Modern Passenger vehicle OEMs are shifting their focus towards flexible and upgradable platforms, characterised by software updates and upgrades. This trend is driven by the fundamental principle of de-coupling feature upgrades with model platform refreshes, thereby making hardware and software mutually independent. This means, OEMs today now have the option of standardising hardware platforms with the ability to introduce and unlock new features through a software patch insertion, opening new revenue generation opportunities. In this direction, collaborations between OEMs and software service providers range from hardware platform commonalities, software development, feature updates with the overall objective of making model year and generation changes obsolete and redundant.
While SDVs enhance interoperability by reducing development complexity, this is expected to significantly improve OEM collaborations and co-development of platforms across segments and applications. UNECE R155 and R156 regulations look at cybersecurity and Software Update Management Systems (SUMS) which have been made mandatory for new vehicles from 2022 and for all vehicles from 2024. Additionally, with consortia like AUTOSAR looking to standardise base software, tracking and updating is expected to become easier to achieve.
