Automotive News

Posts Tagged ‘driver’

Today’s automotive electronics engineers are quite actively exploring new worlds when it comes to the exciting world of In-Car Entertainment. High-tech suppliers refer to this new realm as Auto Space, and there can be no doubt that we’ve come a long way from the days when our only consumer entertainment choices were AM/FM radios and 8-track players.

It’s not a stretch to imagine that the best entertainment spot in your house may be the four-wheel vehicle parked in your garage. Thanks to improved audio-visual technologies and amazingly sophisticated entertainment tastes, our primary transportation mode has become a mobile concert hall, and if you have kids, they’ve recreated a mobile video arcade or theater in the rear of the vehicle.

We live in a technologically advanced time that is witness to the development and invention of many products that would have been hard to fathom only 10 years ago. Today, consumer choices for In-Car Entertainment are growing in quality and sophistication. Whatever your driving habits, passengers, entertainment preferences or budget, there is a growing range of in-car products to turn driving into a vibrant, enveloping entertainment experience.

With popular TV shows dedicated to automobile restoration and customization, In-Car Entertainment systems have received considerable attention. Thanks to reduced costs of devices such as LCD screen/monitors and the cost efficiency to the consumer of the converging media playable technologies (single hardware units are capable of playing CD, MP3, WMA and DVD), In-Car Entertainment is within reach of a larger base of consumers.

It was in the 1930s when radios were first placed inside automobiles. It goes without saying that we’ve come a long way. The first car radios have evolved through the years to include FM radio, to a cassette player, to CD players and beyond. New technology has enabled vehicle audiophiles to take advantage of MP3 technology and USB devices. Why just grab a few CDs when nowadays you can bring your entire music collection on the road with a flash drive that plugs into your car audio system via a USB connection. Many in-car audio systems now come with MP3 player connectivity so you can attach and play your music directly from a MP3 player through the car speakers.

And speaking of speakers, the technology available in your vehicle is every bit as robust as what you have in your home, but unlike a typical family room, a vehicle provides a great listening environment, with its defined space and fixed seating arrangements. Improving the quality of your in-car audio experience can be as simple or as complex as you decide to make it. One of the more popular listening experiences is provided by state-of-the-art 5.1-channel surround format, which includes five full-range channels (left, center, right, left surround, right surround) plus a low-frequency effects (LFE) channel experienced in the cinema, DVDs, digital television (HDTV and SDTV) and games. Or maybe you aren’t interested in driving a four-wheel video arcade or movie theater, and you’d rather that everyone in the car be able to enjoy CDs or radio music (FM or satellite) with the richness and fullness of surround sound. Of course, you’ll have full capability to accomplish that objective with the latest and greatest in sound technology available in your automobile.

When it comes to video options, many automotive consumers who drive an SUV, crossover or minivan are accompanied by a child or two or three in the rear seats. In this case, a rear-seat entertainment system with a DVD player and/or a game console might be ideal. LCD screens can be placed in the dashboard, in overhead consoles and in the back of headrests. If you’d rather not share the sound of the 18th consecutive showing of the latest children’s DVD, infrared headphones allow families to enjoy long journeys where the children can play games and/or watch DVDs in the back of the car while the driver can listen to traditional sounds – radio, CDs or MP3s.

Up until now, automakers introduced In-Car Entertainment technologies only after they had been tested and adopted in the consumer market. Not anymore. Today’s customers expect immediate access in their cars to the new features available in home- and portable-entertainment devices. And as the cost of automotive electronics continues to fall, the pervasiveness of additional electronic technologies, such as navigation and advanced telematics, will increase so rapidly that they will soon be standard features in most vehicles.

Delphi Corporation is poised to apply its expertise and know-how to provide vehicle manufacturers and consumers with in-vehicle entertainment and connectivity. To learn more about Delphi Corporation, please visit http://www.delphi.com/4connected.

Recent innovations in automotive engineering have produced active safety systems ranging from side alert, often called blind spot warning, to adaptive cruise control, to collision detection and warning. What this means to the average consumer will change over time as these products become increasingly available. What this means to the automotive engineer is increased attention to safe technology.

Many impressive innovations beyond the now customary car navigation system have existed – and even been on the market – for years now. Adaptive cruise control has been available since the early 19990s. Electronic stability control has been an option for many vehicles since 1995. Scanning radars, crash sensors, pre-crash mitigation and vehicle and occupant safety systems are also emerging. Such systems offer insights into how roads can be made safer in generations to come and where automotive technology is heading. In other words, as cars become “carputers,” automotive engineers are driving shifting technologies.

The myriad of promising innovations includes vehicle occupant safety systems. For example, a crash sensor generates a signal based upon a potential crash or one already transpired via a continuously variable severity output signal. If an accident has occurred, sensors signal certain actions like deployment of airbags. If an accident is likely to occur, sensors can alert the driver in various ways so that she or he can try to take necessary actions to avoid an accident and/or the sensors can take action themselves by pretensioning seatbelts or initiating automatic braking. In many ways, this process is not dissimilar to the functioning of the human brain: The brain sends a signal to the body to complete an action, often in response to stimuli received from the outside world. Who knew humanity would serve as its own model for creating devices designed for our safety?

Often, though, such examples of automotive technology are integrated into high-end, expensive cars first, due to high pricing. As the benefits of these products become more widely known and their popularity expands, costs decrease due to economies of scale and advancing technology. As research and development pay off, these advanced products become more widely distributed.

The advantages of automotive system and component integration expertise will continue to increase over time. Such knowledge may be paramount to an industry focused on better fuel economy, safety advancements and financially feasible products. Engineers versed in not only the basics of these systems but also in how to integrate them is only the beginning. Savvy engineers who are engaging in up-integration – adding software that makes one electronic module do many things – and sensor fusion – using complementary technologies to enhance object detection and classification – may have an edge in an ever-competitive job market.

In the rush to meet consumer demand and stay competitive, suppliers tend to be increasingly eager to develop ways to integrate safety and other technology systems. Many vehicles currently come with automatic on/off, high/low beam and rain sensor technology for instance. A separate camera, of course, is not necessary for this. Install a camera for a lane departure warning system, and suddenly a world of possibilities opens up. Intelligent headlight plus pedestrian and sign recognition programs can also be added, to name a few, without the need for additional cameras. Separate module manufacturing for each technological innovation becomes unnecessary. Multiple functions and features on the same apparatus decrease cost and increase functionality

So, what’s next? It seems to be the perpetual question that automotive engineers ask – no matter how far we advance. Perhaps an entirely self-driving car. Perhaps hover vehicles on highways, following designated pathways and communicating with surrounding vehicles to avoid crashes.

What do consumers want? The evolution of technology. Inventions born of new ideas. And, ultimately, innovative products that can even make us all safer. It’s the engineers, though – the technological innovators themselves – who make it possible.