M2M Marketplace Weekly Brief—6.4.2012

Andrew

Andrew Tolve

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4th June 2012

In this week’s Brief: Deutsche Telekom, Telenor Connexion, State Farm Insurance, Ford, PLDS, RealVNC, MontaVista Software, the GENIVI Alliance, Volvo, Active Safety Test Area, Opel, and Garmin

Deutsche Telekom launched an e-commerce platform for manufacturers and dealers to offer their hardware, software, apps and full-package solutions relating to M2M communication.

For vendors, the M2M Marketplace will act as a global distribution channel for their M2M products in addition to their own sales channels. Interested customers can peruse offers online, compare different solutions on an international scale, and make purchases in a secure, convenient fashion.

"The Marketplace brings together global supply and demand for M2M solutions in a straightforward way, thereby lending greater dynamism to M2M business," says Thomas Kiessling, chief product and innovation officer Deutsche Telekom.

Telenor Connexion unveiled the M2M Dashboard, a mobile app for instant management of connected devices.

With the app, Android customers can access data usage, alarms, and subscription details anytime anywhere.

M2M Dashboard functionality includes total GPRS and SMS usage, average GPRS and SMS usage per subscriber, and overview and details on trigger alarms.

State Farm Insurance and Ford partnered up to expand State Farm’s insurance telematics program. Moving forward, State Farm customers with select SYNC-equipped Ford vehicles will be able to reduce their auto insurance premiums by using the Vehicle Health Report feature to report their mileage.

The magnitude of the savings will be determined by the number of miles they drive. Those choosing to enroll in the program will initially save about 5 percent on their auto insurance coverage.

PLDS partnered up with RealVNC to integrate seamless mobile connectivity into PLDS’s Smartphone Integration Solution. The in-car system is aimed at major Tier 1 automotive suppliers.

VNC Automotive technology enables automatic detection, access, and control of virtually any mobile device from a vehicle’s touch-screen or fixed input devices such as steering wheel switches and head unit buttons and menus.

PLDS will demo the solution at this week’s Telematics Detroit event in Novi, Michigan.

MontaVista Software released the second iteration of its MontaVista Automotive Technology Platform. ATP 2.0 enables automotive manufacturers and tier?1 suppliers to build powerful in?vehicle infotainment systems while accelerating time?to?market and lowering development costs of innovative new features.

Key components include comprehensive networking and internet support, multimedia capabilities for audio and video requirements, and integration for consumer devices via Bluetooth or APIs. The GENIVI Alliance declared the platform compliant to the new GENIVI Specification version 2.0.

Volvo plans to open a new test facility for active car safety. The facility will be built beside Volvo Car Corporation's existing proving ground at Hällered in western Sweden and operated by the company Active Safety Test Area (ASTA).

Operating under the AstaZero brand name, ASTA will run the test facility with the aim of developing the intelligent safety and driver support systems of tomorrow. 

Opel launched the OPC PowerApp, which makes preselected vehicle data available directly on a driver’s iPhone. The performance-based data comes from the CAN bus, the central system that unifies and connects all the electronic control units in the vehicle.

Previously only highly specialized workshops were able to access this information using specialist software. Apple smartphone users can now download the app for 0.79 Euro.

Garmin introduced a multi-sensor controller concept for infotainment systems to reduce driver distraction. The concept positions the screen higher up on the dash in the driver’s eyesight and combines it with a rotary infrared controller in convenient reach, a touch pad, and menu mode buttons.

The infrared sensors of the rotary controller automatically detect an approaching hand and the system reacts by displaying menu options even before it is touched. Because the system knows when a user is reaching for the controller, menu buttons on the screen are hidden when not needed.

No word yet on when this concept may become a reality; Garmin’s first fully integrated infotainment system will debut in most 2013 Suzuki vehicles.