Internet Of Challenges: Resolving The Practical Concerns Associated With Automotive IoT

The Internet of Things, or IoT, is probably one of the most disruptive concepts of recent times. It has been the powering technology behind some of our biggest achievements in the 21^st century. From monitoring our physical health with the help of smartwatches to launching Curiosity, IoT has been propelling our ambitions and lifestyles.

And as far as the automotive industry is concerned, IoT has been immensely influential as well. Concepts like connected cars and autonomous vehicles would still be a dream that existed only on paper if not for IoT. Today, if we could predict vehicle performance and health of car components, it is all because of the magic – or let's say the logic – of IoT.

But what does it take to operate an automotive IoT unit?

What practical difficulties do developers and manufacturers face in the process?

And are there any potential solutions to them?

Well, in this chapter, we are going to find out the answers to these questions, explore the role of IoT in the automotive industry and identify some of the most common concerns plaguing the sector.

But before we begin, here's a quick reminder to also check out our previous chapters in our Digital Transformation In The Automotive Sector Guide series, where we discuss the challenges in this market segment such as connected cars, telematics, automotive navigation and mapping, artificial intelligence modules and more.

Some Important Numbers On Automotive IoT

• The automotive IoT market was valued at around $20bn in the year 2016.
• By 2022, experts predict that the market will be valued at around $82.8bn.
• Between the period 2016 and 2025, the growth will be close to 26% CAGR.

Challenges In Incorporating Automotive IoT

Forget automotive IoT, even a comparatively scaled-down IoT implementation like a smartwatch ecosystem throws at us innumerable challenges. Firstly, there's the problem with seamless pairing with appropriate devices followed by connectivity to the internet.

Next, the right data has to be generated by devices and should be transmitted without any distortion or loss. The receiving medium should also process the data for valuable insights. And when the data transmission is happening, cybersecurity should also be ensured to prevent attacks and online threats. Visualizing data is only the final stage in the process. If these are the concerns involved in a rather simple ecosystem, imagine the scale of shortcomings in an automotive ecosystem, specifically for connected and autonomous cars.

With property and people's lives at risk, the IoT infrastructure should be as airtight as possible. That's why we have identified some common challenges involved in this market segment. Let's understand what they are.

Entire Data Touchpoints

Like we've mentioned in our previous chapters, connected cars and autonomous vehicles are powered by IoT. Data is constantly generated from computer vision and sensory devices like RADAR, Bluetooth, smart mirrors, LIDAR and more.

For seamless driving of cars, the entire process of manual driving should be refined into fragments and data touch points should be assigned and developed for each. From a process as simple as parking to the instances of applying sudden brakes in case of emergencies, data touch points should be integrated and attributed to for processing.

Not just that, these data touch points should also communicate relevant data to the right algorithms or processing modules in an annotated format for instant processing.

Analysing Data

The next step after data generation is data analysis. The algorithms designed to analyse computer vision components such as cameras should constantly work on processing real-time footage. This makes the system understand whether the objects appearing are other cars, commercial trucks, traffic signals, road objects or other tangible entities.

Only when the data is analysed that the machine can make appropriate driving decisions. For instance, the processing module should know that an approaching object is a pothole and decide if it intends to slow down, apply brakes or change lanes.

The same happens with data from other touchpoints like the ones attached to vehicle components. Right from fuel consumption to monitoring engine health and more, data has to be consistently analysed for optimized driving.

Optimizing Vehicle Performance

The role of IoT in automobiles is not only to offer descriptive analytics. It has to offer prescriptive insights as well. For instance, an IoT infrastructure showing insights on the current charge alone is not enough. It should go a step beyond and offer insights that are unthinkable to a human being.

It should process data for vehicle optimization and suggest the ideal driving speed to ensure the charge lasts until the destination or the nearest charging pod is reached. Without this, IoT doesn't contribute much to the purpose.

Traffic Updates And Management

Devices in an IoT ecosystem should not only connect and communicate with other devices in the same network. They should also communicate with other devices for additional data that could be processed to amplify driving experience.

For instance, IoT should fetch information from other connected vehicles or devices in its vicinity to predict traffic, congestion, road and weather conditions and more and offer insights on the best possible routes. Insights on journey timing, alternative routes and similar should be shared to drivers. But this again is a challenge in itself.

Real-time Navigation Without Real-time Updates

Real-time navigation is possible only when the system gets real-time updates on traffic, road, weather and other crucial parameters and concerns. If the devices fail to pick up relevant data and process them just in-time, the data will become obsolete. And this obsoletion could prove drivers expensive in certain scenarios. 

Driving Safety

Automotive IoT is not just about offering cool solutions to drivers but ensuring optimum safety to them as well. That's why some of the most crucial factors that contribute to the safety and security of drivers need to be made part of an IoT infrastructure.

Features like automatic airbag deployment, autonomous 911 calling, seatbelt notifications, collision alarms and warnings, parking assistance and more should be incorporated into the system. Again, the more the inclusion of IoT components, the larger the process of data generation and processing.

What Are The Solutions To These Challenges?

The challenges posed by technology and its integration can be resolved by another tech deployment. It is as simple as that. Every single concern we discussed so far can be tackled with digital transformation and the deployment of convenient software solutions. Let's look at what they are.

Internet Of Everything

Internet of Everything is an end-to-end solution that extends the conceptual application of the Internet of Things. It immensely focuses on machine-to-machine communication yet brings together people, systems, data and devices into one element. As far as automotive Internet of Everything is concerned, it will include components like:

• infotainment solutions
• collision control mechanisms
• automated adaptive cruising
• data on approaching vehicles
• real-time 3D-rendered maps of the road and journey ahead
• upcoming toll booths with average wait time and more

Embedded Software

An embedded software application is your resident central processing unit that combines and compiles data from multiple touchpoints to give you a holistic view of all your required insights. Broken down into modules that can function as standalone units, these software applications can give you details on:

• real-time traffic
• traffic and route management
• weather and road conditions
• charge left on your vehicle
• vehicle diagnostics
• calls, messages and other notifications you receive on your smartphone or connected device
• and other custom-developed features like carpooling, nearby friends, refreshments and more

In-Vehicle, In-Cloud Software

Apart from the external components attached to a car, there are diverse in-vehicle components that are resourceful to drivers and passengers and elevate the driving experience. Your elements like music systems, rear-seat display units, temperature control, maps and GPS functionalities, mobile-mirroring features and more are all part of your in-vehicle components.

With a solid software application, these individual units can be connected to one network and controlled seamlessly. For instance, a smartphone app can be used to change music controls like volume increase or decrease, next song and more, modify in-vehicle temperature, operate rear-seat infotainment systems, open sunroofs and more.

Over-the-Air Updates

Also known as OTA updates, these are updating our software applications receive from remote. Meaning, there is no physical connection in the form of wires or cables whatsoever and there are no requirements for a vehicle to stay in one place to receive upgraded functionalities.

These are wireless and all that the vehicles need to do is consistently be connected to the internet. Manufacturers or developers can push the notifications to the system whenever there's a new version available. With OTA updates, either new features can be implemented or patches could be rolled out for loopholes, minor glitches and modified UI.

Case Study

Car Dashdroid – Car Infotainment

The most promising IoT-based in-vehicle information system is here to provide optimum convenience to drivers. This app brings the best of technology to prevent drivers from getting distracted when driving. That's why it brings in a whole new home dock to your vehicle's dashboard or screen.

This app is specifically beneficial for cab drivers and fleet owners who are always required to be focused on their driving and the road. Being constantly on the move, this IoT-based app will help them perform a myriad of tasks without necessarily having to touch or use their smartphones physically while driving.

It integrates the most popular apps in the world and makes it usable from your vehicle’s dashboard. This includes WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook and more to instantly help you check out messages and even respond to them through dictation. The app also offers a feature, where drivers can instantly send a quick message such as “Stuck in traffic” or “On my way” to their contacts while on the move.

It also pairs with your personal devices via BlueTooth to help you execute advanced functionalities. To give you a comprehensive idea of what the app is all about, understand that it can help you:

• search contacts and make calls
• use voice commands to respond to texts
• use speech-to-text to read messages out loud
• seamlessly use Google navigation
• control your music player
• use speedometer, compass and more utilities and more

The Future Of Automotive IoT

We are believers of the notion that cars are extensions of our personalities. That's why we envision a world, where there is more connection between a car and its driver or owner. In the future, we are looking at the bonding only becoming more stronger with IoT-enabled cars scheduling the everyday lives of their owners.

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With access to calendars and agendas, connected cars would know when to suggest an ideal start time based on traffic and routing details. They would also autonomously get their vehicles serviced, repaired or diagnosed.

Besides, the future applications of IoT will also bring in gamification into the picture with an aim to cut down pollution due to emission. Driving optimization modules will ensure minimal carbon footprints are generated by every single car and that owners know the impact of their every single action with respect to driving.

With better machine-to-machine connection, we also see a world, where drivers are intimated in advance of an approaching ambulance so they could shift their lanes and be prepared to leave way accordingly.

The rolling out of 5G will also enable massive deployment of IoT infrastructure across geographical locations. Meaning, connected cars will become more prominent across countries.

Clearly, we could see IoT dominating the automotive market.

Wrapping Up

Like you can visualize, the world will be run by machines for the betterment of humanity. There would be optimum convenience. But for all this to happen, changes and advancements have to begin from now. That's why we recommend getting started with your automotive IoT ideas today.

For all your conceptualization and application development requirements, we are here by your side. All you need to have is a clear idea of your intentions and we could deliver a custom-developed automotive IoT solution for you.

What are you waiting for? Reach out to us today.