The automobile industry is currently on the brink of an exciting future. Smart cars, electric vehicles (EVs), autonomous vehicles, and software-defined vehicles (SDVs) — all promise a new experience for users. Car manufacturers are racing to design vehicles with enhanced capabilities, new features, and minimal maintenance.
For modern vehicles to live up to their full potential, manufacturers need a reliable system to deliver essential updates. One proven method for manufacturers to provide software and firmware upgrades to the entire user base is over-the-air (OTA) updates.
Let’s dive into the mechanics of OTA updates to explore how they work and why their significance is set to grow in the coming years.
What are Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates?
Essentially, OTA updates are wireless upgrades to your car’s firmware or software. Once downloaded, OTA updates offer system upgrades, fix bugs in the vehicle’s software, and improve the performance of several vehicle components. This eliminates customers having to visit a service center for recurring maintenance. Instead, the updates occur entirely through the cloud or “over the air.”
For many years, OTA updates and vehicles seemed incompatible. Even though vehicles were equipped with code for their firmware, it required an engineer to manually upload the rare update that was released. This involved taking the car to a service center, connecting it to a Vehicle Communication Interface (VCI), and uploading the update through the VCI.
However, in the past decade, more automobile manufacturers have begun including a Connectivity Control Unit (CCU) in their car models. This is an essential component to successfully complete OTA updates, as it allows the car to connect to the cloud and autonomously manage downloading and installing any available updates.
Benefits of OTA Updates for Vehicle Owners
Each successive generation of car models contains more software than the preceding ones. This has made the smooth deployment of regular software upgrades using OTA updates more critical over time. While this is especially true for EVs, traditional vehicles with cloud connectivity can also receive OTA updates.
OTA updates allow manufacturers to reduce operational costs since they don’t have to dedicate as much time and labor to installing updates individually whenever a bug needs fixing. It’s not just the manufacturers who benefit from OTA updates. The end users of modern vehicles also enjoy a much smoother experience thanks to OTA updates.
Let’s look at the three most important benefits of OTA updates for vehicle owners.
1. Better Performance
With OTA updates, owners can have bugs fixed and access new features for their vehicles without having to replace or add any hardware. This leads to continuous improvements over the vehicle’s entire lifecycle, as OTA updates can be issued regularly.
2. Increased Safety
OTA updates provide vehicle owners with greater security in two important ways. First, the car’s software updates allow manufacturers to add stronger protections against cyber attacks. Second, the driving experience itself becomes safer since OTA updates can upgrade features like emergency braking and collision detection.
3. Greater User Convenience
Most vehicle owners dread taking their vehicles in for servicing. An OTA update eliminates the need for owners to visit service centers since they can download the latest updates for their cars from the comfort of their homes.
The Impact of OTA Updates on Vehicle Maintenance
Thanks to OTA updates, vehicle owners no longer need to take a hands-on approach to vehicle maintenance. They simply need to wait for the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to launch a new update, and their vehicle will automatically download and install it. For private owners, this is more than enough.
OTA updates also make the lives of fleet operators and managers much easier. With a uniform OTA update infrastructure for the entire fleet, fleet managers can oversee upgrades with greater efficiency.
A key component of this infrastructure is auto shop management software.
Auto shop management software makes it much easier to organize workflows, track updates, and manage customer communications.
Other benefits of fleet-wide OTA updates include:
- Centralized control over the entire fleet, minimizing vehicle downtime
- Rapid deployment of essential updates to meet evolving regulations
- Cost-effective vehicle maintenance that extends the car’s lifecycle
Commercial Vehicle Implications of OTA Software Updates
Regulatory compliance is mandatory for commercial vehicles. The guidelines set by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) must be met. OTA updates allow business owners to ensure their entire fleet is in line with the standards set by the authorities.
One good example of how OTA updates can positively impact fleet management is the AOBRD vs ELD debate. Both of these tools are used to log a commercial driver’s hours of service. While automatic onboard recording devices (AOBRDs) serve this purpose, they don’t meet all the guidelines set by the FMCSA. On the other hand, ELDs satisfy the FMCSA’s criteria and are more compatible with OTA updates. In this manner, fleet managers can use OTA updates to make sure all their vehicles have the latest software that meets the industry’s standards.
Challenges and Concerns with OTA Updates
Both OEMs and commercial fleet owners will have to deal with the changes brought about by the industry’s steady shift to relying on OTA updates for essential maintenance. This will mean finding ways to tackle some of the problems inherent in OTA technology, such as:
- Cybersecurity concerns
- Compatibility issues
- Update size and bandwidth concerns
- Compatibility issues between different components and software versions
- Lack of user input
The Future of OTA Updates in the Automotive Industry
OTA updates are a flexible solution and can be combined with other emerging technologies to unlock even more advantages.
Automotive Digital Twins
An automotive digital twin is a virtual replica of a vehicle. After a car is sold, OEMs can use the data from its digital twin to analyze its performance and perform predictive maintenance diagnostics before engineering an OTA update.
Autonomous Vehicles
OTA updates will be highly critical in the development and deployment of autonomous vehicles. They will be essential to ensure vehicles’ driving algorithms are in line with new regulations, technological advancements, and traffic stimuli.
OTA updates have become essential for OEMs and vehicle owners alike, offering undeniable advantages that enhance convenience, efficiency, and performance. As technology continues to evolve, their importance will only grow, keeping vehicles smarter and more connected than ever.
Steven Meyers is an automotive expert with two decades of experience writing about automotive tech innovations and industry trends. His work connects manufacturers, mechanics, and consumers to the latest innovations in automotive tech and business practices.
