QNX rules at CES

QNX technology showcased in systems from Audi, BMW, iControl, Freescale, ng Connect, Nvidia, RIM, Telenav, Texas Instruments, Toyota, and Visteon

March up to the South Hall of the 2011 CES conference, and this is what you see:


Photo: Andy Gryc

Yup, that's right, it's a ginormous banner of the QNX-powered BlackBerry Playbook. The banner sets the tone for a conference where it's hard to stop bumping into QNX-based systems. They're just about everywhere, including:

RIM and QNX booths (south hall, 30320): BlackBerry Playbook, BMW Z4 infotainment system, and Visteon instrument clusters for Jaguar XJ and Range Rover — all powered by QNX technology

Audi booth (north hall, 2832): Audi A8 with QNX-based 3G MMI infotainment system, featuring Google Earth

Toyota booth (south hall, MP25555): New QNX-based Toyota Entune multimedia system

Alcatel-Lucent booth (south hall, 35469): LTE Connected Car with four QNX-based infotainment systems

iControl Networks (Aria Hotel and Casino): iControl broadband home management system with QNX-powered touch screen

TeleNav (Renaissance Hotel, Five Spot room): TeleNav 3D navigation system integrated with the QNX CAR Application Platform

Freescale (Palazzo #100-106): QNX demo on new Freescale i.MX53 SABRE automotive reference design

Nvidia booth (31431): QNX demo on Nvidia system

Texas Instruments (Hilton and booth 36505) — QNX demos on BeagleBoard-xM and OMAP 3730 systems

Mind you, this isn't a complete list. I'm still tracking down other booths that might feature QNX technology. If you know of any, let me know, and I'll add them to the list.

For details on some of these demos, check out the CES overview page and the CES press release on the QNX website.
 

Toyota gets "Entune" with QNX

This just in: QNX has announced that its QNX CAR Application Platform has been chosen as the software foundation for the new Toyota Entune multimedia system.

According to the press release, "Toyota Entune leverages the customer’s mobile phone... to create a rich in-vehicle experience that delivers integrated navigation, entertainment, and information services. The system also provides conversational voice recognition and in-vehicle controls that allow the customer to take advantage of these services without having to touch their mobile phone."

QNX Software Systems is a pioneer in smartphone integration for the car (see earlier posts), so I'm not surprised that Toyota chose the QNX platform for the new Entune system. In fact, I broke the story about Toyota's plans to use QNX-based infotainment systems back in 2009. The experience of working with those systems no doubt swayed Toyota's decision, as did QNX's pioneering work for the first LTE Connected Car, (see posts here and here), a specially modified Toyota Prius.

Stay tuned for photos and additional information on the Entune system.
 

My connected car word cloud is getting around

Last December, I generated a word cloud to celebrate the unveiling of the LTE Connected Car, a joint venture of Alcatel-Lucent, QNX Software Systems, Atlantic Records, Toyota Motor Sales, and ng Connect. Here's what the cloud looked like:


Click to magnify.

I did this just for fun, but thought the result was pretty cool — and it seems that someone at BMW agrees.

I discovered the BMW connection yesterday, when my colleague Andy Gryc showed me a photo he took at a recent automotive conference in Germany. I don't want to spoil the story, so check out Andy's latest blog post, which provides the full skinny.

 

Meet AJ, the car that tweets

I've posted a number of articles on the LTE Connected Car, which helps automakers, service providers, and content developers explore what happens when cars connect to the cloud over wideband wireless networks.

But here's the thing: people often assume that a cloud-connected car is simply about pushing more social media, more music, more video, more games, and, in short, more entertainment into the vehicle. Nested within that assumption is another assumption: that cloud-connected cars will lead to more driver distraction.

I'm not convinced. First, automakers aren't about to create cars that let you post Facebook updates or upload YouTube videos while driving. And even if they were tempted to do so, their teams of lawyers would advise otherwise. And if their lawyers failed, teams of government regulators (and lawyers) would step in. In short, mobile broadband technology will deliver more "infotainment" into the automobile, but drivers won't have unfettered access to this content while rocketing down the turnpike at 80 mph.

Second, cloud connectivity can actually help reduce distraction. For instance,
today's voice recognition system are relatively primitive, using grammars and speech models limited by the car's onboard processing and storage. But once you add a wideband wireless connection, the car’s infotainment unit can use a sophisticated server-based voice recognition system that lets the driver use natural language. In fact, a remote server can provide a variety of helpful features — such as realtime traffic reports integrated into navigation services — that are difficult or impossible to implement using only on-board resources.

"People forget that, when you have an Internet connection, data can travel in both directions..."

Third, people forget that, when you have an Internet connection, data can travel in both directions. Case in point: "AJ", the 2011 Ford Fiesta that can automatically post tweets on its own Twitter account. If you read the New York Times article on AJ, you may feel that a Twittering car is a solution in search of a problem. And you'd be right. But AJ is just the beginning — or, more correctly, a platform for exploring what happens when cars become mobile Internet terminals.

Imagine, if you will, a critical mass of vehicles acting as floating traffic probes, anonymously uploading real-time information about traffic and road conditions, such as whether a stretch of road is icy. And then imagine nearby vehicles accessing this aggregated data and warning their drivers to slow down accordingly.

Personally, I'd be happy if my car distracted me long enough to say, "Paul, buddy, ease up on the accelerator, or you'll wipe out." What about you?
 

QNX drives home with FTF Best in Show award

This just in: QNX has won a Freescale Technology Forum (FTF) Best of Show award for the LTE Connected Car, a concept vehicle that showcases how 4G mobile broadband networks will make the automobile a first-class citizen of the cloud.

The car contains a wealth of QNX technology, including the operating system, touchscreen user interfaces, media players for YouTube and Pandora, navigation system, multimedia playback, handsfree integration, and a virtual mechanic. All components are based on the QNX CAR application platform.

QNX and Alcatel-Lucent built the car for the ng Connect program.

UPDATE: Here's a short clip of QNX's Romain Saha riffing on how QNX and its ecosystem partners are helping to make 4G-enabled cars a reality:



 

QNX nabs two finalist spots at Telematics Detroit awards

This just in: QNX Software Systems has been shortlisted for two 2010 Telematics Detroit awards. The QNX CAR application platform is up for a Best Telematics Component award, and the LTE Connected Car, a joint project of QNX and Alcatel-Lucent, is up for an Industry Newcomer award.

Two other systems based on the QNX Neutrino RTOS have also made it into the finalist ring. The Audi A8 MMI system with Google Earth is up for a Best Embedded Telematics Navigation Product award, and the OnStar system is a finalist in no less than three categories.

Finalists and winners for the Telematics Detroit awards are chosen by an independent panel of industry experts from the automotive, mobile, and web industries.

Videos: RCS Wireless takes LTE Connected Car for a stationary spin

If you don't already know, the LTE Connected Car is a concept vehicle created by QNX and Alcatel-Lucent to showcase how 4G mobile networks will transform the driving experience. This week, QNX is demonstrating the car at the Embedded Systems Conference, and a roving reporter from RCS Wireless caught up with QNX's Jeff Schaffer to find out what the car is all about. The reporter shot two videos, and you can view them here.

QNX and Alcatel-Lucent drive home with strategic partnership award

This just in: OCRI, Ottawa’s lead economic development agency, has announced that QNX Software Systems and Alcatel-Lucent have won the 2010 OCRI Strategic Partnership Award.

QNX and Alcatel-Lucent were chosen for their collaboration on the LTE Connected Car, a concept vehicle that showcases how 4G/Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile broadband networks will make the automobile a first-class citizen of the cloud.

QNX Software Systems provided the software foundation for the LTE Connected Car, including the operating system, touchscreen user interfaces, media players for YouTube and Pandora, navigation system, Bluetooth connectivity, multimedia playback, handsfree integration, games, and a virtual mechanic. All components are based on the QNX CAR application platform.

This isn't the first time the QNX CAR platform has come to the attention of award judges. Back in October, it won an Adobe MAX award for transforming the driving experience through innovative use of Adobe Flash technology.

For more information on the LTE Connected Car, check out my previous posts.

LTE Connected Car shortlisted for CTIA emerging technology award

“So you want to submit your wireless device to our awards program. Can we see it?”

“Well, actually, I don’t have it on me.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.”

“Not really.”

“What do you mean, not really?"

“Because I drove here in it.”

The LTE Connected Car demonstrates how a combination of QNX technology and 4G mobile networks is poised to transform the driving experience — a combination that will, in effect, redefine the “mobile” in automobile.

I’ve discussed the LTE Connected Car many times in this blog, so I won’t blabber about it today. I will say, however, that the CTIA emerging technology awards program has just shortlisted the LTE Connected Car in two award categories. In fact, you can even vote for the car should the fancy take you. (That's a hint.)

To vote for the car in the “Mobile CE - Fashion & Lifestyle Product” category, click here. To vote for it in the “Mobile Applications - Health/Public Safety/Transportation” category, click here.

In either case, simply log in with your e-mail address and click "Mark as Favorite".

QNX and Alcatel-Lucent nab finalist spot for OCRI partnership award

This just in: OCRI, Ottawa’s lead economic development agency, has announced that QNX Software Systems and Alcatel-Lucent are finalists for the 2010 OCRI Strategic Partnership Award.

QNX and Alcatel-Lucent were shortlisted for their collaboration on the LTE Connected Car, a new concept vehicle that illustrates how 4G LTE mobile broadband technology will bring a host of new capabilities to the automobile.

As mentioned in my previous posts on the LTE Connected Car, QNX Software Systems provided most of the software for the project, including the operating system, touchscreen user interfaces, media players for YouTube and Pandora, navigation system, Bluetooth connectivity, multimedia playback, handsfree integration, games, an app store, and a virtual mechanic. All components are based on the QNX CAR application platform.

Winners will be announced Thursday, April 8. Stay tuned for an update.

LTE Connected Car: Two new videos from CNET and TelecomTV

What happens when you connect a car to the Cloud using a 4G mobile network? That, in a nutshell, is what the LTE Connected Car tries to answer. QNX and Alcatel-Lucent created this concept car to demonstrate how Cloud-based services will make driving a more pleasant, more convenient, and possibly even safer experience.

Naturally, equipping a car with a 4G/LTE broadband connection will have huge infotainment value: Imagine accessing your favorite music, videos, social media sites, or applications wherever you go. But this connection will also let your car upload information it has gathered about surrounding road and traffic conditions, providing, in the words of WIRED's Van Buskirk, "a crowdsourced version of what traffic helicopters do today."

To learn more about the car, check out my previous posts or view the following videos, recently posted on YouTube. The first, from CNET, provides a guided tour of the car:



The second video, from TelecomTV, features interviews with Alcatel-Lucent's Derek Kuhn and QNX Software Systems' Sebastien Marineau-Mes:

LTE Connected Car: Remote home management, plus some celebrity buzz

In my previous post, I mentioned that, for the first time, the LTE Connected Car will demonstrate streaming delivery of video games over a 4G LTE network. As it turns out, that isn't the only new feature being introduced this week at the CES Show. Here are two more:

Remote home management — The car will demonstrate how occupants can manage home systems, such as lights and thermostats, from any of the car’s four in-vehicle touchscreens. Occupants can even view a live video feed from home security cameras. This new feature is the result of a joint effort between QNX Software Systems, Alcatel-Lucent, and Intamac, a specialist in home management and security systems.

Celebrity map — Using Celebuzz from BUZZMEDIA, the car will display local celebrity events, photos, news, and gossip, instantly populating a map based on GPS-determined locations. Just the thing for folks who want to catch celebrity events in real time. (Not a feature I would ever use, but given that I watch about two movies a year, I probably lie outside the target demographic...)

For more information on the LTE Connected Car, visit here and here.

LTE Connected Car: Streaming video hits the road

This just in: The ng Connect program has announced that, for the first time, the LTE Connected Car will demonstrate streaming delivery of video games over a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network.

The demo will take place this week at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

According to the ng Connect press release, passengers in the LTE Connected Car will be able to browse a GameStreamer-powered store, purchase a game, and then play it — all from one of the car's infotainment systems.

If you've missed my previous posts on the LTE Connected Car, it is a joint creation of QNX Software Systems and Alcatel-Lucent that showcases how 4G/LTE networks will transform the driving experience and enable a host of new in-vehicle applications. The car contains four infotainment systems, all of which were created with the QNX CAR application platform.

LTE Connected Car: The word cloud

Just for fun, I decided to create a word cloud of the LTE Connected Car press release.

In this word cloud, size indicates frequency: the larger the word, the more often it appears in the press release. Click the image to get the bigger picture:



Note the lack of self-congratulatory references: Alcatel-Lucent, QNX, and other ng Connect members figure very small in this word cloud, whereas the key concepts — car, LTE, connectivity — loom large. I like that. It shows that the companies issuing the press release were willing to focus on the topic at hand, rather than on themselves. Too many press releases do the exact opposite.

To create this word cloud, I used Wordle. It's a fun tool that lets you create a word cloud out of any web page or piece of text. It also lets you control a number of parameters, including fonts, colors, and layout. In this case, I filtered out many of the lesser-used words in the release to improve the signal-to-noise ratio and to make the cloud more visually attractive.

LTE Connected Car: The media's take

I've noticed something: Whenever I discuss the LTE Connected Car, I focus on all the cool stuff that the car can access from the Cloud. But really, that's only part of the story.

For instance, in his coverage of the LTE Connected Car, WIRED blogger Eliot Van Buskirk focuses on the information that the car can upload to the Cloud — information that other cars can then take advantage of. In effect, each car becomes a sensor, helping other cars to avoid traffic jams, alerting road crews to potholes, and providing, in Van Buskirk's words, "a crowdsourced version of what traffic helicopters do today."

So, in the interest of offering you a more complete (and less unidirectional!) discussion of this story, here is what WIRED and a number of other notable publications are saying about the LTE Connected Car:

• Scientific American — Hot Spot Hot Rod: The Internet Invades the Automobile
• Wired — Next-Gen Car Dashboard Talks to the Cloud
• Engadget — LTE Connected Car redefines the 'mobile' in mobile broadband
• John Day’s Automotive Electronic News — Alcatel-Lucent launches LTE Connected Car from QNX platform
• UnStrung — LTE: Baby, You Can Drive My Car
• GIGAOM — LTE Connected Car: Dude, Where’s My Display?
• TheStreet.com — Alcatel, Toyota Tout 'Smartphone' Car
• AutoSpies — Is THIS The Future Of Auto Tech?
• Converge! Network Digest — ng Connect Partners Develop LTE Connected Car Concept
• PCMag.com Blogs — What Do You Want in a Web-Connected Car?
• The Inquirer — Alcatel-Lucent talks up connected vehicles
• FlashMobileBlog — MAX Award winners QNX: Video
• Stuff.tv — ng Connect turns Prius into living room

For even more media coverage on the LTE Connected Car, click here.

LTE Connected Car: Zooming in on the virtual mechanic

Yesterday, I took you on a tour of some applications in the LTE Connected Car. One app that I mentioned, but didn't provide images for, is the virtual mechanic.

Before we go any further, let's get something out of the way: The virtual mechanic won't fix your car for you. You'll still need a flesh-and-bones grease monkey to do that. That said, the virtual mechanic can tell you when things are going south and help you take appropriate action — before the problem escalates.

Low oil pressure... yikes!

The virtual mechanic gets OBD-II codes from the vehicle bus to display the status of your brakes, tires, power train, electrical systems, fluids, and so on. In this case, it's telling me that the engine oil pressure is low:


Click to enlarge.

What to do? Well, I'm a Major General in the army of the mechanically challenged, so I immediately tap the fuel pump icon at the bottom of the screen to display a map of local service stations:



Alternately, I could tap on the dealership icon (Toyota, in this case) and find directions to the nearest, well, dealership:



The virtual mechanic lets you zoom in on specific systems. For instance, in the following screen, I've just asked it to show me where to add brake fluid. (You think I'd be more worried about the low washer-fluid warning, but did I mention I'm mechanically challenged?)



The virtual mechanic is a component of the QNX CAR application platform, which provides most of the software for the LTE Connected Car.

Screenshots: Putting the LTE Connected Car into focus

I posted some photos of the LTE Connected Car yesterday, but they weren't all that sharp. As a result, everyone had to squinch their eyes really hard to make out what was going on. So, for the promotion of good eye health everywhere, here are some nice, crisp screen captures of the car's user interface.

At first glance, some of these images might appear a bit soft, but if you click on 'em, you'll definitely see the bigger (and sharper) picture.

Vehicle diagnostics
First up is the main screen for accessing vehicle diagnostics. Note the Virtual Mechanic app (upper right), which gets OBD-II trouble codes from the vehicle bus and displays them in an interactive graphic. By simply tapping on the graphic, the driver can zoom in on areas of concern or find the closest dealership:


Click to enlarge.

Google local search
Next up is Google local search, which displays local points of interest (POIs) to help drivers and passengers find nearby restaurants, gas stations, movie theaters, parks, ATMs, hospitals, and so on. Note that the system would fetch these POIs from a Cloud-based database that is continually refreshed with new data, rather than from a DVD that can go quickly out of date:



Home monitoring and control
Forgot to engage the burglar alarm before you left for the cottage? Want to see if Muffy is chewing the sofa again? This home automation app is just the ticket:



Pandora Internet radio
And for those who prefer to listen to what they like, and nothing else, the car also comes with a Pandora app:



This is just a sampling of the many applications in the LTE Connected Car. For additional screenshots from the car, click here, and for screenshots of other in-car applications based on the QNX CAR application platform, click here. (As mentioned in my post yesterday, the QNX CAR platform provides the runtime environment for all of the apps in the LTE Connected Car.)

Look ma, no wires: The making of the ng Connect LTE Connected Car

Hey, have you ever watched any of those "making of" videos that take you behind the scenes to show how a movie was made? Don't know about you, but they typically ruin the movie for me.

For instance, I loved "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" when it first came out. But, stupid me, I made the mistake of watching a video that shows how wires created the illusion that the movie's actors were flying through the air as they kicked serious butt. From then on, the movie never held the same magic for me.

Well, here is one "making of" video that won't spoil your fun. It's definitely promotional in nature, but it captures some of the real enthusiasm behind the Connected Car project. But here's the best part: With the Connected Car, the magic happens without any wires. It's all about what happens when a fat wireless pipe based on 4G/LTE transforms the car into what QNX CEO Dan Dodge calls "a first-class citizen of the Cloud."

Enough blather. Roll the film:

A look inside the ng Connect LTE Connected Car

Yeah, I know: "ng Connect LTE Connected Car" sounds a little repetitious. But the emphasis on connectivity is apropos. This concept car, a joint project of QNX and Alcatel-Lucent, is all about exploring what happens when you connect cars to 4G/LTE wireless broadband networks.

Take, for example, voice recognition in the car. Today, it’s a relatively primitive affair, using grammars and speech models limited by onboard processing and storage. But once you add a reliable, high-speed pipe like LTE, the car’s infotainment unit can use a sophisticated, server-based system that lets the driver use natural language. Suddenly, ease of use goes up and driver distraction goes down.

This is but one small example. Other in-car applications could include:

• on-demand movies, streamed or downloaded
• access to personally recorded TV programs via Cloud storage
• in-vehicle Internet radio and on-demand music stores
• multi-player online gaming
• remote control of home systems: security, climate control, lighting, etc.
• a Wi-Fi hotspot that allows personal devices to connect to the Cloud
• GPS navigation augmented by Google Maps point-of-interest indicators

When people see the Connected Car, the first thing they ask is, "So, when can I get one?". But that's not the point. The Connected Car is, in fact, a proving ground for next-generation automotive apps. QNX and Alcatel-Lucent created it to ensure that, when LTE networks become pervasive 2 to 4 years from now, automakers will be ready to deliver applications that take full advantage of this broadband technology.

Guided tour

Enough background. Let's take a look at the car itself.

The first thing you notice is that it contains 4 screens, two in front and two in back. These all operate independently, allowing each car occupant to interact with their own applications and content. In fact, each screen can remember a user's preferences and settings — the idea is to deliver a user experience that isn't only connected, but personalized as well.

For example:

Driver screen — Access to advanced navigation, vehicle diagnostics, hands-free communication, and other driver-centric services:



Front passenger screen — Access to home control, "myPVR", and other applications:



Backseat screens — Access to on-demand video, gaming, social networking, and a full range of other services:



QNX Software Systems provided the software foundation for all the infotainment systems in the Connected Car. This includes the operating system, touchscreen user interfaces, streaming media players for YouTube and Pandora, navigation system with Google local search, Bluetooth and portable device connectivity, multimedia playback, handsfree integration, climate controls, Adobe Flash games, application store technology, and a virtual mechanic. All components are based on the company’s QNX CAR application platform.

Atlantic Records, chumby, Kabillion also contributed applications to the Connected Car.

For details on the Connected Car project, check out the ng Connect website.

I'll report more on this project in the coming days and weeks.

Could the auto industry benefit from a little LTE?

A couple of weeks ago, Alcatel-Lucent announced the ng Connect program, a multi-industry initiative dedicated to the deployment of wireless broadband based on Long Term Evolution (LTE) and other high-bandwidth technologies.

Translation: Imagine a world where you can access high-speed Internet from just about anywhere. The park. The beach. The local bike trail. All without wires or cables. Just one big ubiquitous wireless network.

But here's the kicker: The second paragraph of the announcement, which includes a quote from QNX CEO Dan Dodge, focuses on how wireless broadband will transform tomorrow's automobile. Not netbooks, not cellphones, not portable music players, but the car. You know, that thing nobody is buying.

Has Alcatel-Lucent been smoking something? Or are they on to something? Maybe I'm biased, but I'm leaning towards door number two.

Let's step back a bit. The car, despite falling on temporary hard times, is the one thing that almost everyone in the world either has or wants. So, no question, the market will recover in one form or another. At the same time, automakers today are more desperate than ever to differentiate their vehicles from those of the competition. Adding cool applications -- navigation, multimedia, etc. -- is one way they hope to achieve that.

Just one problem: The car needs to run a lot of software to support these applications -- software that can become obsolete long before the car is ready for the junk heap. So automakers need a way to update software and content easily, without forcing customers to schlep their cars back to the dealership. Automakers also need to host as many applications as posible in the "cloud" -- that way, cars can access new applications on the fly, without need for software upgrades. Better yet, subscription-based cloud applications can provide automakers with a source of ongoing revenue. And revenue, if you haven't noticed, is the one thing that automakers need more than anything else.

A technology like LTE can make all this possible. So, maybe Alcatel-Lucent isn't so crazy to promote the broadband-enabled car. After all, the car is the one big thing that, until now, hasn't been transformed by the Internet.

Now, if only someone could figure out how to wirelessly power my car's block heater, that would really be something...