Hardware Abstraction Layer for Vehicle Head Unit Streaming
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Solution Overview
Problem
As vehicles age, their computing systems, such as head units, become outdated, leading to difficulties in upgrading due to seamless integration with the vehicle's dashboard and expensive components, resulting in high replacement costs and potential need for new vehicles to access newer technology.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a hardware abstraction layer (HAL) that allows the head unit to interface with a portable, communicatively coupled supporting computing system, enabling streaming of information between different versions of operating systems to provide newer features without replacing the entire head unit or vehicle, facilitating upgrades and maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the head unit is seamlessly integrated into the vehicle dashboard with expensive components, then the vehicle achieves a consistent and integrated user experience, but the cost and difficulty of upgrading or replacing the head unit increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the head unit into two independent segments: a permanent integrated portion (display, dashboard integration) and a removable computing portion (processing unit, operating system). This allows the computing portion to be upgraded independently without affecting the integrated display or dashboard components, resolving the contradiction between integration consistency and upgradeability.
Solution Approach 2:
The removable computing portion is designed with universal interfaces and standardized connections that allow it to work with different display units and dashboard configurations. This enables the same computing module to be reused across different vehicle models or upgraded versions, maintaining user experience consistency while enabling easy upgrades.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the entire head unit is replaced to access newer technology, then the vehicle gains access to updated features and operating systems, but the cost increases significantly due to replacement of expensive integrated components
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the head unit into replaceable computing portions and permanent display components, the system allows users to update only the computing portion (which is relatively inexpensive) while retaining the expensive integrated display and dashboard components, thereby accessing newer technology at lower cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The computing portion is designed as a consumable or periodically replaceable component with a shorter lifecycle than the permanent display components. This allows the computing portion to be upgraded frequently at low cost, while the expensive display components remain in use for the entire vehicle lifecycle.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the head unit is seamlessly integrated into the vehicle, then the vehicle achieves a unified design, but the availability of replacement head units is limited and costs are driven up
Solution Approach 1:
The segmentation allows the permanent portion to maintain the vehicle's unified design and integration, while the removable portion can be easily replaced with different configurations or models, thereby maintaining design stability while improving replacement availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The computing portion is extracted from the integrated head unit assembly, allowing it to be independently replaced. This extraction enables the permanent integrated portion to maintain design consistency while the extracted computing portion can be sourced from multiple suppliers, improving availability.
Data Source
AI summary
In general, techniques are described by which to provide streaming via a hardware abstraction layer. A cartridge comprising a memory, and a processor may be configured to perform the techniques. The processor may execute a second version of an operating system, and receive a stream, via an interface and to a first version of the operating system executing on a processor of a head unit of a vehicle, information relating to an application executing in the application layer exposed by the first version of the operating system. The information relating to the application may include a first function call that conforms with the first version of the operating system, where the cartridge is communicatively coupled to the head unit. The interface may transform the first function call to a second function call that conforms with the second version of the operating system.