35年前,影迷們?cè)陔娪啊度A爾街》中看到Michael Douglas站在海灘上,耳朵上戴著一塊看起來(lái)像磚頭的東西。1987年,無(wú)線移動(dòng)通信主要局限于富裕階級(jí),這類設(shè)備就和Douglas的手機(jī)一樣,又大又笨重,但僅提供語(yǔ)音服務(wù)。
快進(jìn)到2022年,人們攜帶多臺(tái)具有能夠持續(xù)提供高速數(shù)據(jù)連接的設(shè)備已經(jīng)非常普遍,包括智能手機(jī)、平板電腦和智能手表等?,F(xiàn)在,大多數(shù)新車出廠時(shí)便自帶網(wǎng)聯(lián)功能。然而,與消費(fèi)類電子產(chǎn)品往往每隔幾年更換一次不同,汽車通??梢允褂?0年或更長(zhǎng)時(shí)間——這可能會(huì)給其連接性能帶來(lái)一定挑戰(zhàn)。
Douglas當(dāng)時(shí)給他年輕門徒們打電話的模擬蜂窩網(wǎng)絡(luò)早已關(guān)閉,2G網(wǎng)絡(luò)也關(guān)閉了。運(yùn)營(yíng)商現(xiàn)在甚至已經(jīng)開始關(guān)閉3G網(wǎng)絡(luò),以重耕無(wú)線電頻譜,擴(kuò)大5G覆蓋范圍。當(dāng)模擬網(wǎng)絡(luò)在2007年關(guān)閉時(shí),通用汽車公司沒有為早期使用OnStar遠(yuǎn)程通信的客戶提供升級(jí)路徑。幾年后,當(dāng)2G開始衰落時(shí),日產(chǎn)為第一代Leaf電動(dòng)車的車主提供了升級(jí)服務(wù)。當(dāng)時(shí),受影響的客戶數(shù)量很小,以至于大多數(shù)OEM都認(rèn)為進(jìn)行升級(jí)在經(jīng)濟(jì)上是不可行的。
隨著網(wǎng)聯(lián)汽車的數(shù)量穩(wěn)步增加,現(xiàn)在情況已經(jīng)大不相同了,越來(lái)越多的用戶已經(jīng)開始訂閱使用遠(yuǎn)程通信服務(wù)。插電式車輛數(shù)量的不斷增加使得互聯(lián)通信比過去更加重要;這對(duì)于管理、監(jiān)控電池充電和預(yù)處理至關(guān)重要。所以,這一次大多數(shù)汽車制造商已經(jīng)為大批量的車型開發(fā)了升級(jí)方案。
例如,斯巴魯和特斯拉正在為其品牌車輛進(jìn)行4G LTE無(wú)線通信模塊的升級(jí)。奧迪等部分公司,已經(jīng)與Mojio等公司合作開發(fā)了一個(gè)系統(tǒng),該系統(tǒng)通過車載診斷(OBD)端口連接,并與車載軟件集成以維護(hù)先前提供的服務(wù)。但是通常情況下,這些升級(jí)需要花費(fèi)消費(fèi)者數(shù)百美元,這些導(dǎo)致用戶對(duì)這一功能升級(jí)的積極性并不是很高。
許多OEM寄希望于通過提供網(wǎng)聯(lián)服務(wù),提出了未來(lái)十年將收入翻一番的目標(biāo)。因此,為了確保車輛在其使用全生命周期內(nèi),或者大部分時(shí)間內(nèi)都能保持其互聯(lián)通信功能的可用性,比以往任何時(shí)候都要重要。OTA軟件升級(jí)是網(wǎng)聯(lián)化的另一個(gè)關(guān)鍵驅(qū)動(dòng)因素,使車輛能夠?qū)崿F(xiàn)啟用新功能,并進(jìn)行安全修復(fù)。在中國(guó)的許多車輛已經(jīng)配備了5G網(wǎng)絡(luò)功能,在接下來(lái)的幾個(gè)月里,新的寶馬iX將是第一個(gè)在北美配備5G連接的車型,奧迪最近宣布將在2024年的車輛上推出5G。
隨著3G通信技術(shù)的過時(shí),對(duì)于OEM來(lái)說(shuō),他們已經(jīng)不能再使用過去傳統(tǒng)的升級(jí)模式。不幸的是,能應(yīng)于車輛通信的軟件無(wú)線電(Software-defined Radio)還沒有達(dá)到成熟的水平,這意味著在汽車的全生命周期內(nèi)必須要更換一次硬件。我們才剛剛用上5G網(wǎng)絡(luò),但工程師們已經(jīng)在著手開發(fā)6G了。設(shè)計(jì)一輛可以簡(jiǎn)單替換數(shù)據(jù)調(diào)制解調(diào)器的汽車應(yīng)該是每個(gè)工程師團(tuán)隊(duì)未來(lái)的首要任務(wù)。
It’s been 35 years since moviegoers saw Michael Douglas standing on a beach, holding what looked like a brick to his ear, in the film Wall Street. In 1987, wireless mobile communication was mostly limited to affluent customers. The hardware, like Douglas’s phone, was large and clunky. Service was limited to voice mode.
Fast-forward to 2022 and it’s not uncommon for people to carry multiple devices with continuous high-speed data connectivity, including a smartphone, tablet and watch. And most new vehicles now come from the factory with connectivity. However, unlike consumer electronics that tend to be replaced every few years, vehicles can often last two decades or more – and that can pose a problem for connectivity.
The analog cellular network that enabled Douglas to call his young protege has long since been shut down, as have the 2G digital networks. Carriers now have started switching off 3G to repurpose the radio spectrum to expand 5G coverage. When the analog network was turned off in 2007, General Motors had no upgrade path available for customers with early OnStar telematics. Several years later, when 2G started to fade, Nissan offered upgrades to owners of first-generation Leaf EVs. At the time, the number of affected customers was small enough that most OEMs didn’t find it economically viable to engineer an upgrade.
With the number of connected vehicles increasing steadily and more customers now actually subscribing to telematics services, the situation now is quite different. The growing number of plug-in vehicles makes connectivity even more important than in the past; it’s critical for managing and monitoring battery charging and preconditioning. Most automakers this time have developed upgrade solutions for at least higher-volume models.
For example, Subaru and Tesla are replacing communication modules in their vehicles with those that have a 4G LTE radio. Others, such as Audi, have partnered with companies like Mojio for a system that connects via the onboard diagnostics (OBD) port and integrates with the in-vehicle software to maintain the services previously provided. In most cases, these upgrades are costing customers several hundred dollars – and many are likely to think twice before committing.
With many OEMs aiming to double revenues in the next decade, mostly thanks to connected services, it’s more important than ever to ensure a vehicle can retain its connectivity for most, if not all, of its useful life. Over-the-air (OTA) software updates are another key driver for connectivity to enable both new features and security fixes. Numerous vehicles in China already are equipped with 5G connectivity. In the next few months, the new BMW iX will be the first to have it in North America. And Audi recently announcing it will launch 5G on 2024 model year vehicles.
With three generations of wireless communications technology now obsolete, it’s past time for OEMS to make sure they design in an easy upgrade path. Unfortunately, software-defined radios haven’t yet reached a level of maturity to make them viable for vehicle connectivity. That means hardware will need to be changed, probably at least once in a vehicle’s life. 5G is just arriving, but engineers are well along in development of 6G. Designing vehicles for an easy data-modem swap should be a top priority for every vehicle engineering team going forward.