Snapdragon Automotive Solutions: connected car platforms for all types of vehicle communications

Roadways around the world are facing increased congestion, without the ability to continue to expand, as a result, traffic and emissions are major concerns. Even if you don’t drive—even if you have absolutely no plan ever to own a car—chances are you interact with automobiles on a daily basis. The fact is that cars have a huge impact on modern life, and the same with commercial vehicles. It follows, then, that large-scale changes to the automotive industry would lead to large-scale changes in our everyday lives, hopefully returning precious time and money back to us.

That may sound like a lot of hype, but consider how drastically the world changed with the introduction of the smartphone. In fact, the switch from feature phones to smartphones is an apt analogy for the changes now facing the automotive industry. Snapdragon Automotive Solutions draws on the insights gleaned from our mobile technology leadership and applies them to the connected car.

What that means in the short term is support for advanced telematics features that not only support traditional diagnostics and notifications, but also enable new applications for more efficient and safer driving. In case you’re not familiar with the term “telematics,” it is a combination of the words “telecommunications” and “informatics.” In automotive terms, it refers to any system that collects, processes, and transmits data: GPS systems, remote vehicle diagnostics, and automatic crash notifications, for example. Most important, through the seamless combination of Wi-Fi, DSRC, and LTE, we’re setting the stage for the next generation of connected cars by delivering a superior in-car connected car platform for all types of vehicle communications.

With V2X—the umbrella term for V2V, V2I, V2P, and V2C—communications, vehicles share information with each other and their surroundings to make driving safer and more efficient:

V2V (Vehicle-to-Vehicle): Communication technologies like DSRC support safety systems with non-line-of-sight and latency-sensitive collision avoidance capabilities that benefits drivers, passengers, and everyone who shares the road.

• Collision avoidance safety systems
• Support for autonomous driving

V2I (Vehicle-to-Infrastructure): Connected car-to-infrastructure communications offer a variety of applications, including safety, on-the-road information, and interactivity.

• Road related information/warnings (signage)
• Traffic signal phase timing (red/green phases for emissions control and reduced congestion)

V2P (Vehicle-to-Pedestrian): Both drivers and pedestrians can receive warnings to prevent anticipated projected collisions. Pedestrians receive alerts via smartphone applications or through connected wearable devices.

• Pedestrians
• Motorcyclists
• Bicyclists

V2C (Vehicle-to-Cloud): For cloud-based security, information, entertainment, and connected car services that make driving both more efficient and enjoyable.

• Firmware updates
• Security authentication
• Parking spot finder
• Real-time traffic and routing
• Reservations, reviews and connected car services

Throughout the coming years and into the next decade, we can expect to see more and more connected capabilities supporting safety features and semi-autonomous systems in vehicles. Eventually, our cars may even be completely self-driving. The benefits to having autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles—safer roads, greater fuel efficiency, city-wide traffic management, and reduced emissions—will be transformative, and advanced connectivity is a vital component of that reality.

Be sure to visit the Snapdragon Automotive Solutions website to learn more about how Qualcomm Technologies is driving the future of connected vehicles.