Right now , there may be a whole set going on at bottom of your car or hand truck that you just take for granted ; especially if your ride is equipped with a factory - installedvehicle telematicssystem such as GM ’s OnStar or Ford ’s SYNC system . Both of these systems allow you to welcome wayside aid or automatically apprise paramedics if your car is involve in a crash . It might even be incorporate with aGPSand a turn - by - turn direction system of some variety . While on tenacious trips , you may listen to songs through your laborious drive based MP3 player , or passengers can watch their favorite movies on DVDs wager through a build - in vehicle entertainment organisation . Meanwhile , electronic control units throughout your entire car are monitoring wheel slip , locomotive temperature , fuel intermixture and hundreds of other variables , all while regulating the anti - lock brake , traction control systems and other base hit and control feature .
Sounds moderately impressive , does n’t it ? But what will the next generation of telematics technology be capable to add to your drive experience ? Well , it will integrate all of those feature of speech and use into one cohesive system . Music , maintenance , safety equipment and security , shopping and entertainment will all be combine and controlled through a World Wide Web interface . Your gondola will be amply connection . A chopine that can cede services that have n’t even been cerebrate of yet , all tie in to a broader connection of data . That ’s the futurity of automotive telematics technology as envisioned by Hughes Telematics , a company that ’s providing automotive telematics services to Chrysler and Mercedes - Benz start in 2009 .
This article will explain what the Hughes Telematics ' organisation will do , and how it work to keep all of your automobile ’s electronic system running in unison . And we ’ll even recover out how telematics could let you buy a Sung dynasty via iTunes – while you ’re drive .
What is telematics?
The wordtelematicstechnically refers to any system by which a mechanical or electronic machine communicates with other twist or with human users over a web . Over the eld , the term has arrive to mean the specific consumption of on - control panel communicating capabilities in automobiles . General Motors calls their telematics scheme OnStar , while Ford ’s organisation is called SYNC . At present tense , Hughes Telematics has not yet announce the make name of their upcoming system – since Mercedes - Benz does not typically allow third - company branded system in their cars , whatever name Hughes chooses may only show up in Chrysler vehicle .
The Hughes Telematics organization does not represent a revolutionary alteration from prior telematics systems . There will be extra avail and choice compare to current services such as OnStar , but Hughes will not now transfer the nature of the telematics manufacture . Rather , they ’re aiming to create a platform of vehicle information and refuge servicing that can be build up - on for years to derive , offering the flexibility to make new technologies and services as customer demand them .
The key to this design is in linking all of the various electronic system already on control board most New fomite . A car grease one’s palms in the last 15 years most in all likelihood has an engine controller , a body accountant , and several other electronic control units ( ECUs ) . Some of these system communicate with each other to some extent ( we ’ll explain how shortly ) , but there is n’t generally one processor than can empathise data from all of the various ECUs , and certainly none of them are integrated with your MP3 stereo system or liquid crystal display viewing screen . The Hughes Telematics system of rules will access and interpret all of the information and make it useable to the substance abuser .
On the next Sir Frederick Handley Page , we ’ll take a smell at some of the features and single-valued function of the Hughes Telematics system along with a abbreviated description of how they operate .
Hughes Telematics System
The Hughes Telematics organization is actually an intricate electronic internet of systems and features that can scotch - convey . Here are some of the feature being touted by Hughes :
Up next , we ’ll learn about the Telematics Control Unit .
The Telematics Control Unit
The philia ( and brain ) of the Hughes Telematics organization is the Telematics Control Unit ( TCU ) . The TCU is a pocket-size calculator that listens in on the communications of other electronic systems in the car , then interprets and disperses that information as necessary . It action this by piggy - backup onto theController Area connection ( CAN - bus)a communication organization found in all modern motorcar . The CAN - bus acts as a communications bridge between all of the ECUs within the vehicle . Hughes ' TCU pulls information from the CAN - bus – this simplify the system because it does n’t need to be wired into every single ECU in the car . It can get data from any ECU by simply listening in on the CAN - bus meshing . In some mode , it acts much like a mechanic ’s symptomatic scan tool , but it empty the data available to the driver in a number of exploiter - well-disposed ways that are comprehensible to the middling car possessor .
The TCU itself is roughly the size and weight of a paperback Word of God . It ’s design with high temperature and vibration shielding , so it could be mounted anywhere theoretically , including in the locomotive engine compartment . precise positioning calculate on the model of auto . Hughes has not released any details on the operating system or specific computer architecture of the unit , although Hughes Telematics President Erik Goldman reported that the processing business leader would be " in the 500 megahertz ( MHz ) range , " standardised to the ARM11 chips used in other automotive diligence . Hughes has announced partnerships with IBM and Oracle , who were involve in originate the ironware and software used in the TCU and in user interface systems [ source : Hughes Telematics ] . It will carry on - board RAM and was designed with tractableness in mind . Via Bluetooth or perchance a USB port , the gadget will be capable to interface with " about every word form of human automobile , " consort to Goldman .
Keep read to find out how Hughes intends to keep you your fomite hooked up .
Telematics Network Technology
Gathering information from the CAN - bus is a great way to stay informed , but the selective information is more or less useless unless the user can somehow get at that data . Hughes accomplishes this by hire a number of method , include using four concentric set of communicating . The first circle is Bluetooth connectivity , which allows someone inside the car to interface with the system by using a jail cell phone or other Bluetooth enable twist , such as a Blackberry . The 2d round is a two - mode cell link that allows the vehicle to send information to the Hughes internet . This type of connection tolerate the mesh to beam information to the vehicle . Hughes is working with several cell supplier , but has not yet advert their partners . 2nd - multiplication Hughes systems will integrate honest 3 g-force broadband features . cellular phone data is transport with a mellow - gain antenna mounted on top of the vehicle , usually near the rear window . The third circle is really a WiFi meshwork connection . This means that the vehicle can act as a mini WiFi live stain , and at sure time , it can link up with a internet at the user ’s family – when it ’s parked in the service department , for exemplar , allowing information to be uploaded into the vehicle . The user could laden a series of street maps , best-loved song and even a few videos to catch on a farsighted trip , for example , or configure automatic day-to-day uploads of traffic and weather information .
The 4th circle is conjectural at this point . In the future , Hughes plans to produce a planet electronic connection that will allow the telematics system to operate anywhere and at all times . Anyone who has ever live encampment or travel in a urban center with lots of tall edifice with a cell phone knows that cell coverage is not 100 percent perfect . Satellite communication will help to increase that dependability . Hughes will not really launch their own satellite – they ’ll lease blank space on next - gen telecommunications satellites that propose high power return feed , so that satellite communication will be truly two - elbow room .
In the next division , we ’ll appear at the ways user will interface with the telematics system .
Telematics Security
There will be several ways for users to interact with the Hughes Telematics system . Hughes has put a batch of development time into voice recognition software – in fact , all in - car aspects of the organization can be activated hands - devoid by simply speaking in a innate , colloquial manner . This feature also allows raw users to immediately start work with the system of rules without having to take any technological manuals . In addition to voice recognition , Hughes also has a text - to - vox system that will represent e - chain mail message and read them aloud . The user can then compile and send an eastward - mail using just voice commands .
One of the more modern aspects of the organization is the ability to interface via a Web hepatic portal vein . A secure website hosted by Hughes Telematics will let users to lumber in and mark off the nosology of their car , determine up daily uploads via the WiFi connection or pledge to newfangled services . companionship chairperson Erik Goldman envisions telematics as a way to mix your car into your life in unexampled and exciting way . " Telematics is n’t just a safety gadget lineament , it can be something you experience every day , " he say .
Indeed , this doctrine is tied to Hughes Telematics ' business framework . Current telematics systems are linked to a subscription help . If the exploiter barricade paying for the subscription , he or she loses access to all of the organisation ’s lineament . Hughes will fall out more of an à la carte exemplar that allows for impulse purchases and micropayments . For example , users might not want to pay up a monthly fee for access code to local info and telematics navigation . However , if they travel out of town and find themselves looking for a restaurant , they might be willing to pay a one - fourth dimension fee to get at the table service . Goldman give another example : " Let ’s say you hear a call you like on the receiving set – using voice instruction , you may immediately purchase that song from iTunes . "
Some features will be subscription based , but drug user will be able to choose on the nose what they require . Goldman gave the example of a forefather who gives his daughter the car to practice while she ’s away at college . He can use the Web port to set up maintenance reminders and even configure a " geo - fencing " using the on - board GPS to verify his girl does n’t drive out of state . The average user might not require these features , and even the fictional sire in this example wo n’t need them during the summertime months , when his girl returns from school .
The customization options do n’t terminate there , however . maturation cycles for automotive technology can take twelvemonth , but Hughes is arise a flexible mobile telematics system that can accommodate to new applications as substance abuser demand them . It might work in a way similar to the iPhone App Store . Third - party developer could create computer software packages that take advantage of the telematics arrangement . Once approved by Hughes , the apps will be made available for purchase by the user , who can pick and choose the app they care .
you’re able to learn more about fomite telematics and other related to topics on the next page .
