In connected car news are LG Innotek, Microsoft, Auton, NextGen TV, Magna, FUSO, ThunderSoft, Bosch, Skyhook, VW, Smart Eye and Cipia.
LG Innotek Partners with Microsoft
LG Innotek (CEO Cheoldong Jeong) announced on 4th that it collaborates with Microsoft to unblock access to 3D vision technology and unleash innovation across multiple industry verticals such as: fitness, healthcare, logistics and retail with LG Innotek’s ToF (Time of Flight) technology-based 3D camera modules and Microsoft’s Azure Depth Platform.
Locating the position of objects is an important aspect of scene analysis. Obtaining this information directly from a 3D ToF camera rather than inferring it from one or more 2D cameras simplifies the analysis and enhances robustness. 3D cameras are suitable for robust computer vision analysis with less computation for many commercial use cases. Yet, 3D camera design and manufacturing require special technology in illumination, strong sensor level understanding and optical design capability which is currently limited to very few camera module makers.
LG Innotek has combined its superfine drive techniques and optical technologies to create high performance and ultra-slim multi-camera modules. The company has done so by its renowned product design, production capacity, state of the art quality control and technologies for core components such as light source and lens. With such capabilities, LG Innotek has secured a leadership position in the camera module and 3D sensing module markets for smartphones.
Auton and WatchTV
Auton, Inc., the developer of a new mobile broadband solution for connected cars, and WatchTV, an owner and operator of broadcast internet facilities, today jointly announced the successful testing of Auton’s connected car technology as part of its ongoing development efforts to deploy a new nationwide broadband mobile data network. The trial is significant as it demonstrates an effective, secure and more cost-effective solution for delivery of essential software updates and infotainment to the connected and autonomous vehicle market.
The trial was performed in downtown Portland, Ore. and surrounding areas, including Lake Oswego, Saint Helens, Ore. and Kalama, Wash., and confirmed Auton’s ability to deliver mobile video streaming content and broadband data to moving vehicles in a wide range of environments.
This field testing of the new NextGenTV mobile network included monitoring the quality of internet hosted streaming video in high-speed highways, hills, valleys, forested areas, dense urban, suburban and rural environments. The test demonstrated the utility, efficiency, signal quality and the unique capabilities and advantages provided by the new FCC authorized broadcast internet services that will enhance the public’s access to mobile broadband services.
“The growing demands for secure wireless broadband connectivity to the connected car and autonomous vehicle market is growing exponentially,” said Robert Foster, Auton’s president and CEO. “We’re leveraging the massive efficiency of one-to-all broadcasting to deliver a significant cost advantage to our hybrid network that enhances all forms of mobile wireless connectivity solutions including cellular, WiFi and satellite communications.”
Auton is pioneering the use of NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) technology to provide mobile broadcast internet services. Auton accomplished this with an IP multicast of the complete ATSC 3.0 protocol stack, originating in a Seattle data center and sent over the internet to the broadcast tower. The ATSC 3.0 multicast was received by Auton’s telematics control unit (“TCU”), the in-vehicle appliance that includes the ATSC 3.0 receiver, LTE, WiFi, GPS, and the company’s patented security overlay that uses the Iridium® satellite constellation.
Auton has partnered with the Iridium global satellite network to fully secure its heterogenous wireless network with a completely out-of-band cyber key exchange capability, ensuring military-grade security for all forms of wireless communications systems.
Greg Herman, WatchTV CEO commented, “As an early licensed ATSC 3.0 facility, we have strived to leverage this powerful one-to-many distribution asset to demonstrate and promote the new and enhanced capabilities of NextGen TV for delivery of mobile and fixed services with unprecedented efficiency and performance.”
The testing was coordinated in cooperation with several broadcast internet vendor partners, including Iridium, Broadpeak, KenCast, Enensys, Triveni Digital, Dektec, Digital Fortress and Anywave. These partners supplied a range of systems and services to enhance the Auton ATSC 3.0 broadcast data solution that was provided by WatchTV.
Magna’s eBeam Tech
Magna continues to accelerate its powertrain electrification capabilities to help automakers achieve a zero-emission future. Today, the journey to a cleaner tomorrow continues with Magna’s new eBeam technology – which is scalable and gives automakers the ability to electrify their trucks without sacrificing utility and functionality. eBeam integrates with a battery electric or hybrid powertrain system and offers a structure-oriented design to support high-payload vehicles, with matching power for continuous-duty usage.
Daimler’s FUSO eCanter to Deliver for IKEA Japan
Daimler Trucks’ Japan-based subsidiary FUSO, one of Asia’s leading commercial vehicle manufacturers, has delivered three all-electric FUSO eCanter light-duty trucks to IKEA Japan K.K., the Japanese subsidiary of Swedish home furnishing company IKEA,. IKEA Japan is the first home furnishing company to receive delivery of the eCanter. IKEA Japan operates two of the three vehicles and one is owned by SG Moving Co., Ltd., which is a logistics partner of IKEA Japan. In Germany, a further three FUSO eCanter operated by Rhenus Group are used for furniture home delivery for IKEA in Berlin since 2017.
IKEA Japan is committed to providing a positive impact to people, society and the earth through the protection and revitalization of the environment. IKEA has set a target of absolutely reducing energy-related greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2030. The company also established a target to use a fleet of 100% electric vehicles for its transportation by 2025. As its first step toward sustainable transportation, IKEA Japan introduced the locally emission-free eCanter trucks into its home furnishing delivery fleet. One of the three vehicles is used for the delivery of products between the IKEA Kohoku and IKEA Harajuku stores, while the two others are used to deliver home furnishing items directly to customers’ homes.
With a range of 100-kilometres, the 7.49 tonne vehicle easily meets the inner-city short-range distribution requirements of its customers. The eCanter used for deliveries between IKEA Kohoku and IKEA Harajuku drives an average of approximately 50km per day with one return trip between the stores. Meanwhile in cases where it starts operating early in the morning and does two return trips between the stores, the distance traveled exceeds 100km, proving that it can operate within its full driving range.
Designed specifically to transition pickup trucks and light commercial vehicles to hybrid or full battery electric powertrain systems, eBeam integrates with existing truck architectures, without requiring unique suspension, chassis or brake systems. This approach presents an economical solution that helps bring new electrified trucks to market more quickly, while also preserving towing and payload capabilities.
ThunderSoft Partners with Human Horizons
ThunderSoft, the world leading operating system products and technologies provider recently reached an agreement with Human Horizons to establish a new joint venture, which will focus on the development of SOA framework for next-generation connected vehicles.
The new joint venture will be operated by ThunderSoft. It will leverage ThunderSoft’s advanced operation system technologies plus Human Horizons’ outstanding design concept and ee architecture to research and develop middleware that can run through different modules of connected vehicles, including chassis, VDCM (vehicle dynamic control module), BDCM (body dynamic control module), IDCM (Intelligent dynamic control module) and ADCM (autonomous dynamic control module). In addition to this, it will also provide software development tools and consulting services for automakers as well as auto parts related enterprises throughout the world. The first produced model that adopts the joint venture’s SOA framework will be HiPhi X. And it will be launched in China’s market in May.
GF and Bosch
GLOBALFOUNDRIES, the global leader in specialty semiconductor manufacturing, and Bosch will partner to develop and manufacture next-generation automotive radar technology.
Bosch chose GF as its partner to develop a mmWave automotive radar system-on-chip (SoC) for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) applications, manufactured using GF’s 22FDX™ RF solution. ADAS applications help drivers stay safe by keeping a vehicle in the correct lane, warning of collisions, initiating emergency braking, assisting with parking, and more.
Shyhook Provides Locations for Alps Alpine
Alps Alpine, a leading manufacturer of electronic components and automotive infotainment systems, has chosen Skyhook, the worldwide independent leader in location technology, as its location services provider. Alps Alpine will now utilize Skyhook’s Precision Location positioning technology in their IoT devices and services.
With Alps Alpine’s vast experience in electronics coupled with the extensive location positioning expertise from Skyhook, Alps Alpine will be able to create a great user experience for enterprises and institutions that need to know the exact location of devices in order to manage and operate them.
Alps Alpine’s involvement in the IoT industry is extensive, and the addition of Skyhook’s technology ensures that customers receive accurate and precise positioning from all of their IoT devices.
Skyhook’s ability to provide accurate location regardless of environmental interferences, such as in underground tunnels or densely populated cities, is incredibly valuable when analyzing efficient transportation of materials, ensuring timeliness of the supply chain, and locating large pallets or bins within a warehouse. These capabilities will benefit Alps Alpine devices and their customers. Skyhook’s Precision Location hybrid positioning system locates devices using Wi-Fi, GNSS and Cell signals, ensuring that all devices, like asset trackers, can be located in all environments. The solution provides the ability to locate devices in LPWAN limited networks like Sigfox using 12 bytes of payload only, in an extremely power efficient manner, allowing devices to be in service for longer periods with a single battery.
New EV Battery Recycling from VW
Earlier this year, the Volkswagen Group provided one answer to both these challenges, opening its first EV battery recycling plant in Salzgitter, Germany, the result of more than a decade of research. Designed to be more energy efficient than current battery recycling techniques, the pilot plant has a goal of being able to recapture up to 95 percent of the materials in an EV battery pack for potential reuse – including rare metals that store electricity.
As EV batteries contain a complicated mix of materials, current battery recycling methods require essentially melting them down in a furnace, which only recovers about 60 percent of the materials inside. The process being developed in the Salzgitter plant uses several mechanical steps designed to recover up to 95 percent of a battery pack’s materials for reuse. In an 880-lb. battery pack, the plant can recover about 220 pounds of key electrode minerals like lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese. This positions Volkswagen as a pioneer in building a recyclable materials cycle with great potential for helping reduce the need for mining of raw materials and improving raw material supply.
The Salzgitter plant can currently handle about 3,600 battery packs a year. As Volkswagen gains more practice with the process, it expects to expand the system to handle the first wave of retired EV battery packs in the 2020s – supplying materials for new batteries in a sustainable, closed-loop system.
14,000 Reservations for Fisker
Fisker Inc. designer and manufacturer of the world’s most emotion-stirring, eco-friendly electric vehicles and advanced mobility solutions – today passed 14,000 reservations for its Fisker Ocean SUV, boosted by interest and orders from the fleet market globally. In Q4 last year, the company signed its first significant fleet order – for 300 vehicles – with Viggo, the technology-driven Danish ride-hailing service. Through the work of the Climate Group, over 100 of the world’s leading companies are making commitments to transition their fleets to EV by 2030, alone representing five million vehicles.
Smart Eye Launches AIS
Smart Eye, leading developer of AI-based eye tracking technology, breaks new ground with the launch of the AIS. After more than two decades of delivering eye tracking software to the automotive industry, the company is launching a complete driver monitoring system to raise safety standards for public transport and commercial vehicles.
For over 20 years, Smart Eye has been the world-leading developer of AI-powered eye tracking solutions for driver monitoring systems. Now, for the first time, the company has combined their state-of-the-art software with their own automotive qualified hardware components. The result is the AIS – a high-quality, but cost-effective, automotive-grade driver monitoring system, which will primarily be offered to commercial vehicle fleets and the automotive aftermarket.
Over 90 percent of all traffic accidents can be linked to human error, often caused by driver distraction, fatigue or intoxication. Regulations mandating driver monitoring systems in commercial vehicles are already in place in China, with similar developments underway in the EU and several other parts of the world. Long-distance drives and night shifts often make drivers of commercial vehicles more exposed to drowsiness or distraction. To prevent this, the AIS uses gaze tracking to ensure that drivers stay focused on the road – reducing the number of road accidents.
To help protect drivers, passengers, pedestrians and other road users, the AIS is equipped with a number of advanced safety features. The system is able to recognize all kinds of faces, even those partly covered by face masks or sunglasses. By tracking the driver’s eye, face and head movements, the AIS detects distraction and dangerous behavior like eating, drinking, smoking or phone use. The system also alerts the driver to early signs of drowsiness.
– What makes the AIS unique is that it’s based on Smart Eye’s long experience within the automotive industry. Over the last few years, we have put all our effort into making sure the AIS is automotive qualified and delivers reliable, precise results. We believe in offering an ultra-high quality system to the market and our goal is that the AIS will be improving road safety in the whole world, says Martin Krantz, CEO and founder of Smart Eye.
Chinese OEM Chooses Cipia
Cipia, formerly Eyesight Technologies, an AI computer vision in-cabin automotive solutions provider, today announced that the company was selected by a leading China-US OEM Joint Venture as the driver monitoring system (DMS) provider for 5 upcoming car models. Junjie, a leading Chinese Tier 1 supplier, will be working with Cipia to integrate the Driver Sense DMS into the new car models and create safer and better driving experiences.
The start of production (SOP) for the first models is expected for early 2022 and builds on Cipia’s recent successes in the DMS market, securing the company’s position as the leading DMS provider in the Chinese automotive marketplace.
Utilizing Cipia’s proprietary computer vision and AI algorithms, the Driver Sense DMS monitors key features and actions of the driver in real-time to detect signs of distracted driving and drowsiness behind the wheel. The integration of Driver Sense enables OEMs to deliver customers a robust solution to issue life-saving alerts and avert potential accidents.