ADSactly Tech News - The Complex Challenges of Designing Cars for the Future.

in #auto7 years ago

ADSactly Tech News: The Complex Challenges of Designing Cars for the Future.


Image Source: Automotive News


Some people feel an emotional attachment to their car. Other people feel that owning a car is selfish and prefer public transportation. When we look around sometimes we can't see the changes happening all around us. That is because the changes are small and so we adjust quickly. The fact of the matter is that its becoming increasingly hard to deny the fact that the future is now.

We are going to see so many technological changes in our lifetimes that it is going to feel like we are perpetually living through a series of science fiction movies. New inventions will be constantly hitting the market and one of the biggest technological changes that we will see in our lifetimes is right on the cusp of becoming reality. I'm talking about self-driving cars. The way new concept cars are being engineered is making a major departure from the engineering techniques used in today's cars.

These new concept cars are being drawn up in startling detail to look like living rooms on wheels complete with rear-facing seats and massive infotainment screens. To make these designs into real prototypes, these new vehicles will need to undergo a vast undertaking of automotive redesign from a fundamental level.

You may have noticed the cars of the present have all sorts of new electronic sensors and devices never before seen in the cars of the 80s, 90s and even the 2000s. Automakers have added incredible new functionality to vehicles but these changes have come at a cost not completely calculated by the average consumer. For example, the parts needed to control these new beasts of the road have multiplied. The architecture involved in creating these modern marvels has added a level of complexity which makes it increasingly difficult to upgrade.

Now, lets add to this we the advances needed to shift to a new level of commuting by adding autonomous driving. That's right folks, I'm talking about 'autopilot.'

To make this huge leap, manufacturers are going to have to make a 180-degree turn from industry practices. They will need to take the next step in simplifying the number of parts used to manufacture autonomous vehicles while simultaneously increasing power production capable of running the advanced software required to operate these modern vehicles.

Glen De Vos, chief technology officer at Aptiv had some interesting things to say about this topic late last year. "The traditional vehicle architecture is highly distributed with fragmented software, it's not scalable and, finally, it's hardware-centric," De Vos said. "If you think about our industry, where most of us are hardware engineers, it makes sense. It tends to be inertia. You don't change, because that's how you think."

He went on to say that Tesla Inc. may be the company to bring this new modern age forward first. They have created a simplified structure from scratch, consolidating most software functions into a centralized computing platform. Basically, because of this architecture, the automaker was able to implement over-the-air updates ahead of the rest of the industry.

Image Source: PSI Punk

We are talking about a new age in which self driving vehicles are essentially driven, controlled and operated by supercomputers with advanced circuits and high end software.

This capability became more than just a convenience feature for Tesla customers in September, when the automaker remotely increased the battery range of its vehicles for owners attempting to evacuate during Hurricane Irma.

This excites me to think that software is going to play an increasingly important role in the capabilities of modern vehicles. It also scares me if I'm being completely honest. I mean, look at what is happening here. Software engineers recognized a disaster and programmed advanced code to increase the battery range of their vehicles! If this isn't mind blowing then I'm afraid the rest of this article might not keep you engaged after all...

Tesla is a new and modern company that isn't as old as it's competitors. It has the advantage of being able to approach vehicular design with a fresh and unique perspective. Furthermore its reputation as being an industry leader in innovation attracts and encourages cutting edge vehicular engineers that are eager to make a name for themselves.

"For existing vehicles, it will probably take two generations to complete this transition," said Walter Sullivan, the head of the Silicon Valley lab at Elektrobit. "Whereas these new EVs being designed from scratch, those have the benefit of not having the legacy architecture, so they'll make the transition faster within a single product generation. They're probably already designed for this eventual transition."

It isn't easy to completely flip the world of automobiles on its head pick it apart and put it back together with integrated components and simplified circuitry. But that doesn't mean that all the world's car manufacturers aren't going to try!

"With each additional function that came into the car, an electronic control unit came in with it," De Vos said. "Eventually, you're basically connecting all of these individual controllers. You could imagine the complexity of the wiring harness and power and signal distribution that results from this; it becomes just a huge nightmare."

I've gone into the some of the hardware requirements of autonomous driving, obviously powerful processors from chipmakers such as Nvidia and Intel are going to be a very vital component of making this a reality but beyond that these cars will increasingly need more battery power as electrification spreads.



Image Source: Green Car Reports

"One of the strongest trends is moving to a central computer," said Dennis Nobelius, CEO of Zenuity, an automated driving software company formed by Volvo Cars and Autoliv. "Now, in the [Volvo] XC90, you have, like, 110 different ECUs or processing units. That is being moved to one central base, where it could be Nvidia or someone else that is handling the processing capability."

So here we go, clearly the need for integrated systems and ECUs is going to be a major priority into rolling this technology out to the masses. The challenge will be to reduce the numbver of ECUs (processing units) down as much as possible which will increase speed of processing and reduce overall power consumption.

This consolidation already is happening, according to Patrick Little, senior vice president of automotive at Qualcomm. Most new infotainment systems and digital clusters, including Qualcomm's, are now powered by only one ECU.

If you've been following along up until now you will notice that each problem I've addressed is being approached and solved with the end result being this technology coming to a neighborhood near you soon!

The biggest obstacle at this point seems to be creating a high tech centralized control structure. This is both good and bad. On one hand auto manufacturers will be able to offer over-the-air updates to features and functionality in your vehicle. Beyond that, it will also offer them the ability to remotely enable functions. Now, how that power is used or how it potentially could be misused is a completely different story.


Image Source: Trend Hunter

So how are we going to get to the end goal of seeing a world full of self-driving, fully autonomous vehicles that look similar to mobile living rooms?

Well, the path companies will have to take to get there require instituting fundamental architecture changes that the car industry in general or more specifically its employees in its many departments may have some trouble getting used to.

Basically new modern vehicles will have to break the mould and follow a completely different roadmap and design structure that could be described as being much more 'holistic.' Automakers will have to refocus and reorganize themselves away from the hardware-centric approach they've taken for decades.

Apparently in an effort to do just that, Ford has recently tapped outside talent. Its main approach has been through its investment in self-driving software company Argo AI and acquisition of Palo Alto, Calif., startup Autonomic Technologies.

It is their hope that this will aid in the required paradigm shift while still relying on veterans within the company to bridge the gap. But who wants to be worried everyday that they may wake up and find themselves out of a job?

Aptiv's De Vos said current organizational structures are based around specific vehicle functions, such as powertrain, transmission or electrification, that are set in their own development cycles. These divisions will blur as software takes precedent over hardware.

I doubt members of these different departments are just going to go without a fight. Clearly retraining is needed and a new and more streamlined division of labor will be needed to make all these future plans into reality.


Image Source: Engadget

"Those departments have a tendency toward self-preservation," said De Vos, whose company was spun off by Delphi Corp. as an autonomous-driving technology business. "All those groups are actually software groups now. It's a reprofiling."

One thing is certain. That is the fact that automakers will have to invest significantly in software engineers while also reducing the cost of integrating new technologies into their vehicles.

"That's a challenge for every single one of them because things are moving more," said Qualcomm's Little. "They're all struggling with how to gear themselves for this rapid innovation dynamic."

Now I'd like to focus the attention towards ADSactly readers. How do you feel about self driving cars? Do you know anybody working in the automotive industry that may be displaced by this new shift in development and manufacturing processes? Do you think the research presented is logical, do cars need to be completely redesigned from the ground up to meet the needs of future consumers?

Here's a chance for the @ADSactly community to leave their thoughts and opinions on this topic!

Thanks for reading.


Authored by: @techblogger

In-text citations sources:

"Complex technology calls for simpler cars" - Automotive News

Image Sources: Automotive News, Pexels

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Oh, such fine lines! I already want such a beauty!

Great article

Two decades ago, we were in awe to the advancement of technology used by 007. But nowadays i think 007's gadget were now obsolete 🤣

Agreed. It seems clear that 007's gadgets need a quick refresh. Hoping for some futuristic bond movies to show the next advancements (5-10 years from now...)

I beg to disagree and I can bet my last card that Money Penny does too. 007's gadget are still much more relevant than you think. If I were to own any of 007's gadget used in the past 20 years today, I will be considered one of the luckiest fellows of this age.

Lol... I'm more worried about "Men in Black" gadgets and tech going obsolete.

But it's true though. Things are changing and they're changing quick. The world isn't waiting for anyone and the way it seems, programming is taking the lead.

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
― Arthur C. Clarke

I think driverless car is the best innovation today

Yay!!! Now cars can have software that drive them. There will probably be some accidents of epic proportions if the software of a single vehicle freezes up or whatever. :D

Yes, this reminds me of that iRobot scene in which the car tries to kill him! There will most likely be similar incidents in the future!

What are the chances that the real cars come out looking so epic :D...

Let's see what future brings!

The future is def. going to bring driverless cars!

Design car engineers can expect an exciting and satisfying career in future, provided they follow certain guidelines given below.

  • Focus on innovation and creativity to develop new concepts, instead of only studying existing designs and making minor changes in design.
  • Improve analytical skills and adopt mathematical approach for all design problems.
  • Use simulation techniques such as FEA and CFD whenever relevant in order to reduce design iteration time.
  • Ensure alignment with the goals and objectives of the management, and feel free to ask for necessary resources for development.
  • Update information and knowledge on materials, new technologies, etc. periodically, and believe that learning is a continuous process.

The scope for a bright design engineer is vast, since there is a shortage of hard core design engineers, though there are thousands of engineering colleges that “mass produce” automobile engineers in the country.

Indeed self driving electric cars would be a dynamic innovation of near future. But still Im quit skeptical about it. Some of the key cons I think that will effects are..

-electric energy is also among the non renewable source of energy,that may be a danger to our water bodies.

-If may take a professional drivers who can understands how to interacts with the Artificial Intelligence.well that can discharge many jobs out in future.

-batteries stores energy but if something goes wrong with it it may blast,we have seen in past with some of the leading mobile manufacturer including Samsung.

-as you say building a hi tech centralised control system is the biggest challenge of all, I say building a default mode would be the biggest challenge to get car into safe mode if AI can't be able to understand human out there.

The fact is that if society rolls this out on a large scale there may not be a way to stop it. There is a lot of potential in the technology but also a multitude of potential dangers as welll...

So how are we going to get to the end goal of seeing a world full of self-driving, fully autonomous vehicles that look similar to mobile living rooms?

Great article!
When I hear cars of the future first thing that pups in my head is self driving cars. Of course there are ather aspects such as living room on the wheels or car plane...
It’s an unbelievable technology, but I don’t think we are ready for this just yet. I recently red an article about Tesla while self driving running into standing fire track. There is soo many obstacles at this time. Until there are only self driving cars on the road I just wouldn’t let go of the wheel. I consider myself as an average Joe and I think there is at least 80% people like me in the world with same opinion. Also, what happens if “my car” gets a ticket, who is going to fight it? Who is going to pay for it? Soo many questions to be taken care of first. However, I belive we are getting very close, because I belive in automobile companies such Volvo, Mercedes, Honda, BMW, Ford... Lets see what happens in the next 5 years.
I realy enjoyed reading your article!

Thanks for that @milano1113! Major companies are getting behind this plan to introduce driverless cars in our lifetimes. I don't think they are really far away at all from rolling out the first models. The problem you present about the phantom ticket is interesting. I suppose we will sign some sort of contract that says we are responsible for the liability presented. It brings new product / service offerings like extra 'driverless car insurance'

For it to work,i think self driving cars should have their own dedicated driving lanes away from traditional car drivers. The self driving cars being controlled by a CPU can be able to communicate effectively with other self driving vehicles reducing automobile accidents to zero.

I think seperating them is a good idea. At least at first, it seems like a logical way to rollout the technology.

Hey

It seems like the petrol and diesel engine cars will be banned from sale in 2040, What is clear is that motors powering the cars of 2040 will be some form of electric, which means more batteries, silent running and charging stations everywhere.

Cheers

Interesting predictions, if your ideas about batteries and charging stations turn out to be true, it wouldn't surprise me!

wow very nice steemit post

Wow a very cool and sophisticated car

this is what we call the future.
God has blessed technology so far that they can make a car that can be helpful towards evacuation of Hurricane. thanks and regards for educating the steemians about the latest technology power available regards from @isaachazard to @adsactly

Wow ! Amazing how technology can evolve so fast and beautifully ! I'd like to have the chance to own one of these futuristic cars one day ....

The future will be brighter !!

很喜欢你的文章

Hi friend i have a question regarding upvotes not given to minnows as high lvl users gets instant upvote on their post as well as on comments,and low minnows are not even upvoted for their posts comment is for just name. for low minnows this is how the low minnows are getting treated badly and their is no power or shield to protect minnows from big shark bcz there one vote can bring minnows to either at low lvl or make them stop using steem. PLS VOTE IF U FIND IT HELPFULL9D5510E3-2765-4E0B-BA82-C1D651172A17.jpeg

Future cars is all what we are waiting for... It would curb from accidents to noise/air pollution amongst the rest. I was on a documentary the other day and I saw a car made of wood that could twist, I also saw a 3D screen car(thats you don't miss anything on the road), not to talk of a rotating car.... Indeed the future is what we are waiting for!!

Nice Post!

Beautiful post.....very challenging post.....challenge always complex....but i love challenge.....so great job...i appreciate it....

Pretty cool look at future of cars.

wow very nice technology

driving car is someone's favourite hobby. may be your passion is to use updated car. @upvoted @resteemit

Wow beautiful car.....

Nice car and magnificent I really like your post
@zulfahmii

That's all very well, but I like driving

What a blog, sir! Nicely narrated by you.

para llegar a esto se tienen que cumplir muchas cosa y que la mayoria de la gente no va a queres y va a hacer hasta lo mas imposible porque esto no se logre, la industria de combustible fósil morira ya que no vamos a necesitar eso. sera muy dificil para las personas que estan acostumbradas a los motores ruidosos ya que los electricos casi no se escuchan

realy beautyfull and nice post

Fully automatic cars are good in a sense that the passenger only has to feed the required information to the car that where he wants to go. All the functions have already been fed in the car. But there is one problem with these automatic cars that if something wrong happens with the functions and software of the car then there is a maximum risk of danger.

thanks for effort and sense of sharing

The future comes with many surprises for the lovers of the vehicles, although I am terrified to think about putting my safety in the hands of software that could hang at some point like my old computer ...

Batery is the key :)

nice car friend

Always wonder why everyone wouldn't want to put as much effort into self driving cars as possible. So many people dying annually due to bad driving.

wao great
I love this amazing car

If the future is now , how the next future will be?

Gracias por compartir este increíble post!

wow! what a great and stylist car!

I like it. Thanks @adsactly

Is very good

what a technology!!!!!!day by day technology are being updated.these cars are looking so gorgeous.

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