W ith their wide range of integrated infotainment functions, the premium cars produced by the BMW Group have long since entered the realm of “networked vehicles”. One of the major challenges here lies in how to link up the multimedia devices - which come onto the market in quick succession - to the car in a user-friendly way. Having integrated a mobile device into the car, there needs to be a control system in place inside the passenger compartment which ensures that it can be operated intuitively, without causing distraction and in an ergonomically sound manner. The application itself and customer-specific data remain within the mobile device, while its operation and output are handled by the vehicle’s HMI (Human Machine Interface).
Transfer data right in your BMW carIn addition to the convenience offered by the straightforward and direct usability of these devices inside the car, the benefits to the customer include enhanced security and assistance in using the integrated technology in accordance with driving laws. In BMW Group vehicles these benefits are already possible for music playback - using an Apple iPod (or many other music players) through the USB audio interface - and for wireless hands-free mobile phone calls via Bluetooth, for example. The BMW Group is monitoring and looking into a variety of different data transfer technologies to enable the widest possible future utilisation of mobile devices offering attractive and useful applications without the need for potentially awkward wiring in the car.