman, Alpine, Panasonic, Delphi, Bosch, and Pioneer.
MediTek Announced Automotive System
MediaTek announced its plan to bring holistic, fully integrated system solutions to the automotive industry beginning Q1 2017.
The market for connected and autonomous vehicles continues to grow, and the automotive industry and car-makers demand advanced technologies equipped with a blend of power-efficiency, processing power and affordability. MediaTek’s technology expertise in chipset design – for mobile, home entertainment, connectivity and IoT – positions the company well to bring innovative multimedia, connectivity and sensor solutions to the automotive industry.
- MediaTek’s ADAS system will feature cutting-edge, decentralized Vision Processing Unit (VPU) solutions to optimally handle large amounts of real-time visual streaming data.
- MediaTek will bring the automotive industry mmWave radar solutions that use higher frequencies to gain better object resolution and more precise detection. Residing in the high frequency band, mmWave radar can recognize targets more accurately and is more resistant to fog, rain, snow and other weather conditions than current types of radar.
- MediaTek has developed powerful 2D and 3D processing technologies to ensure its application processors perform at the highest levels of efficiency and speed.
- MediaTek in-car entertainment solutions offer a high level of integration of navigational and multimedia features and connectivity options.
- MediaTek Telematics is a robust solution to handle a variety of high-bandwidth information transfers and can support a wide variety of connectivity standards (Cellular 4G/3G/2G, Wi-Fi, BT/BLE ) and map-based applications. Me
Autologic Diagnostics for Volvo
Autologic Diagnostics, the provider of the world’s first and only fully integrated cloud-connected vehicle diagnostic support solution, announced that has entered into a licensing agreement with Volvo Car Corporation.
Under the agreement, Autologic will have direct access to Volvo diagnostic data and technical information, enabling the provision of a comprehensive repair and maintenance on models from 2000 to current year to date, through Autologic’s Assist cloud-based, fully integrated diagnostic solution. The licensing agreement, which covers the United Kingdom, North America, Canada, and the European Economic Area (EEA), will provide customers within these territories the benefit of receiving guaranteed genuine Volvo data, thus ensuring improved aftermarket continuity of safe, accurate and effective repair.
AllGo Wins CES Award
AllGo Systems, a leading automotive infotainment solutions supplier, received the CES 2017 Innovation Award.
AllGo’s RACE 2.0 SDK is the first connected media middleware integrating media and mirroring software, simplifying the design and integration of infotainment systems. RACE 2.0 bridges existing technology with new smartphone applications and offers users a seamless experience through a common interface and new use cases. AllGo’s media playback engine supports playback from iPhones and Android phones, and distributed media playback to user’s smart devices within the car. AllGo’s connectivity portfolio includes CarPlay, Android Auto, MirrorLink, Miracast and Bluetooth Middleware.
TomTom Partners with AOL
TomTom announced an extension to the multi-year partnership with AOL Inc. to power its core mapping services for MapQuest, a subsidiary of AOL. In addition to providing access to TomTom’s extensive digital map database, across all digital platforms including MapQuest.com and its iOS and Android apps, and MapQuest for Business API solutions, the new deal now includes TomTom’s leading traffic solution.