Airbiquity launches Green Vehicle solutions for the global electric market

Airbiquity announced the general availability of its Green Vehicle solutions in Europe starting in January. The solutions are intended for automobile manufacturers and range from eco-routing to emission reporting to monitors for energy consumption and battery performance. From a deployment standpoint, the solutions are intended to integrate seamlessly with the automaker’s back office, offering a scalable and flexible platform.

“Our discussions with global automobile manufacturers demonstrate an immediate need for green vehicle solutions,” said David Jumpa, senior vice president of global business development at Airbiquity. The company partnered with Hitachi Automotive Systems this April to provide telematics services for electric vehicles globally. With Green Vehicle solutions, Airbiquity becomes the first company to implement vehicle-to-network solutions exclusively aimed at the electric vehicle market on a global basis. Airbiquity also announced a joint partnership with Robert Bosch Car Multimedia to deliver in-car multimedia systems for global customers. The two plan to provide connected vehicle services in 17 countries throughout North America, Europe, and Russia.

NXP kicks off eCall field trial

NXP Semiconductors launched a pan-European field trial of the eCall emergency system. The trial starts with three cars, one in Madrid, one in Athens, and one in Helsinki. Within two weeks, the three cars will drive to Brussels. Each of the vehicles is equipped with a small onboard telematics unit based on NXP technology. During the 10,000-kilometer journey, the telematics unit will send out test emergency calls at regular intervals, which will be analyzed by servers from IBM and will be sent to Allianz OrtungsServices and a BMW call center. The trial intends to show that eCall is not dependent on the present standards used, that it functions reliably across all European borders, and that the telematics solution is compatible with given EU eCall standards.

HARMAN into India

HARMAN unveiled the first integrated navigation and infotainment systems with detailed Indian road maps. MapmyIndia, India’s leading provider of premium digital maps, navigation, and location-based services, will supply the map data. The data will include highly detailed street-level maps for some 900 Indian cities and more than one million kilometers of highways and road network. The maps will also highlight some three million points of interest, such as hotels, restaurants, ATMs, and petrol pumps. Map content will be updated every six months. The first vehicles to feature the Indian navigation content, from luxury German automaker BMW, will be delivered in India by the end of 2010. Aftermarket upgrades to incorporate the Indian map solution in existing vehicles equipped with HARMAN infotainment systems are also planned.

Telmap into Australia

Telmap partnered with Optus to create Optus Navigator, a special edition of Telmap Navigator for the Australian market. Optus Navigator is a real-time navigation app that offers live traffic and smart routing for all mobile platforms. It’s now available free of charge to Optus OB subscribers and for a monthly fee for consumer subscribers. In addition to providing real-time mapping and navigation and real-time traffic updates, Optus Navigator subscribers will have up-to-date access to points of interest from Lonely Planet. The live traffic updates will be provided by Optus’ own live traffic service, which uses the Optus network of 8 million customers to deliver real-time traffic data across Australia.

DriveGain broadens iPhone app

DriveGain launched version 1.1 of its DriveGain iPhone application to include automatic cars in its fuel saving solution. The app gives users visual and audio feedback on changes they can make to their driving styles to help save fuel. Saving fuel not only saves users money, it also reduces the amount of CO2 they emit and allows them to travel further before needing to refuel. DriveGain research shows that by making changes to driving behavior, average fuel economy can be improved by 15 percent. “Given the vast majority of cars in the US and Asia are automatics, many more people can now use our fuel saving iPhone application,” said Simon East, CEO of DriveGain.

GM and 4G

General Motors will harness Verizon’s 4G wireless network to improve the way it road tests its vehicles. Verizon plans to roll out its 4G network across the US in the coming month. The service will be roughly 10 times the speed of current 3G networks, allowing GM engineers to upload and download data wirelessly in real time on the road. That will make road tests more accurate and efficient and will result in faster vehicle design cycles. GM also hinted that 4G could perhaps change the way it delivers OnStar to customers. Integrating 4G into the dashboard would enable more entertainment options and more robust diagnostics. The company made no mention of when they might begin the latter endeavor.

MTA SpA and QNX

MTA SpA selected the QNX Neutrino Realtime Operating System as the software platform for its next-generation in-car infotainment systems. Headquartered in Milan, MTA is an international supplier of electronic and electromechanical components for Ferrari, Fiat, GM, Lamborghini, Lotus, Maserati, PSA Peugeot Citröen, Saab, Volkswagen, and other automotive and motorcycle manufacturers. The new QNX systems will include digital instrument clusters and multimedia consoles for high-performance automobiles. The first production models are scheduled for deployment in early 2011. “Our customers are building some of the world’s most exciting and technologically advanced automobiles, and we needed an operating system that could deliver the reliability, real-time performance, and extremely fast startup times these vehicles demand,” said Antonio Falchetti, general manager, MTA.