Continental's Product and Innovation Highlights at CES Asia 2017

As the automotive industry continues to rapidly transform towards software and driving services, Continental's list of cutting-edge innovations is also expanding. The international technology company will showcase a number of technology products and services during the Asian Consumer Electronics Show in Shanghai from June 7 to 9, demonstrating its deep understanding of the digitalization of the automotive industry (Booth No.: Hall N3 #3702).

Tang En, President and CEO of Continental China, said: "The entire automotive industry is currently undergoing a transformation, and we at Continental are playing a very active role in reshaping the automotive industry. Relying on our solid expertise in system integration and our rich experience in vehicle networking and human-machine interaction, we are constantly adjusting our products according to the latest market developments. For example, we are currently developing essential components for new driving solutions for our customers, and working together to shape the vision of future driving. At the upcoming Shanghai Asia Consumer Electronics Show, we will showcase our latest future-oriented solutions."

Continental offers wireless function updates for various electronic control units in cars

For more than a decade, the international technology company Continental has been committed to helping automakers solve the problem of software updates. Now Continental can provide various types of products with wireless update capabilities for different automakers. Currently, Continental is further expanding its product portfolio to wirelessly update electronic control units distributed throughout the car, such as powertrain and infotainment systems.

Through its partnership with mobile satellite communications company Inmarsat, Continental can achieve wireless updates around the world through a single network. Inmarsat, the International Mobile Satellite Organization, manages multiple geostationary orbit communication satellites, providing two-way data connections combined with global broadcast capabilities to provide fast and efficient responsive wireless updates for cars around the world. Continental's customers can deploy global update activities at the push of a button, avoiding the complexity of negotiating with multiple mobile network operators. The cooperation between the two companies also includes supporting cars to use intelligent routing through satellite and terrestrial wireless (mobile, WiFi) networks to achieve the best quality of service, lowest cost and highest availability.

Premium 3D display interface brings new design options to the cockpit

The demand for functionality and digital content in the cockpit is increasing, which means that in-vehicle displays are getting bigger and bigger. Fully digital instruments may be ideal for the flexible display of digital content, but they may also limit design flexibility. To ensure that future drivers can enjoy digital content without having to stare at traditional flat media displays, Continental has developed a 3D display interface that features partial optical bonding components to reproduce the texture of traditional displays and a high degree of design personalization. The 3D display interface won the 2017 Asia Consumer Electronics Show Innovation Award in the Mobile Devices category.

Multifunctional smart device terminal provides wireless charging and near field communication functions

The main functions that Continental's multifunctional terminal can achieve are: drivers can wirelessly charge their smartphones and safely and conveniently control various in-vehicle functions. The device can be placed in the central console to achieve wireless connection between the smartphone and the vehicle, and inductive charging of almost any mobile device. The only requirement is that the smartphone must meet the "Qi" level standard specified by the Wireless Charging Consortium (WPC), or be upgraded to this standard. The multifunctional smart device terminal can also use an external antenna and the in-vehicle host to achieve automatic wireless mobile phone Bluetooth pairing, and the driver only needs to activate the near-field communication function. The terminal also supports wireless antenna coupling, which greatly improves the signal reception quality of the mobile phone during data transmission and answering calls.  

Cloud-based vAnalytics provides driving-related services to dealers, auto repair shops, car owners and drivers

vAnalytics provides comprehensive services, including customer relationship management, positioning, geo-fencing, remote vehicle unlocking, diagnostics and fleet management. Taking customer relationship management as an example, "CRM+" connects customer vehicles with dealers and auto repair shops, and monitors and reports car-related information with the customer's consent. In China, through cooperation with BestDrive (Continental's subsidiary specializing in vehicle spare parts and auto repair shop services), Continental has successfully implemented CRM+ services in Shanghai since the beginning of summer 2016. During the 2017 Shanghai Auto Show, Continental signed a strategic joint venture contract with China Unicom Zhiwang Technology to establish and operate a world-class intelligent transportation system solution provider. By then, vAnalytics will also be one of the products and services launched by the future joint venture.

Swarm intelligence on wheels: Electronic horizon technology for motorcycles

Motorcyclists can already start looking forward to the season ahead, because with the electronic horizon technology, Continental developers are making it possible for car drivers and motorcyclists to see what is behind the bend. The electronic horizon system for motorcyclists connects motorcyclists to one another, becomes a shared platform for the motorcyclist community and allows motorcyclists to share important route information. The system developed by Continental uses the concept of swarm intelligence to continuously provide accurate and up-to-date digital map information in the background. The stored data is checked in the cloud and made available to all motorcyclists, ensuring that motorcyclists are aware of obstacles along the way as well as road works, accidents, oil and water accumulation on the road or traffic jams in advance, which not only enhances the safety of motorcyclists, but also all other road users.

Connected energy management system integrates driving strategies

The networked energy management system can integrate driving strategies and the driver's driving habits in hybrid electric vehicles. At the same time, the specific conditions of the selected route will also be integrated into the energy planning strategy system. For example, information such as the route's topography, the outside temperature (which can assess the need for heat), the travel time (which can be displayed as a weekday or holiday) and the travel mileage can all be obtained. The back-end data can also be integrated into the program for adjustment and optimization. Continental sees this personalized strategy as a win-win for the driver.

Continental's Security Domain Controller (SDCU) provides comprehensive security

To further enhance the protection of road users, passive safety control has been expanded to include not only the analysis of vehicle dynamics sensor data, but also innovative radar and camera sensor data from advanced driver assistance systems and other on-board sensors. This opens up new possibilities for predicting accidents and improving accident severity assessment.

After the information base is improved through networking, one of the functions realized by the safety domain controller is to deploy airbags according to the actual situation (multi-stage airbag deployment function). Triggering wheel braking after an accident (post-collision braking technology), active seat belt pretensioners, and automatic emergency calls also help to achieve all-round safety protection.

With automated driving (AD), the scope of application of restraint systems in vehicle safety concepts will become even wider. Automated driving will no longer restrict the freedom of movement of passengers, who no longer have to sit upright in their seats and face the direction of travel, which brings new challenges to passive safety concepts. In addition, the safety domain controller can also provide safety-related information for the safety environment model of the automated driving system.

Continental Automated Driving Development and Demonstration Vehicle

Continental debuted its automated driving development and demonstration vehicle in China in August 2016, and is committed to using its innovative capabilities to promote the development of automated driving in China and actively improve the overall level of China's automotive industry.

One of the features of the automated driving development and demonstration vehicle is Autopilot®. In this function, the car handles all driving tasks. Compared to current cruise control, the development and demonstration vehicle can achieve automatic lateral and longitudinal control, automatic lane keeping in bends and lane changes according to the driver's request. To avoid mode confusion, a light strip at the bottom of the windshield will light up to inform the driver that Autopilot is available. The car then takes over the driving from the driver, cruises on the highway and adjusts the speed according to traffic conditions and traffic regulations. After exiting the highway, the car will hand over the driving rights and inform the driver in advance. With these settings, the test vehicle can be driven on the highway in highly automated driving mode at speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour.