Introduction to the core modules of the smart cockpit and the car to realize networking

In smart connected vehicles, ECUs (Electronic Control Units) play a crucial role that involves various functions and intelligent performance of the vehicle.

To realize connected vehicles, multiple ECU modules need to work together, but some of these key modules are central to realizing connected vehicle functions, especially those related to communication, control and intelligence.

                                                                                                                               Telematics Network Architecture Diagram

1. Telematics core modules

1. In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI system). In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) system has become an important part of intelligent connected vehicles, which not only undertakes the functions of entertainment, navigation, and information display, but also the integration of vehicle information and intelligent services. By connecting with other vehicle ECUs, the in-vehicle central control forms a centralized aggregation point for vehicle information. For example, the vehicle center control usually communicates with the vehicle CAN bus through a gateway to obtain data from each ECU of the vehicle (e.g., engine control unit, body control unit, etc.) and provide important real-time information to the driver. With the development of intelligent networking, the functions of the vehicle center control system are gradually expanding to vehicle networking communication, automatic driving assistance and remote control.

2. Gateway. The gateway is the core component that connects each ECU in the vehicle to the outside world (e.g. the Internet or other vehicles). It is responsible for managing the data transmission of the various networks in the car (such as CAN bus, LIN bus, Ethernet, etc.) and ensuring that the information can be smoothly and safely transferred to the system outside the car.

Through the gateway, the ECU in the vehicle and external systems (e.g., cloud platforms, V2X devices) can exchange information to ensure that the vehicle receives real-time traffic information and changes in road conditions from the outside.

3.OBU (On-Board Unit).OBU (On-Board Unit) is a key device in Telematics and V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) communication. It is responsible for communicating with external devices (e.g., roadside unit RSUs, other vehicles, base stations, etc.) in order to realize real-time interaction between the vehicle and its surroundings.OBU not only has to support basic V2X communication, but may also exchange data with ECUs inside the vehicle to support intelligent functions such as autonomous driving, collision warning, and speed regulation. With the development of 5G technology, the role of OBUs will also be further enhanced to support higher bandwidth and lower latency Telematics applications.

4.V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything).V2X communication is one of the core technologies of the Internet of Vehicles (IoV) and refers to the communication between vehicles and external facilities (e.g., roadside units RSUs), other vehicles, pedestrians, and even infrastructure (e.g., traffic lights, road monitoring, etc.).The key task of V2X is to improve traffic safety and efficiency and to provide data support for autonomous driving. . For example, vehicles can exchange information with other vehicles via V2X to get early warning of collisions, and communicate with roadside units and signals to optimize traffic flow. By interacting with the outside world in real time, V2X can provide more accurate decision support for autonomous driving.

5.T-BOX (Telematics Box).T-BOX is a vehicle communication module, which is usually used to connect the vehicle to the cloud platform through wireless network (e.g. 4G/5G). It can not only be used for real-time data transmission, vehicle remote diagnosis, but also supports interfacing with out-of-vehicle service systems, such as positioning service, traffic information push, remote control, etc. T-BOX can also support communication with V2X system, which is one of the key hardware to realize the functions of Telematics and autonomous driving.

2.The relationship between autonomous driving and V2X

Autonomous driving technology cannot be realized without V2X communication because it provides additional environment-aware information. For example, autonomous driving systems sense their surroundings through on-board sensors (e.g., radar, cameras), but these devices have a limited field of view. With V2X, vehicles can receive information about traffic signals, changes in road conditions, pedestrians, etc. from a distance in advance, thus providing more comprehensive decision support for the autonomous driving system.

3.Autopilot level and ECU

Autonomous driving technology is categorized into different levels (L1 to L5), each with a different level of automation:

L1-L3: These levels are “Advanced Driver Assistance Systems” (ADAS), which are assisted driving rather than fully automated; L1 and L2 mainly free up the hands and feet, while L3 allows the vehicle to be fully automated under certain conditions, with the driver still needing to remain attentive.

L4: Humans play a mainly supportive role in L4, where the vehicle is able to drive fully autonomously in most environments, but the driver still needs to take over in certain special situations.

L5: Completely driverless, the vehicle is able to drive autonomously in any environment without the need for driver intervention.

With the development of autonomous driving technology, more ECUs will be integrated into the vehicle, such as higher-performance vehicle chips and sensor processing units (e.g., high-performance computing chips, GPUs, NPUs, etc.) to process data from different sensors, as well as to support V2X communication and intelligent decision-making.

4.Safety and Security

The wide application of Telematics makes security a key issue. Communication modules in Telematics, such as TBOX, V2X, and car center control, are exposed to external networks and therefore require strict security measures. Example:

Two-way authentication: Ensures that communication between the device and the server is secure against malicious attacks.

Encryption technology: Encrypts data transmission inside and outside the vehicle to prevent information leakage.

Access control and access control: Restrict access to untrustworthy devices and ensure that only authorized devices can connect to the vehicle network.

Real-time monitoring and protection: Vehicle networks need to be monitored in real-time to detect and stop any abnormal behavior in a timely manner.

5.Smart Cockpit and Car Chip

With the advancement of automotive intelligence, the vehicle center control is not just an entertainment system, but also becomes the core of the intelligent cabin, responsible for information interaction, vehicle control and integration of intelligent services. In order to support stronger computing power and multiple functions, Vehicle Center Control needs to rely on powerful hardware platforms, especially high-performance automotive-grade chips.

Mainstream car chips such as Qualcomm’s 8155 and Huawei’s Kirin 990A support complex multimedia decoding, advanced driver assistance (ADAS), and the computing power required for autonomous driving.

Domestic alternative to the general trend, there are now some domestic car chips, such as Kaiyang Electronics (630HV100, ARK1668), Black Sesame (Huashan II A1000), Corechip, Core擎, Jiefa Technology (AC80151, AC8025E: 3D LCD instrumentation + IVI center + passenger screen + air conditioning screen), Quanzhi Technology and so on.

In the future, the center control car chip will be the most core intelligent realization hardware for automatic driving, the size of the arithmetic power and the support of the upper software directly affects the realization of automatic driving and intelligent cockpit functions, so some arithmetic chip companies are also making efforts, such as Nvidia Orin, Horizon’s Journey 3 and Journey 5, etc., from 4 cores to 6 cores and 8 cores, and from the CPU to the GPU and the NPU, the main battlefield can be said to be the same as that of the mobile phone main control processor. as the main processor of the cell phone back then.

Overall, Telematics is a complex system that requires the collaborative work of multiple ECU modules, and modules such as Vehicle Central Control, Gateway, OBU, TBOX, V2X, etc. are the key components for realizing Telematics functions.

With the continuous progress of technology, these modules will become more and more powerful, providing support for the wide application of autonomous driving, intelligent transportation systems and Telematics.