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<div><h1 class="yiv6850861807ydp7d8f668main-title" style="margin:10px auto;font-weight:400;line-height:42px;font-size:40px;font-family:Theinhardt-Medium, sans-serif;color:rgb(0, 0, 0);width:620px;text-align:center;">How Software Is Eating the Car</h1><h2 class="yiv6850861807ydp7d8f668article-dek yiv6850861807ydp7d8f668hide-mobile" style="margin:10px auto;font-weight:400;line-height:1.2;font-size:26px;font-family:Georgia, serif;text-align:center;width:620px;color:rgb(136, 136, 136) !important;">The trend toward self-driving and electric vehicles will add hundreds of millions of lines of code to cars. Can the auto industry cope?</h2>
<div class="yiv6850861807ydp7d8f668author-name" style="max-width:100%;padding:4px 0px 0px;border-top:4px solid rgb(226, 76, 45);margin:1em 0px;font-family:Theinhardt-Regular, sans-serif;color:rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:16px;"><span style="font-size:14px;">By <span style="font-family:Theinhardt-Bold, sans-serif;"><a href="https://spectrum.ieee.org/author/robert-n-charette" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Robert N. Charette</a></span></span></div>

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<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">Predictions of lost global vehicle production caused by the <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-Spotlight/How-the-chip-shortage-got-so-bad-and-why-it-s-so-hard-to-fix" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ongoing semiconductor shortage</a> continue to rise. In January, <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/automobile/world-s-biggest-automakers-suspend-operations-as-chip-supplies-dry-up-121032400488_1.html" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">analysts forecast</a> that 1.5 million fewer vehicles would be produced as a result of the shortage; by April that <a href="https://www.autonews.com/manufacturing/latest-numbers-microchip-shortage-pickups-taking-bigger-hits" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">number had steadily climbed</a> to more than 2.7 million units, and by May, to <a href="https://www.autonews.com/manufacturing/plants-big-worry-missing-demand-because-chip-crisis" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">more than 4.1 million units</a>.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">The semiconductor shortage has underscored not only the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autos-semiconductors-supply-chain-ins/auto-industry-rethinks-cost-cutting-playbook-as-covid-19-chip-shortages-disrupt-supply-chains-idUSKBN2BO4ZW" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fragility of the automotive supply chain</a>, but placed an intense spotlight on the auto industry’s reliance on the dozens of concealed computers embedded throughout vehicles today.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">“No other industry is undergoing as rapid technological change as the auto industry,” says <span>Zoran Filipi, Chair of the Department of Automotive Engineering at </span><a href="https://cuicar.com/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Clemson University’s International Center for Automotive Research</a>. “This is driven by the need to address impending, evermore stringent CO<span style="position:relative;font-size:13.5px;line-height:0;vertical-align:baseline;"><span>2</span></span> and criteria emission regulations, while sustaining unprecedented rate of progress with development of automation and infotainment, and meeting the customer expectations regarding performance, comfort, and utility.” </div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">The coming years will see even greater change, as more auto manufacturers <a href="https://www.caranddriver.com/news/g35562831/ev-plans-automakers-timeline/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">commit</a> to phasing out their internal combustion engine (ICE) powered vehicles to meet <a href="https://www.automotiveworld.com/news-releases/growing-momentum-global-overview-of-government-targets-for-phasing-out-sales-of-new-internal-combustion-engine-vehicles/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">global climate-change targets</a> by <a href="https://www.caranddriver.com/news/g29994375/future-electric-cars-trucks/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">replacing them with electric vehicles</a> (EVs) that will eventually be <a href="https://www.jdpower.com/cars/shopping-guides/levels-of-autonomous-driving-explained" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">capable of autonomous operation</a>.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">The past decade of ICE vehicle development illustrates the rapid progress it has made, as well as where it is heading.</div>
<img alt="Chart titled Vehicle production shortfall due to chip shortage." src="https://spectrum.ieee.org/image/MzgyNzk1Mw.jpeg" style="vertical-align:middle;border-style:none;max-width:100%;margin-bottom:5px;display:block;width:300px;" class="yiv6850861807"><br>

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<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">“Once, software was a part of the car. Now, software determines the value of a car,” notes <span>Manfred Broy, emeritus professor of informatics at </span><a href="https://www.tum.de/en/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Technical University</a><span>, Munich and a leading expert on software in automobiles.</span> “The success of a car depends on its software much more than the mechanical side.” Nearly all vehicle innovations by auto manufacturers, or original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) as they are called by industry insiders, are now tied to software, he says.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;"><a href="https://spectrum.ieee.org/transportation/systems/this-car-runs-on-code" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ten years ago</a>, only premium cars contained 100 microprocessor-based electronic control units (ECUs) networked throughout the body of a car, executing 100 million lines of code or more. Today, high-end cars like the BMW 7-series with advanced technology like <a href="https://www.caranddriver.com/research/a31880412/adas/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">advanced driver-assist systems</a> (ADAS) <a href="https://www.embitel.com/blog/embedded-blog/automotive-control-units-development-innovations-mechanical-to-electronics" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">may contain</a> 150 ECUs or more, while pick-up trucks like <a href="https://cmte.ieee.org/futuredirections/2016/01/13/guess-what-requires-150-million-lines-of-code/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ford’s F-150 top 150 million lines of code</a>. Even low-end vehicles are quickly approaching 100 ECUs and 100 million of lines of code as more features that were once considered luxury options, such as <a href="https://www.motortrend.com/news/adaptive-cruise-control/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">adaptive cruise control</a> and <a href="https://www.motortrend.com/news/automatic-emergency-braking/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">automatic emergency braking</a>, are becoming standard.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">Additional safety features that have been mandated since 2010 like <a href="https://mycardoeswhat.org/safety-features/electronic-stability-control/" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">electronic stability control,</a> <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/cars-us-now-required-backup-cameras/story?id=54854404" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">backup cameras</a>, and <a href="https://etsc.eu/automated-emergency-calling-ecall-now-mandatory-on-new-car-models/#:~:text=Automated%2520emergency%2520calling%2520(eCall)%2520now%2520mandatory%2520on%2520new%2520car%2520models,-April%25203%252C%25202018&text=All%2520new%2520models%2520of%2520car,the%2520event%2520of%2520a%2520collision.&text=The%2520system%2520was%2520launched%2520on%2520Android%2520phones%2520in%25202016." style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">automatic emergency calling (eCall)</a> in the EU, as well as more <a href="https://theicct.org/sites/default/files/publications/ICCT_Euro6-VI_briefing_jun2016.pdf" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stringent emission standards</a> that ICE vehicles <a href="https://autotechreview.com/opinion/guest-commentary/how-software-in-automobiles-helps-curb-pollution" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">can only meet</a> using yet more innovative electronics and software, have further driven ECU and software proliferation.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">Consulting firm <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en.html" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited</a> estimates that as of 2017, some <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/cn/Documents/technology-media-telecommunications/deloitte-cn-tmt-semiconductors-the-next-wave-en-190422.pdf" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">40% of the cost of a new car</a> can be attributed to semiconductor-based electronic systems, a cost doubling since 2007. It estimates this total will approach 50% by 2030. The company further predicts that each new car today has about $600 worth of semiconductors packed into it, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/23/business/auto-semiconductors-general-motors-mercedes.html" style="color:rgb(0, 0, 0);text-decoration-line:underline;background-color:transparent;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">consisting of up to 3,000 chips</a> of all types.</div>

<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">Totaling the number of ECUs and lines of software only hints at the intricate electronic orchestration and software choreography found in vehicles today. By observing how they perform together, the extraordinary complexity that is meant to be invisible from a driver’s perspective begins to emerge. New safety, comfort, performance and entertainment features, the commercial imperative to offer scores of options to buyers resulting in a multiplicity of variants for each make and model, and the shift from gasoline and human drivers to electric and artificially intelligent drivers and the hundreds of millions of lines of new code that will need to be written, checked, debugged and secured against hackers, are making cars into supercomputers on wheels and forcing the auto industry to adapt. But can it? </div>
<h3 style="margin-top:0px;font-weight:400;line-height:1.2;font-family:Theinhardt-Regular, sans-serif;color:rgb(90, 90, 90);">Features and Variants Drive Complexity</h3>
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<div style="margin:0px 0px 1em;font-size:18px;line-height:25px;">The drive over the last two decades to provide more safety and entertainment features has transformed automobiles from mere conveyances to mobile computing centers. Instead of racks of servers and high-speed optical interconnects, ECUs and wiring harnesses communicate data throughout the vehicle and beyond. And then there are the 10s of millions of lines code that run every time to you go to the grocery store.</div>
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