Autonomous and connected cars are one of the hottest trends at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and both Cisco and Hyundai are on board.
The two companies are combining forces to produce a next-generation in-vehicle network and layered security system that will be unveiled in Hyundai’s premium 2019 vehicles.
The new platform uses a software-defined vehicle architecture that is both highly configurable and secure. This architecture weaves new software with legacy hardware for full end-to-end networking, which will allow for true sensor integration and high-speed services like 1 Gbps Ethernet. This will significantly increase in-vehicle bandwidth, the companies say in a Jan. 9 press release.
With these capabilities, the platform will also enable “over-the-air updates”, which will help speed up the time it takes to bring new capabilities to market while also improving security and lowering costs.
Additionally, the platform is also flexible enough to design and build new services, and “sets the stage” for new adaptive technologies.
Seung-ho Hwang, executive vice president and head of Hyundai Motor Group’s auto intelligence business department, calls its collaboration with Cisco a “testament to our ‘open innovation’ spirit; one that will prepare us for continued leadership as transportation and mobility undergo an unprecedented evolution.”
Hyundai and Cisco previously announced their intentions to disrupt the auto industry and develop a hyperconnected car with unique communication abilities in 2016. At the time, the companies pledged to create a “flexible and more secure platform that would offer a path to innovate and build on smart-vehicle solutions.”
Now, the companies are laying the foundation for their “groundbreaking” open and highly secure platform and exploring new areas such as integration into Hyundai datacenters for real-time information and connecting cars to city infrastructure to communicate with lights and parking metres.
“Cisco is pleased to bring a standards-based approach in partnership with the automotive industry; one that will help accelerate innovation and increase the value to the consumer,” says Ruba Borno, vice president of growth initiatives and chief of staff to the CEO at Cisco. “By creating a flexible, scalable, and secure platform, we are allowing automotive companies to deliver better cars – faster.”