{"id":18944,"date":"2016-05-20T19:58:25","date_gmt":"2016-05-20T23:58:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=18944"},"modified":"2016-08-04T20:01:35","modified_gmt":"2016-08-05T00:01:35","slug":"google-revs-up-auto-based-android","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2016\/05\/google-revs-up-auto-based-android","title":{"rendered":"Google revs up auto-based Android"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Google's<\/p>\n<\/div>

Mountain View, California \u2013<\/em> Google announced a blizzard of car-based Android operating system updates Wednesday as the Silicon Valley tech giant tries to accelerate the convergence of automobiles and computer networks.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s Android Auto app \u2014 a sort of digital patch which helps integrate smartphones into more than 100 models of cars \u2014 will add the traffic and navigation app Waze. It also brings its Hotwording feature, similar to Apple\u2019s popular Siri personal assistant. Hotwording triggers voice recognition with the words \u201cOK Google.\u201d Users can also utilize Android Auto features outside the car, including voice-enabled calling, messaging and navigation.<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s showcase at its annual Google I\/O developers-palooza<\/a> in Mountain View, California, is a Maserati Quattroporte with its infotainment system run by Android\u2019s latest operating system, Android N.<\/p>\n

The introduction of Android N, an open-source operating system \u2014 giving the car\u2019s console the functionality of an Android phone or Chrome-operated computer tablet \u2014 provides a glimpse at a future in which manufacturers may be able to more affordably develop in-car technology, and where autonomous cars will be able to communicate with one another.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur open-source Android N system will lower the cost for carmakers to develop AM-FM radio, HVAC, Bluetooth calling, navigation and other features,\u201d said Patrick Brady, director of Android Engineering.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s gambit is not the first attempt by a tech titan to develop an in-car operating system. Microsoft hooked up with Ford to develop its Sync infotainment system in 2007, for example. But Google\u2019s massive investment in automobiles \u2014 from the self-driving Google car to its partnership with Fiat Chrysler to test a self-driving Pacifica minivan \u2014 points to an effort to make Android the foundation of everything from phones to tablets to cars in order in order to provide a seamless experience from one platform to another.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is just the tip of a larger spear,\u201d Kelley Blue Book auto analyst Karl Brauer of the Android N. \u201cIt\u2019s an attempt to make Android the default system for vehicle development and lays the groundwork for the self-driving car features we all see coming \u2014 such as allowing cars to travel more safely together by talking to each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gone are the modular component days when consumers could just switch out their radio\/CD module for the latest product. But automakers still must develop their own infotainment systems \u2014 Chrysler\u2019s UConnect and Ford\u2019s Sync, for example \u2014 and then pair them with outside operating systems like Google\u2019s Android or Apple\u2019s iOS. Android N would allow automakers to more affordably develop \u2014 and update \u2014 car technologies on a standardized platform.<\/p>\n

\u201cAutomakers seem excited about it,\u201d said Android\u2019s Brady, who added that Google has not yet signed a contract with an automaker. \u201cThis will lower their development costs.\u201d<\/p>\n

As with its smartphone operating system, Android has partnered with Qualcomm \u2014 the dominant manufacturer of smartphone processors \u2014 to make its Maserati-based demo. Google\u2019s infotainment system is displayed in a 15-inch screen in the car\u2019s center console and features an Android user interface.<\/p>\n

Anton Wahlman, an independent auto analyst who tracks vehicle technology, says automakers might be leery about hitching their horse to one operating system in an industry that has seen volatile change in the last two decades. But he also sees Google\u2019s announcement as evidence of more integration between Android and manufacturers like Fiat Chrysler <\/a>(which owns Maserati).<\/p>\n

Egil Juliussen, an infotainment analyst with IHS Automotive, is more bullish on Google\u2019s technology: \u201cAn Android OS for infotainment will have a significant impact on the auto industry. It will take an increasing market share after 2017 and could reach 35 percent sometime after 2020.\u201d<\/p>\n

Google also is showcasing a Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra and Mercedes E-Class, which are three of 40 brands with Android Auto capability.<\/p>\n

In addition to Waze and Hotwording, Google Android Auto app upgrades will allow automakers to use the platform to develop their own programs. Honda and Elantra will both display their own apps. Google has been slow to roll out apps for use with Android Auto out of concern for driver distraction, says Google\u2019s Brady.<\/p>\n

The Google I\/O conference is held in Mountain View <\/a>near the company\u2019s California headquarters in order to update developers on the latest Google wizardry from virtual reality to transportation. Google has been active in the auto space since its marshmallow-shaped autonomous Google car made headlines.<\/p>\n

KBB\u2019s Brauer sees Google\u2019s Android operating as a key step toward self-driving vehicles. Though fleets of operating system-sharing, autonomous cars are sci-fi stuff for now, industry insiders predict a future of dedicated lanes for autonomous cars that can safely travel at 100-plus miles per hour <\/a>while networking with one another to travel just inches apart.<\/p>\n

An Android N-equipped car could also communicate with surrounding businesses, allowing passengers to better locate restaurants, hotels and other points of interest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mountain View, California \u2013 Google announced a blizzard of car-based Android operating system updates Wednesday as the Silicon Valley tech giant tries to accelerate the convergence of automobiles and computer networks. Google\u2019s Android Auto app \u2014 a sort of digital patch which helps integrate smartphones into more than 100 models of cars \u2014 will add […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18944"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18944"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18945,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18944\/revisions\/18945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}