What is Google Automotive OS (In-Vehicle Infotainment System), What is special about it?

Smartphones loaded with apps, since inception, have changed the way we consume information & stay connected with each other. This need to stay connected & consume information is felt by users even while driving their vehicles.

Google announced Wednesday that media app developers will be able to create new entertainment experiences for Android Automotive OS and the Polestar 2, starting at Google I/O 2019, the annual developer’s conference that kicks off May 7.

Google is starting with media app developers such as Spotify and other entertainment sites. However, the company plans to expand into other categories of apps as well such as navigation, Haris Ramic, Google’s product lead for Android Automotive told TechCrunch in a recent interview.

A user demands an intuitive HMI/GUI, a responsive touch-screen, over the air updates and seamless integration of apps (installed on his/her phone) in an IVI system. In addition to this, minimizing driver distraction & ensuring maximum driver safety is a top priority for an OEM or a Supplier.
All this makes designing a winning IVI system an interesting challenge! So, here are the 12 design strategies to develop an IVI system that can help you deliver an experience that your consumers deserve:

  • In an IVI system, it is essential to provide surround view to the driver for driving & parking assist, hence support for multiple (up to 4) cameras is a must. Design middleware and application that switching between multiple cameras and streaming of data from multiple cameras.
  • For a super-responsive and an intuitive IVI experience, best practice is to develop a Framework (a library project) which is loaded with all the common functions (API) that can be called by different IVI applications. This makes the entire IVI system very light & highly responsive.
  • To suit the vehicle environment & in-car user experience, customize the look and feel of the screens to display most important information to the user such as weather, date & time, traffic alerts, and other alerts from the vehicle at all times. Add voice recognition feature and easy way to activate this feature to minimize driver distraction.
  • Customize the Boot Animation & Boot Images as per the logo & branding requirements of the OEM and/or Supplier.
  • Depending on the geography of your target Audience, identify the Third Party Apps or deploy apps developed in-house that enhance user experience. For example apps for navigation, finding the nearest fuel station, finding the nearest service station, emergency contact service, weather, internet streaming of multimedia and more.
  • For intuitive user experience, integrate various sources for multimedia streaming like mass storage devices (USB, CD.), radio sources (AM, FM, WB, XM or DAB), streaming through BT or WiFi, internet streaming and connectivity to Apple devices in a single application.
  • An Infotainment system also serves users with critical vehicle data. Develop middleware and applications that provide access to vehicle information available on CAN network to the user in the form of the graphical interface as well as text-based warnings/alerts.
  • An IVI system also plays a significant role in mitigating driver distraction. With the help of Bluetooth, communication driver can respond to or make a call, read the message, stream music and more. All necessary Bluetooth profiles along with application must be integrated with the IVI system.
  • To deliver a connected lifestyle experience the user (and the vehicle/fleet) should be connected to the external world (internet). Include support for connectivity through tethering, Wi-Fi and telematics in the IVI system.
  • GPS plays an important role in navigation. Include middleware and applications necessary for navigation and other location-based services.
  • Develop and build intelligence in the system to act according to different states of the vehicle such as moving, at rest and parking mode.
  • Develop and build strategies to help OEMs’ and/or Suppliers with certification and secure installation of the applications in the IVI system. This enables individual user or fleet owner(s) to deploy applications of their interests in a safe and secure manner.

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