Gone in sixty seconds: extracting M2M vehicle data
Manufacturers, dealers, insurers, and service providers can use M2M to drive down operating costs, comply with new regulation, improve the user experience, and generate revenue streams in new and compelling ways.
Service providers and OEMs are taking on the challenge that results in extracting the most relevant data from a complex moving environment like a vehicle. Modern cars are becoming increasingly computerised. Since the introduction of anti-lock braking systems (ABS) and electronically regulated fuel injection in the 1980s more and more sophisticated electronic devices have emerged. In order to satisfy evolving consumer demands and create differentiation, car manufacturers have to move into areas away from their core competency of making cars and bring in expertise from other industries such as telecommunications.
A typical car now contains complex electronic systems designed to control emissions and fuel-economy standards, provide advanced diagnostics as well as other features such as parking aids, climate control and navigation functions. The increased use of electronics is only set to continue as the presence of hybrid and electric vehicles, as well as more advanced infotainment systems, become more commonplace.
As a result of the proliferation of in-vehicle electronics, cars now also produce masses of data. Every second a car is on the road, computers inside the vehicle collect information on speed, distance, engine performance and other variables. Until recently, this data did not typically leave the vehicle and was used for the most part to support in-car information services, such as fuel measurement and diagnostic warning systems. The only time it was extracted and analysed was when it was in the garage for a service.
The age of machine-to-machine
With the rise in use of M2M technology, vehicle OEMs are now looking into how this valuable data can be gathered in real-time and used to provide additional services such as usage-based insurance, remote diagnostics and more accurate traffic services. The car has now become part of a wider ecosystem that includes software makers, mobile networks and M2M specialists. Working out how to extract data from the car is an engineering challenge that companies like Vodafone are taking on in partnership with OEMs and tier one manufacturers. Vodafone is a M2M service provider and complete end-to-end machine-to-machine (M2M) integrator. That means we can send the data from the car via a secure mobile connection to back-end servers where it can then be interpreted and used to deliver more services.
This process of creating a two way link between the car and back-end systems is a real challenge for engineers for a number of reasons. Firstly and most importantly, it’s a new development; engineers are breaking ground with every M2M integration project. A vehicle is a complex environment to work in and every model of vehicle is different. At present there is no standard platform for the extraction of data via M2M in a vehicle, so an individual solution must be engineered for each deployment. This involves the M2M integrator working closely with the OEM or tier one suppliers throughout the entire manufacturing and development process of the car – which can take anything up to three years – to integrate mobile connectivity.
Setting parameters
To begin the process, it is important to first work out what needs to be measured, and how often. The aim will be to send the data in the most economical way possible, so the initial challenge lies in working out what that transmission model will look like. The parameters will depend on what function the data is being used for.
In the case of traffic information services, the back-end servers that process the data need to receive information from the car approximately every two minutes in order for it to be valuable. A longer delay and accuracy begins to suffer.
This is not the case with other services such as usage-based insurance where insurance companies have customers’ permission to track their driving habits in order to enhance the accuracy and value of the vehicle score. In this instance the data is likely more to be transmitted in summary at the end of each day or at the end of each driving session. The manufacturer and service provider will work together to come up with the best solution.
Method of measurement
The way data is actually taken from the car varies across the industry. Some integrators choose to fit an additional device inside the vehicle that will take measurements using its own sensors, working independently of the vehicle. While this kind of solution can provide value it lacks the direct link to the vehicles’ own measuring systems, meaning discrepancies and inaccuracies are more likely to occur.
The preferred method is to link directly in with the CAN bus (controller area network) of the vehicle. A modern car may have as many as 70 or more electronic control units (ECU) for various subsystems, which will communicate with each other via the CAN bus. By tapping into this environment engineers are able to identify and extract data directly from the car’s internal systems. This is advantageous because the data received will be highly accurate and reliable. For example information on distance travelled, which can be useful to insurers, will be taken directly from the odometer.
Another advantage of taking data directly from the on-board systems is that the information provided by the CAN bus on European cars is subject to EOBD (European On Board Diagnostics) regulations. This means that the signals given out by the car to indicate a fault – the Diagnostic Trouble Codes – are a standardised five character format that can be interpreted by the service provider to provide remote diagnostics.
Deploying M2M services in a car is a difficult process and is outside of the core area of expertise for many car manufacturers. But by bringing together experts from the world of automotive, mobile and computing, the engineering challenges inherent in introducing M2M to the car are being overcome and helping to enable the next generation of connected automotive services. These relationships will only get stronger as connected services become increasingly popular and car manufacturers turn to other industries for the expertise to truly leverage the opportunity automotive data provides.
About the author
David Levine is Head of Automotive solutions at Vodafone – www.vodafone.co
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