Category Archives: engineering

Breathing? Toyota Connected Cabin Awareness Uses 4D Radar

It has the capability to sense micro movements, defined as a heartbeat, motion and respiration of occupants across three full seating rows, the cargo area and footwells. It also classifies all occupants according to size, posture and position – supporting advanced safety applications. Continue reading

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Driverless Cars – People Less Positive Than You Might Assume

If you’re like most auto enthusiasts, likely you are comfortable with the progress of technology from manual chokes to feed-back carburetors to port and then direct fuel-injection. When looked at through the windshield of a sports car, electronic shifting and … Continue reading

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Computer Bugs – Ford Launches New Certified Glass Network

Ford has apparently discovered the latest bugs in computerized vehicles. They are not the ones that smear your windshield. Continue reading

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First Look – Ferrari 296 GTS V6 Hybrid

It’s roughly a ~$400,000 version of an open wheel formula racer with a spider wrapping with a 2.9 second zero-to-100km/h elapsed time. Continue reading

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IonQ, Hyundai Motor to Explore Quantum Computing for AVs

IonQ and Hyundai will look to for more efficient machine learning on quantum computers, as they can process enormous amounts of data faster and more accurately than classical systems. “Using a breakthrough in encoding images into quantum states, IonQ is already well underway in classifying 43 types of road signs using IonQ’s quantum processors,” the company claimed. The next phase will see the two companies apply IonQ’s machine learning data to Hyundai’s test environment and simulate various real-world scenarios. Continue reading

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Software – Automakers Out of Touch with Drivers and Safety

“Having a giant touchscreen interface is really about saving hardware costs by implementing everything in software,” says Blackie. “Recently, though, there’s been growing disquiet as years of ergonomic study and usability experience are abandoned in the rush to cram everything onto a single screen.” Continue reading

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Uwe Pichler-Necek Next MD of Porsche Engineering China

The move in the totalitarian state comes as German automakers are scrambling to adopt to the disruptions caused by Russian totalitarian Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine rages on slaughtering civilians. German automakers are bearing the direct brunt of this war and scrambling to adjust to production and supply disruptions. Continue reading

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Volkswagen, Ford Expand Cooperation on MEB EV Platform

The first Ford model to use the MEB will be an all-electric crossover. It is expected to roll off the assembly line at the Ford Electrification Center in Cologne from 2023. Ford  – lagging in EVs – had originally planned just one model based on MEB with a total volume of around 600,000 units. The company has not yet released any details about the second planned model. Continue reading

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Cruise CEO – It Will Be Hard to Sell a Car That Isn’t Self-Driving

The challenges are the cost of the technology that works and customer satisfaction – make the riders happy. Cruise is 6 weeks into dozens of driverless vehicles on the roads. The technology is scalable from two cities, to three, to 20 to… exponential growth. Hence the capital market interests. Continue reading

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State of Our Union and the Auto Industry

The auto industry’s economic impact reaches all 50 states, sustaining 10 million American jobs and more than $650 billion in paychecks. The Biden Administration – in the face of Republican opposition and treasonous praise for Putin’s war against Ukraine – has proposed a forward-looking plan that will help the auto industry continue to provide economic growth via a cleaner, safer and smarter automotive future. We need to control our destiny here. This is clear. We need to rid ourselves of alleged leaders who mock our alliances, favor rich despots and are long on talk, but weak on foreign policy and even weaker on our defense. Continue reading

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Ford Motor Structure Threatens Viability. Vast Reorg Coming

Ford Motor Structure Threatens Viability. Vast Reorg Coming Continue reading

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Audi of America, Verizon to bring 5G to Vehicle Line

Verizon is also linking with all three major cloud providers for mobile edge compute services, which can be used to develop innovative safety and autonomous driving features. Mobile edge computing with 5G connectivity provides the low latency needed for urgent C-V2X communications, such as the ability for vehicles to communicate with other vehicles, connected infrastructure, and devices in the environment around them in near real-time. Continue reading

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GM Lockport Components Plant to Build EV Stators

EV production – particularly final assembly is a huge concern for unions globally. “It’s pretty easy to build an EV since there are fewer components, and there are no EPA requirements or fluids,” Joe McCabe the CEO of AutoForecast Solutions told AutoInformed at a meeting of the International Motor Press Association earlier this week. Robots or non-skilled labor can do most of the work. Continue reading

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BMW – Digital Art Coming in Cars During 2022?

These new modes in BMW geek speak ,filtered through marketing babble: “Their unique moments enhance BMW’s driving experience by creating a synergy of the vehicle’s functions and its interior design. Depending on the driving situation and the overall mood, a holistic user experience featuring both a functional and an emotional level can be created at the touch of a button or via voice control. To that end, drive control and steering control, mood lighting and sound as well as the color scheme and graphics of the BMW Curved Display are precisely synchronized.” Continue reading

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GM, Qualcomm Enabling Hands-Free Driving in 2023

In Silicon Valley geek speak: “The Ultra Cruise compute is comprised of two Snapdragon SA8540P SoCs and one SA9000P AI accelerator to deliver key low-latency control functions on 16-core CPUs and high-performance AI compute of more than 300 Tera Operations Per Second for camera, radar and lidar processing. The Snapdragon SoCs are designed with 5nm process technology, enabling superior performance and power efficiency. The Snapdragon SA8540P SoCs will provide the necessary bandwidth for Ultra Cruise’s sensing, perception, planning, localization, mapping and driver monitoring.” Continue reading

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