POC Development for Android Infotainment System of Electric Trucks

About the Customer

Our customer is a US-based EV company with focus on medium- and heavy-duty powertrain solutions.

Business Challenge

The customer was looking to develop a POC for a high-end Android-based Infotainment System for their Electric Trucks. Since Embitel has great track record in end-to-end IVI System development for futuristic automotive projects, they decided to approach us for the POC development.

Phase 1 of the project only included integration of features to display the data derived from the vehicle’s CAN bus. This is an account of Phase 1 of the POC development.

Embitel Solution

The Android Infotainment System POC we developed as part of this project included the following key features:

• Tell-tales – These are optical signals that alight when there is defective functioning of a vehicle part.
• Rich User Interface – Within 2 GB RAM, the team was able to integrate a large touch-enabled HDMI display with D2P and P2D animation.
• Charging screens – The screen displays EV charging status in the event of V2V charging or AC/DC charging at stations.
• Navigation functionality – This was enabled with basic features for the POC.
• Vehicle Telematics – The telematics module enables tracking of the vehicle’s location, idling time, driving conditions, fuel consumption, etc. It also facilitates remote diagnostics of various engine parameters.
• Data Logging – If the truck is passing through a remote area with no internet connection, the vehicle data will be collected and stored on a local file. This information is then uploaded to the cloud server when the internet connectivity is back. This way, there is no loss of critical vehicle data.
• Integration of a Service screen – In case there are any faults within the vehicle, this information is displayed on a “Service screen” and the vehicle servicing personnel can take the necessary measures to rectify these issues.

Additional parameters that are displayed on the Infotainment screen are:

• Date, time and temperature
• Safety and security manual for the driver
• Vehicle Fault/Error codes
• Energy Consumption details (battery-to-wheel or wheel-to-battery)
• Trip information and last charging details

During the development of the POC, the team focused on ensuring that the low-priority messages are displayed on 30% of the screen to avoid unnecessary driver distraction. Critical messages such as the vehicle charging status, navigation details, etc. are displayed on the remaining part of the screen.

One of the most interesting features of the POC was the module that enables the driver to configure the extent to which the vehicle needs to be charged. So, for instance, if the driver wants to charge the vehicle only up to 80%, he/she can update it in the settings. Subsequently, when the vehicle is charged to 80%, the plug will be automatically disconnected to stop the charging.

The driver is also able to regulate the speed of charging by updating the settings on the Infotainment unit display.

Software Modules Reused for Accelerated POC Development

The team utilized several reusable software modules to complete the POC development within a short time span. The modules that were reused include:

• Navigation
• Data logger
• Embitel’s proprietary OBD2 software stack – with some customizations
• Telematics

Embitel Impact

All the development activities and change requests were successfully completed and delivered to the client within a time period of just 3 months! We are now providing warranty period support for the deliverables.
 

Tools and Technology

• Android Studio
• PCAN View
• Busmaster