System-Level Integration

Making cars part of the mobility network will require automakers to add a new layer of system engineering

In the past, the only network a typical car belonged to consisted of asphalt and had potholes, petrol stations and traffic lights. Now, technology has changed everything, with cars increasingly connected to the environment in inextricable ways; from signaling for a turn to finding a fuel station, your car will increasingly act by itself.
Digitization is already making it possible for cars to receive over-the-air (OTA) software updates from OEMs, while content providers constantly refresh infotainment systems, and soon, communications with external companies will help self-driving vehicles find parking spaces and other necessities. Sensors could make it possible for an automobile to interact with other traffic participants and to stop autonomously in dangerous situations, while electrification connects the car to new energy systems with automated charging.
The car would thus move from a standalone entity to one that connects with a “system of systems” in the mobility landscape. But there is a catch.