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Monthly Archives: November 2018

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A look at Vehicle Telematics Trends that are Transforming Connected Two Wheelers from Concept to Reality

Category : Embedded Blog

With the automotive industry veering towards digitalization, the modern day vehicles have become the center-stage for massive technological disruptions.  Among these, the innovations in vehicle telematics have delivered some very advanced features in modern-day vehicles!

Modern day four-wheelers, including the commercial and passenger vehicles, integrated with telematics and rider assistance features have started becoming mainstream now. Now, this wave of digital connectivity is gradually picking up in the two-wheeler segment as well.

The two-wheeler industry is ringing in an era of intelligent motorbikes, integrated with telematics and smart-assistance capabilities. The integration of these digital features is expected to take the motorcycling experience to a whole new level!

What is propelling the digital innovations in the two-wheeler segment?

We can pin down two factors that have become a driving force for innovations in two-wheelers market:

  1. The need to mitigate road accidents involving motorbikes: According to numerous statistics, road accidents involving 2-wheelers have been on a constant rise in the recent years.( 2013 – 26.3% , 2014 – 27.3% , 2015- 28.8% ).
    A detailed analysis of these two-wheeler accidents has identified driver distraction, failure of perception and control, over speeding as the main reasons for such incidents.

    This calls for a safety and technological interventions to reduce instances of accidents and to ensure safety of the riders as well as fellow road users.

  2. The need to reduce the incidence of motorcycle thefts: Globally, two-wheeler thefts have been increasing over the past few years. These numbers are increasing in the absence of a reliable solution for tracking the stolen vehicle or to alert the user about a theft attempt.

So, is the automotive industry ready to address these security and safety challenges prevalent in the two-wheeler segment? Let us find out!

Connected Two-Wheelers : What the Automotive OEMs &  tech companies have in store for the future two-wheeler users

The need for digitally connected two-wheelers has given birth to newer collaborations involving automotive manufacturers, suppliers, technology companies, telecom operators, insurance firms, government policy makers, transport operators.

All of them together are ensuring a better two-wheeler riding experience with enhanced safety through technological advancements.

The BMWs, the Hondas, the Boschs of the automotive industry are already in the process of developing future-ready intelligent motor bikes with connectivity features.

Some of them have started partnering with telecom and technology companies to enable mobile connectivity in new generation two-wheelers.

Here , we trace how some of the leading automotive players are working towards integration of connected scooter features such a telematics, collision warning system and more in their product lines.

  • Bosch’s connected motorcycles: Bosch has come up with new version of smartphone integration solution for two-wheelers- mySPIN, already available for connected cars.


    Features:

    • Sync-up of smartphone content with telematics display device
    • Real-time information sharing such as traffic conditions, route preferences and more through smartphone app
    • Viewing of the phone content on the telematics display and access to control commands through control buttons on the bike handlebar
    • A mobile App which is interfaced with the CAN bus as well as with the cloud. This enables enabling real-time transfer of vehicle data such as fuel level, engine conditions and more


    Additionally, Bosch is partnering with Mobile App development companies to deliver a host of advanced features to the two-wheeler users.  This will include self-service analytics, offline route planning, motorbike-optimized navigation, in-app texting.

  • Vodafone offers embedded telematics systems for two wheelers: Vodafone Automotive has been collaborating with renowned two-wheeler manufacturers to enable advanced telematics and mobile connectivity services in new-age scooters.

    The automotive wing of the telecom giant is offering embedded telematics system in some new range of connected scooters like Yamaha TMAX SX and TMAX DX models.

    Features:

    • Real time vehicle tracking through a dedicated mobile application
    • Battery Notification ,
    • Stolen vehicle tracking and recovery service
    • Software Firmware over the air update (FOTA) for two-wheelers over mobile network


    Vodafone automotive also offers a suite of data management and analysis tools.

    Additionally, Vodafone automotive is extending mobile connectivity to Piaggio’s  Wi-Bike , whereby the riders can exchange data over smartphone application.

    This helps them to view and plan their daily routine based on number of calories they want to burn, amount of effort needed to be exerted etc.

    embedded telematics

    Yamaha Connected Two-wheeler with embedded telematics. Image Courtesy: cebit
  • 2018 Honda Gold Wing Telematics Package: Honda’s 2018 editions-  Gold Wing and Gold Wing Tourer come with integrated telematics unit with a TFT 7” LCD screen on the front. It includes an automotive-style rotary twiddle nob for the users to access the menu on the telematics screen.


    Features :

    This two-wheeler telematics  system boasts of the following features:

    • Advanced navigation system with software over the air update (FOTA): provides on-the-go visual and voice navigation assistance, locate & display the rider’s location using satellite and map database.

      In poor network conditions or in areas where GPS signals might be obstructed, the speed sensors offer real-time information about the motorbikes.

    • Bluetooth connectivity to sync up with other devices (iPhone and Android) such smartphones in the vicinity.
    • Audio module with controls located at the rear of the bike that can connect to iPod/ USB digital players etc.
    • Hands-free module compatible with iPhone and Android phones
    • Integrated with Apple Car Play : view content of the smartphone, Voice activated access of telematics features, manage calls, view and access maps

    telematics package

    2018 Honda Gold Wing’s telematics package. Image Source: Youtube
  • The feature rich connected scooters from Aprilia and Vespa: The 2018 models of Aprilia and Vespa scooters from Piaggio India are integrated with digital telematics system.


    Features:

    • GPS real-time navigation module
    • Information about nearby service centers based on user’s current location
    • Panic Alert feature, enables the rider to contact the pre-fed mobile number in case of an emergency situation
    • Find Me feature- for locating the vehicle even if the engine is switched off
  • In 2016, BMW Motorrad, Honda and Yamaha together founded the , Connected Motorcycle Consortium (CMC) –to integrate motorcycles into the Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-IST) category  through technological innovation.

    The main objective behind the formation of CMC was to ensure motorcycle safety on-road, by enabling connectivity and networked communications in them.

    The consortium aims to establish a unified standard for motorcycle connectivity system so that motorcycles on road can communicate with other vehicles and avoid collision. The CMC is testing the possibilities of leveraging networked communications to increase motorcycle safety.

The Future of the Telematics Two-wheeler market:

So, are the vehicle telematics and digitalization going to change the landscape of two-wheelers market?

Though it may be too early to put a stamp on this claim, but the rapid pace at which innovations in digitalization of two-wheelers and inclusion of vehicle telematics are happening, the impact can already be felt.


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A Curious Case of In-Vehicle Infotainment System for Two-Wheelers

Category : Embedded Blog

The motor bike and electric two-wheeler riders have fewer comfort features compared to what is offered in a car. The gap, however, is closing and the introduction of in-vehicle infotainment system in bikes is a major factor.

The bike and scooter riders miss out on many features that are absolute necessity for bikers. Navigation and calling features are a few of them. Hence, the need for an infotainment system in two-wheelers has always been there.

Here are a few compelling reasons for having such an infotainment system in two-wheelers:

  • Map and Navigation: Bikes and scooters are meant for city commute and navigation makes it more convenient. While on a car, the user can easily use a smartphone for the same purpose, but two-wheelers have their constraints. An infotainment system that could help riders navigate easily is certainly needed.
  • Vehicle Data: Quite similar to a car, two-wheelers also have a lot to tell its user. Tire pressure warning, distance-to-empty and a lot more. An old-fashioned VGA screen is not the right fit for displaying so much of information to the user. Moreover, such display is not interactive and doesn’t let the user take any action on the info.
  • Audio/Video: While this may be not a core feature, two-wheeler users were really missing out on this one. Audio and Video Playback capabilities is great if you have to wait on your electric bike while it is charging or in the traffic.
  • Bluetooth Calling: While it is not recommended to take calls while riding a two-wheeler. A call notification on the display with an option to answer or reject gives the rider an option to stop the bike and answer the call. Or he may choose to ignore it.

Bike and electric vehicle OEMs have now realized this need and are investing heavy on them. And not just the OEMs, technology providers and suppliers such as BOSCH and TI also have ready-to-deploy and customizable infotainment systems for the bike.

Most of automotive enthusiast know in and out about infotainment systems in cars, but is it similar for the bikes as well? Let’s find out!

How does a two-wheeler Infotainment System Work

An infotainment system in two-wheelers aims for a riding experience that is safe, useful and fun all at the same time. When we say a system, we are also talking about the underlying Control Unit– the brain behind this system.

The role of this electronic control unit (ECU) is to fetch the information from different sources, process it and display to the users.

As two-wheelers, especially the electric scooters have a lot of electronic systems in place, the rider should be well-informed of what is going on in the bike. The display system takes care of that.

In case of a car, there is usually an instrument cluster that helps decongest the main display by sharing some of the info.

The bike on the other hand doesn’t have that amount of real-estate to accommodate two displays. The main display has to showcase all relevant info and entertainment features without making it all seem congested.

Also, there are multiple connectivity at play simultaneously. The system is connected to numerous devices and system over different networks. We will have a closer look in the next section.

The image shows the infotainment system’s connectivity with different bike functions

2 wheeler infotatinment
 

  • Vehicle sensor connectivity: The infotainment system is connected to various vehicle sensors. For instance, the tire pressure sensors measures the amount of air in the tires and passes on the data to the control unit. Based on the reading, the control unit would trigger the algorithm and deduce whether the air pressure is optimum or a refill is required.


    Similarly, a side stand sensor would warn the user if the bike stand is engaged. Most of these connections are over CAN.

  • Throttle Connectivity: In most two-wheelers, the infotainment system is connected to the throttle by analog system (harness) or over LIN. The display shows the RPM based on the readings from the throttle.
  • Connectivity to Cloud: We have already entered the era of connected vehicles and bikes are also not behind. Connectivity with cloud brings along a lot of benefits. A few of them are remote vehicle diagnostics, remote ECU reprogramming flashing, telematics features etc. Leveraging these features, the OEMs make life really easy for the riders.


    Let’s say, there is an update for a control unit application. The OEMs can push such update directly to the bikes over cloud. The customers do not have to take the pains of bringing the bike to the garage for the same.


    The cloud connectivity works in the same way as cars. Usually, the connection to cloud is over WLAN. A WLAN module is included to the infotainment system ECU for this purpose.

  • Smartphone Connectivity: Connectivity with smartphone primarily enables the calling feature on your bike. The connection is usually over Bluetooth. While the safety factor is debatable, it is definitely a sought-after features by the riders.
  • Helmet Connectivity: This is one of the unique features of a two-wheeler infotainment system. There are smart helmets that connect with the bike system. Connected over Bluetooth, these helmets can play the navigation to the user directly from the infotainment system, give voice commands to the system and more. However, these feature will depend on the OEMs and the helmet manufacturers.

What’s next for Two-Wheeler Infotainment System?

The infotainment system is out of its nascent stage. The technology is quite advanced and the focus is on integrating communication and information in the smoothest manner possible.

Going by the trends, here a little insight into the area of two-wheeler’s infotainment system:

  1. Connected Vehicle and V2V technologies: Connected two-wheelers is the future! Back in 2016 at EICMA, many two-wheeler manufacturers talked about connected features and a few even announced to introduce it in their upcoming two-wheelers.

    Another aspect is the advancements in vehicle to vehicle (V2V) technology. It paves the path for co-operative Intelligent Transport System (CITS). Honda, Yamaha and BMW are among the top OEMs who have collaborated to build a CITS.

    For the uninitiated, vehicle to vehicle and vehicle to infrastructure communication comes under the domain of CITS. Based on this system, the vehicle users are able to share information with the traffic managers and coordinate the actions. This helps the concerned authority to manage the traffic well.

  2. Electric two-wheelers to make infotainment system mainstream: Electric two-wheeler is creating quite a storm in the automotive market. And the good thing is that most of them are making infotainment system an integral part of their system.

    They are in a way busting the myth around infotainment system that it is meant only for the luxury vehicles. In fact, these infotainment system in the electric two-wheelers are powered by Android and boats all the advanced features comparable to a car.

Final Thoughts

Going by the steady inclusion of new features in cars, one might think that bike technology has become stagnant. With infotainment system being introduced in two-wheelers, we see them catching up fast with the 4 wheeled counterparts.


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Tech behind Telematics Explained: How does a Vehicle Telematics Solution Work?

Category : Embedded Blog

“Telematics is the Talk of the Town” – this won’t sound as an understatement to the enthusiasts of the Automotive Industry!

A lot has been written and spoken about how Vehicle Telematics features are shaping the future of fleet management, remote vehicle diagnostics, vehicle/asset tracking, Insurance Telematics, e-call/b-call and more

But we wanted to understand the tools and technologies that are necessary for design and development of a Vehicle Telematics solution.

And hence the idea of sharing this information with our Automotive Community was conceived.

How does a vehicle telematics solution work?

A Vehicle telematics solution consists of the following 3 fundamental building blocks:

  • Telematics Control Unit
  • The Telematics Cloud Server
  • The Front End- Web app and Mobile App

The following block diagram features the basic building blocks of an automotive telematics system.

automotive telematics system

Image: Building blocks of an automotive telematics system

The Telematics Control Unit (TCU), which is the central hardware module of the telematics device, has communication interfaces with the in-vehicle network (CAN Bus) and the back-end cloud server( GPRS) .
TCU collects the crucial vehicle data such as diagnostics data, real time location, and speed of the vehicle (through different interfaces) and sends them to the cloud server over wireless network such as GPRS/cellular/LTE , in a specific packaged format.

This telematics data stored in the Cloud Telematics Server is accessed by the end-users through a web app or a mobile app.

Understanding the Telematics System architecture

Now, let us individually look at each of these components of telematics system  and see how information flows between each of them.

  1. Telematics Control Unit(TCU ):

    The Telematics Control Unit( TCU ) is the central component of a telematics system managing numerous functions such as:

    • Collecting vehicle data via CAN-BUS port
    • Managing information collected over various communication interfaces such as CAN, GPS, UART, GUI etc.
    • Memory and battery management
    • Managing two way communication with the Telematics Cloud Server
    • Managing the communication with the user dashboard/HMI device

    The telematics control unit (TCU) makes use of a set of hardware and software modules for efficient execution of these functions. Let us have a look at these hardware and software components in detail.

    (Please refer to the following architecture diagram for a better understanding of the Telematics Control Unit.)

    Telematics Control units

    Image: Technology architecture of a Telematics Control unit

    The basic framework of a TCU hardware architecture comprises of :

    • A  Global Positioning System(GPS) module, for tracking the information associated with the latitude and longitude of the vehicle.
    • A Central Processing Unit, with memory management and data processing capabilities. Commercially available telematics systems are based on microcontrollers, microprocessors or even Field Programming Gate Array (FPGA) for managing multiple processes occurring within the TCU.

      Linux based processors have become popular for advanced display based telematics product development.
      On the other hand, for basic telematics systems, Android based processors are popularly deployed.

      High performance processor from Telit Devices, Renesas Electronics, and ST Microelectronics are commonly used for  developing efficient telematics system

    • A CAN Bus module that manages all the communication with the vehicle ECUs. Many of the commercially available telematics devices also support OBD II, MOST, LIN interfaces.

      The TCU communicates with the vehicle ECUs through CAN bus and fetches crucial information such as engine performance, vehicle speed, data from the Tire Pressure measuring Sensors, etc.

      A telematics system may also use K/Line bus to alert the user about theft (by notifying the user if the vehicle is switched on by anyone), or to enable remote locking and unlocking of the vehicle.

    • A Memory unit, which is necessary for storing information during an unreliable or no network conditions; or in some cases, to store vehicle data for future use.

      This memory module is also useful for supporting advanced telematics functionalities like speech recognition.

      Flash and Dynamic random-access memory are some of the commonly used memory types in a vehicle telematics system.

    • Communication interfaces to support a wide range of communication including Wi-Fi, cellular, LTE etc.
    • A GPRS module for data connectivity and in some cases voice based communication with remote devices. Often the GPRS module comes with a sim card, e-sim card or plastic sim cards, in addition to the GPRS modem to enable communication with remote devices over the cellular network.
    • An in-built Battery module, with voltage rating of 3.2 to 3.4 volts, for integrated power management. The battery system is useful in a range of scenarios like :
      • As a cost-effective backup source for Real-Time Clocks when the vehicle engine is off
      • For Accessing telematics data ,for tracking and recovering stolen vehicle, when vehicle is switched off
    • Bluetooth Module, to connect nearby devices with the telematics device, for interfacing with the end-user’s mobile phone for hands-free calls, text messages etc.
    • Microphone with Audio interface to enable features such as hands-free calls, voice based commands. It also supports stereo based output to play media files from the vehicle audio system.
    • A General Purpose Input/output interface (GPIO) system to connect lights, buttons. This includes both analog and digital I/O type interfaces.
    • The HMI/user interface device to showcase crucial information such as navigation maps, vehicle speed , fuel usage etc. The user can use the HMI to access features such as hands-free calls on the move, view map, playing media files etc. The HMI is connected to the TCU through a GUI or HDMI port.

    Overview of the Telematics Software Components

    An automotive telematics system comes with the following set of software components:

    • The Bootloader software stack for boot implementation
    • Real Time Operating System (RTOS) and BSP modules
    • Automotive Framework Classes that help the applications to access the primary telematics functionalities such as GPS data.
    • Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) software for real-time vehicle tracking and identification of the geo location.
    • Software for integration of data analytics to alert user about vehicle maintenance, fuel usage, vehicle usage patterns etc.
    • Software for Multimedia device drivers.
    • Device management software for Remote Over the air update of firmware ( FOTA) and software ( SOTA) images.
    • Security Algorithms for ensuring multi-level security of the telematics code and application through device and user authentication, data encryption, Content Filtering etc.
  2.  

  3. Cloud Telematics Server:

    Now the information collected by the TCU is sent to the cloud based telematics server through a GPRS/cellular network over HTTPS . But before the transmission, the data packets are encapsulated into MQTT messages.

    Once the data packets reach the cloud, data is extracted and stored into a database for further processing.
    The Cloud based telematics server consists of a web server, an application server, and a database.

    To learn about the data flow within a cloud application, also read: How an IoT Cloud Application Works? A Deep Dive into the Software Architecture and Data Flow.

    The web server and application server ensure a seamless exchange of data between the database and front-end application, often a web app or a mobile app.

  4. The Front End:

    The data stored in the telematics server can be accessed by the end user using either via a desktop or mobile application. Based on the specific use case, the telematics data in the server can be fed into a third party software such as computerized mapping software, to apply further business logic on the available data.

    Integration of Telematics with Web/Mobile Apps

    The telematics information when integrated with a smartphone or web app, offers numerous business opportunities for various automotive stake holders. We will have a brief look at a few such scenarios relevant in current times:

    • The fleet management service providers use the telematics information for real-time time fleet tracking, remotely monitoring the driver, optimizing fuel usage, gain business intelligence based on analysis of vehicle data among others.
    • Automotive Telematics

      Image: Connected Vehicles with Automotive Telematics . Image Source: Autocarpro

    • Telematics has paved way for a new model of insurance – Usage Based Insurance whereby the automotive insurance companies use the telematics data to serve and charge the users based on vehicle usage pattern.
    • Telematics allows daily commuters to : set a notification based maintenance schedule so that they  are intimated when their vehicle needs a maintenance service, to track stolen vehicles ,use location based services like enhanced navigation, traffic related information- using a desktop or mobile app.
    • The advent of telematics solutions has supported the growing popularity of ride sharing services for daily transits. Telematics technology enables both the ride-sharing companies and the passengers to keep a closer tab on the driver, manage payments based on the ride maps, monitor the vehicle movement through their smartphones – all in a seamless and secure manner.

Hope you liked this blog on automotive telematics technology. If you are interested to know more about the hardware and software features of a telematics system, please get in touch with our IoT consultants.


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What’s Below the Hood of an Electric Two-Wheeler? A Sneak Peek of the Architecture and Electronic Control Units

Category : Embedded Blog

In the Automotive Industry, the Electric Avatar of two-wheelers has also started taking the center stage.

As the roads of the Global Cities are becoming busier by the day, an Electric Two Wheeler promises to be a more eco-friendly, sustainable and feasible option for local commute.

To live up to this promise and meet the expectations of digital savvy city commuters, many OEMs’ are supporting Android Infotainment and Telematics related features in Electric Two Wheelers.

In comparison to Electric Cars, though the complexities are drastically different but the common technology thread between them is a humble electronic component known as an Electronic Control Unit.

The Electronic Control Units have made the cars smarter over the years and are facilitating the two-wheelers to become Smart as well.

Several features, widely integrated in four wheelers, are now being made available in two–wheelers as well. These features include engine immobilizers, ABS, Anti-theft alarm and what not! However, as we are focusing on only the electric two-wheelers in the blog, we will stick to a few particular vehicle ECUs critical for the design of an Electric Two-Wheeler.

Since the hardware and software challenges related to two-wheeler architecture design are quite different from that of four wheelers. The in-depth understanding of Control Units and Motor Control Systems becomes an interesting prospect for a budding Automotive Engineer!

However, before we jump to different control systems and their role, here’s a little prelude – we will explore the two possible architecture designs for a networks of ECUs’ in an electric two-wheeler.

Centralized ECU System vs Multiple ECU System

Vehicle ECUs are small computers in themselves which are essential in supporting various product features.

Based on the business objectives and other technical considerations, one can design a system architecture either with single ECU or one with multiple units. We will discuss details of both these designs.

How Single ECU System Architecture Works

Typically, in a single ECU scenario, there is a central Body Control Unit that does all the hard work. It is directly connected to various sensors, collects the required information from sensors and CAN network, does the processing and implements necessary action. This works best when there are not too many sensors are integrated in your product design.

The algorithms required to process the vehicle parameters are ported in the processor of this central control unit. The central Body Control Module (BCM) is connected to sensors through the harness (wires). Functions like DC to DC conversion, drivetrain, lamp load etc. are handled by the main unit.

The following diagram will help you understand the system better.
Single ECU Architecture

Pros and Cons of such a system:

Pros:

  1. As a single ECU is at work, the developers need to devote lesser time for testing the units.
  2. Fewer Third-party licenses are involved.
  3. The fault can be easily located because of the centralized design of the architecture.
  4. Lesser number of ECUs leads to reduced time-to-market and design cost.

Cons:

  1. Direct connection of a number of Sensors with the central body control unit translates into a complicated set of harnesses which creates complexity.
  2. Single ECU also means a bigger board that may take up a lot of space.
  3. A back-up unit (Redundant system) is required as a fault in the Main ECU can have a far-reaching impact. This again translates into cost overhead.

How a Multiple ECUs Architecture System works

Having a more decentralized architecture, this system has multiple ECUs which are tasked to manage different functions. However, each of them is interfaced with the main control unit, called the body control module.

So there is a separate control unit for powertrain motor control system, CAN input/output, headlight, infotainment system and so on. These ECUs are connected to the respective sensors in order to fetch the required information.

For instance, the infotainment ECU will fetch the wheel speed, engine speed etc. and display them on the screen. Another ECU may read the level of the fuel in the tank and calculate the distance-to-empty using an algorithm.

The blog diagram will make it easier to comprehend.
Multiple ECU Architecture Electric Scooter

A separate control unit for different functions helps in de-cluttering the entire system. However, there may be a few downsides too. Let’s examine both!

Pros:

  1. Control processor (Main Control Unit) will perform only the computation and this helps in boosting the overall performance of the system.
  2. Complexity of the harness (wiring) coming to the body control module will be reduced.
  3. In case of a fault in one control unit, there won’t be an impact on the other units to a large extent.

Cons:

  1. More ECUs would mean escalated cost, thus making vehicle more expensive.
  2. Different control units would need to be tested separately; Impact- More turn-around time and increased development cost.
  3. Several 3rd party licenses may be required, when we use vehicle ECUs from different vendors.

All said and done, multiple ECUs would still be recommended if you are building a futuristic, feature-rich electric two-wheeler that’s not just efficient but also smart and intuitive.

Now that we know about both the centralized ECU system as well as the multiple ECUs scenario, it’s time to learn about different ECUs at work in an electric two–wheeler.

Some Commonly Deployed Electronic Control Units in Electric Two-Wheelers

  • DC to DC Converter: This ECU is essentially the power regulator. Different vehicle ECUs may have different power requirements.

    The powertrain ECU is likely to have a requirement of more power as it has to move the vehicle wheels. A headlight ECU on the other hand will have lesser voltage requirement than what the battery is providing. But, the battery pack always delivers a fixed voltage.

    The DC to DC converter can buck and boost i.e. reduce or amplify this power. The voltage then goes to the respective ECUs depending on their voltage requirement over the wiring harness.

    As a matter of fact, there can be multiple DC to DC converter ECUs as well. A few ECUs that require some specific operating voltage have separate converters.

  • Battery Management System ECU: Unlike IC engines, where a lot goes inside an engine, an electric engine is quite straightforward. You have a battery pack and an induction motor that drives the wheel (powertrain). The challenge here is to manage the battery so as to make the powertrain system efficient.

    Typically, a BMS will have algorithms to control the current during charging state, estimation of the battery state, cell balancing and various other activities. As battery is an electrochemical product, it is important to protect it from adverse environmental and operational conditions as well.

    If there is any kind of inconsistency in the performance of the batteries, it can affect the functions that rely on the battery pack for optimized power. The role of BMS is also to continuously monitor the current state of the battery and take measures if any malfunction occurs.

    This requires the BMS to acquire vehicle’s parameters from other automotive control units as well like thermal sensors, voltage sensors and others.

  • Powertrain ECU: This is the core electric two- wheeler ECU that is directly responsible for the running of the vehicle. It houses the motor control system that takes the power from the battery, makes adjustments, and transfers it to the actual AC induction motor that drives the wheel.

    In an Internal Combustion engine, the speed of the vehicle is regulated by controlling the amount of fuel mixed with air.

    On the other hand, in an electric engine the powertrain ECU is tasked with this responsibility. With the help of a complex motor control system, it alters the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) of the current for controlling the speed.

  • Body Control Unit: This is the big daddy of all small ECUs in an electric vehicle. It takes input from different ECUs and also monitors ECUs’ over a CAN network.

    Apart from that, Body Control Unit may have to manage some set of dedicated functions. This varies from OEM to OEM, but the body control unit may be tasked with management of the infotainment system, roll back control, battery control unit etc.

    In a centralized ECU system, this body control unit takes vehicular data directly from the sensors. However, in a multiple ECU setting, it is connected to separate ECUs over vehicle network.

    In addition to these core control units, there are several small ECUs that perform some specific functions. For instance, CAN BUS I/O ECU will take care of all the inputs and outputs over the CAN BUS.

    The lamp load ECUs will control the head-light, indicator light, brake lights and so on. A mirror control unit may be there to control the side view mirror with the help of a dedicated motor control system.

  • Conclusion

    In the future, we may see more automotive ECUs making your electric two- wheeler, a powerhouse of amazing features and at the same time, safe and efficient. Watch for this space for more such blogs on innovations in electric two-wheelers.


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    Webinar: Making ‘Functional Safety’ a Part of Your Organization DNA

    Webinar: Making ‘Functional Safety’ a Part of Your Organization DNA

    Need for Functional Safety in Automotive

    Despite the fact that the technology advancements have been happening at light-speed in Automotive Industry. And “the safety” of the end-users has always been the highest priority for the entire automotive ecosystem.

    Why we still find the Global Automotive Recalls making the headlines?

    This webinar is an attempt to unravel all the answers through the lens of “ISO 26262 Functional Safety Standard”.

    Webinar Agenda

    1. A sneak-peek into some of the faults that caused major global automotive recalls
    2. What we learn from these recalls?
    3. ISO 26262 implementation framework: Quality Management, Safety Management, Functional and Technical Safety Management
    4. ISO 26262 adoption challenges for OEMs' and Suppliers

    Your webinar hosts

    Poornima Jha

    Subject Matter Expert
    Embitel Technologies

    SivaKumar J

    ISO 26262 Consultant
    Embitel Technologies

    On-demand Webinar

    Release Date: Tuesday, June 5th, 2018

    Duration: 23 mins

    Name *

    Email *

    Company Name *

    Phone Number


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    Custom Development of Control Room Gateway for IoT enabled solar Tracking System

    About the Customer:

    The customer, an Indian Subsidiary of one of the Global Pioneers in Renewable Energy generation.
     

    Business challenge:

    The customer had earlier partnered with us for the development and implementation of IoT based Solar Tracking System.

    Some of the key components of the high–efficiency Solar Energy Tracking System developed by Embitel included:

    1. Single Axis Solar Panels and Tracker
    2. Custom-built Field Gateway
    3. Drive and Motor Control Systems
    4. Integration with Off-the-Shelf Control Room Gateway
    5. Cloud Based SCADA system for 24/7 monitoring

    This field deployed IoT based Solar Energy Harvesting Solution, designed and developed by Embitel’ s IoT developers, has been instrumental in helping our customer to improve the efficiency of power generation and remote management of their on-field industrial assets.

    Also Read: Customer Success Story-  IoT Platform Development & SCADA solution for the Solar Tracking System.

    The following block diagram gives an overview of the IoT based Solar Energy Harvesting System

    IoT based Solar Energy Harvesting Solution

    Image 1 : Block diagram- IoT based Solar Energy Harvesting Solution

    However, they found that the off-the shelf Control Room Gateway, which has been integrated into the existing solution, had many complex set of subsystems and features which were seldom used.

    Additionally, the off-the shelf gateway device was designed by deploying multiple control Units or Modules for managing specific tasks. All these lead to an additional BOM cost and increased complexity of the IoT Gateway architecture.

    Thus, with the aim of reducing the cost of the Control Room Gateway and simplifying the hardware architecture, customer decided to invest in a custom-built control room gateway device.

    After having worked with Embitel for the full-fledged Solar Energy Harvesting Solution, the customer  was impressed with Embitel’ s expertise in Product Engineering and Industrial Automation services . Customer had no hesitation in further extending this partnership for the new project.
     

    Embitel Solution:

    Embitel’ s IoT experts performed a detailed analysis of the functional requirements of the Control Room gateway device.

    This analysis revealed that the several components and architecture of the existing Field Gateway, developed by Embitel for the customer, can be re-used for the customization of the Control Room Gateway.

    The new Control Room Gateway device basically had to be a scaled-up version of the Field Gateway Device, with additional control features and peripherals.

    The re-usability of the existing IoT Gateway hardware and software proved to be a great value-add for this entire project.

    Please refer to the following block diagram to get an overview of the Control Gateway Device and various peripherals connected to it.

    Control Gateway Device

       Image 2: Block diagram of the Control Gateway Device and the connected subsystems
     
    Features of the Custom Built Control Room Gateway:

    • Custom Hardware Development

      Custom hardware modules and peripherals were developed and integrated with the control gateway device to support the following features:

      1. Input/ output module consisting of 48 inputs and 16 output pins. These I/O are used to monitor system status and to control system features like ALARMs and ALERTs.
      2. Transformer parameters: It supports remote monitoring of various transformer parameters such as coil winding and oil temperature.
      3. String Combiner Box: The String combiner box is a device that combines the output of multiple strings of PV modules, and feed the o/p to an inverter. A control board in the string combiner box monitors parameters like voltage, current and communicates the same via Modbus interface. The control room gateway reads these parameters and forwards this information to the SCADA system. In such a setting, the SCADA system will be able to generate alerts about any fault in any of the PV modules.
      4. Energy Meter: The control Room Gateway reads energy generated at the solar power plant via Modbus from the Energy meter and forwards to the SCADA.
      5. Weather monitoring system: The control room gateway device also gathers information related to – the speed and direction of wind, ambient temperature and humidity – from a weather monitoring system over Modbus interface.
      6. Inverter: The inverter converts the DC power generated by the PV panel to AC. The control board in the inverter provides Modbus interface to read inverter parameter. The Control Room gateway reads these parameters and forwards to the SCADA. Control gateway supports both Modbus serial and Modbus TCP/IP and depending on the inverter used, these communication interfaces are configured into the gateway.
    • Software Development:
      Additionally, specific software modules were also created to support Modbus communication , I/O module and analog communication between the Control room gateway device and other systems in the Solar Tracking Solution.
    • Customized HMI:
      The existing HMI and SCADA systems were redesigned to accommodate additional parameters that the Control room gateway device is monitoring.

     

    Embitel Impact:

    The integration of custom developed Control Room gateway device, as a replacement of the off-the-shelf device, helped the customer  in reducing the overall cost by significant levels.
     

    Tools and technologies

    • HyperLynx – Verification of Signal Integrity, Power Integrity, and Thermal Analysis
    • Atmel SAM A5 platform: development of gateway hardware boards
    • QT framework for PC-Application and ATS
    • ModBus over RS-485 and Ethernet
    • Django scripting : SCADA solution development
    • Postgress SQL: SCADA database

    • 0

    How an IoT Cloud Application Works? A Deep Dive into the Software Architecture and Data Flow

    Category : Embedded Blog

    In one of our earlier blogs, we had discussed about the role of Cloud backend in an IoT solution.

    In this blog, let us delve deeper to understand what the main components of an IoT cloud application are and how they work together to store and process the enterprise data?

    The Building Blocks of an IoT Cloud Application:

    Data storage and processing within cloud application is a result of the symphony between the cloud computing components of the IoT cloud application.

    At a basic level, a web-based cloud application is made of the three primary components, namely the web server, the application server, and the database server.

    Let us take a closer look at these components:

    IoT Cloud Application

    Image 1: Primary components of a typical web based cloud application.

    1. Web server: A web server is responsible for managing web requests. The web servers are widely used for downloading requests for files, downloading webpages, processing email request among others.  Some of the commonly used web servers include Apache, Nginx, Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS), and more.
    2. Application server: An application server is a software framework that supports development of the web applications, while providing a server environment to run these applications.

      An application server can be visualized as a middleware connecting the backend server with the users.

      Web applications are written in the programming languages supported by the application servers and invoke runtime libraries offered by the Application Server.

    3. Database server: The Database server handles the database related request and enables the Cloud Application to access the stored data.

      A database server is independent of the architecture of the database. This means it is compatible with various database types like Relational, Non-relation database or even flat files.

    And then there is the messaging/ communication protocol that facilitates communication between the cloud application and the IOT enabled devices. MQTT is one of the most commonly used messaging protocols in IoT applications.

    How does a Cloud Application work?

    We will try to understand the mechanics of the Cloud Application by tracing the flow of the data. Please refer to the following block diagram while you read this section.

    data transmission on IoT cloud

    Image 2:  Block diagram representing how data transmission occurs in an IoT cloud application

    1. How a Cloud Application Collects Data from Field Deployed IoT Devices:
    2. Data collected from the IoT enabled devices is sent to the Cloud Application through the MQTT protocol and stored in a database. The key component of the MQTT protocol is the MQTT broker, which acts as the central hub of messages exchanged between the publishers/ sender and subscribers/receiver.

      An MQTT broker manages the core functions such as receiving messages from the publishers, filtering them, determining the subscribers, sending the messages to the subscribers based on the topic they have selected.

      The following block diagram offers a detailed view of the device-cloud communication over MQTT, in a cloud application based on Python script, with Django as the web application framework:

      We app framework
      • Whenever a device wants to communicate with the cloud server, it will send a ‘connect’ command to the intermittent MQTT broker.
      • The MQTT broker responds to this connection request with a ‘connack’ (connection acknowledge) after verifying device authenticity.
      • Once the verification is completed successfully, the device starts publishing the message.

        Below is a sample of the MQTT message Publish pattern:

        mosquitto_pub -p 1883 -t “sensor/Device001” -m “{‘temp’:22}” -h “example.com

        where ‘p’ is the port used for communication, ‘t’ is the topic, ‘m’ is the actual message being sent , and ‘-h ‘ is the domain or IP address of the application

      • Once the MQTT broker gets the message it stores the data for a short duration.
      • On the server side, the python script in the application server acts as the subscriber.

        Below is a sample of  the example of the MQTT Subscribe pattern:

        mosquitto_sub -p 1883 -t “sensor/Device001” -m “{‘temp’:22}” -h “example.com

      • Once python script (the application server) gets the message, it executes the database queries and stores the data in the database.

      In the cloud to device communication, the python script acts as the Publisher and device acts as Subscriber.

      Now the data aggregated from IoT enabled devices is stored in the database server of the IoT cloud application via the MQTT protocol.

    3. Making the Data in the Cloud database Available for the End User:
    4. We will now look at how this stored data is made available for further processing and for implementing business logic.

      An end-user interacts with the backend systems and requests for specific information using the web pages running on the web browsers.

      The web browser, at the front-end, sends this request to the back end over HTTP/ HTTPS. And the database server responds by sending the required data or content depending on the scripting as well as how the user requests the information to be visualized.

      At the front-end, the user can get the information as flat file or textual/numerical data, or even as charts and graphs with the help of visual tools such as Highcharts or Google charts.

      At the back-end side, a web server such as NGINX handles various requests such as form submission, received from the front end and passes it on to the next layer, the application server.

      Similarly, the web server passes on the data fetched from the database server (via application server) to the webpages via HTTP/HTTPS.

      The web server is designed to handle multiple requests (10,000 client connections) at a time and thus helps in load balancing for a smooth cloud application performance.

      Additionally, the web server also takes care of security of information exchanged between the clients (the browser) and the servers through SSL certificates.

      Next is the application server software which consists of programming language, run time libraries, database connectors, and is entrusted with the task of handling communications to and from the database.

      Based on the scripting language, it handles communications with the front end/ web application. The web server passes on requests for connection from the front-end to the application server, based on a first in first (FIFO) out basis.

      The application program forwards this to the database and fetches the requested data and sends it to the front-end via the web server over HTTP.

      Thus, inside the cloud application data exchange chiefly happens between the front-end (web application) and the back end (the database) through a middleware layer, formed by web server and the application server.

    Hope you found this blog on IoT cloud application informative and useful. If you wish to know more about Embitel’s IoT cloud development services, you may get in touch with us our cloud experts.