In the latest article from The Slow New York Times, a thought-provoking question was raised: "Where is the personal data collected by the car used?" This article responded to recent comments made by Intel CEO Brian Krzanich and Barclays Bank's Brain Johnson regarding in-vehicle data. Krzanich mentioned that a driverless car generates up to 4,000GB of data per day, while Johnson claimed that even a regular car collects around 100GB of data per minute. Let’s dive into this topic with our car electronics expert.
The gap between autonomous vehicles and traditional cars is significant, mainly due to the high cost of advanced hardware and software. In terms of data collection, storage, and transmission, traditional cars are far behind. Most conventional vehicles only gather minimal data, store very little, and transmit even less.
Many modern cars now come equipped with emergency data loggers that record critical information during accidents—but only when an incident occurs. For example, General Motors’ OnStar system automatically makes an emergency call and sends the vehicle’s location and parameters in case of an accident. While this feature is useful, it can also raise privacy concerns.
There have been cases where people have tracked their partners using systems like OnStar, BMW Assist, or Mercedes mbrace. After the Boston Marathon bombing, law enforcement also used such technology to locate suspects. These examples highlight the potential for misuse of in-vehicle data.
Data collection inside vehicles inevitably touches on personal privacy. When a smartphone connects to a car, sensitive information such as call logs and contact lists may be accessed. Not all manufacturers prioritize user privacy when collecting data. Some systems track where you’ve been, and if your car has wireless capabilities, your travel patterns might be sent to third-party servers.
Vehicle performance and condition data can also be collected, whether you're buying, using, or leasing the car. This data is often gathered without the owner’s control. However, companies like Otonomo and IBM are working with OEMs to improve data handling practices. In the future, users may have more control over what data is collected, similar to how we manage app permissions on smartphones.
Autonomous vehicles, which are mostly low-speed buses or prototypes at this stage, process large amounts of real-time data. A small portion is transmitted wirelessly, while most is stored for later analysis. Balancing data collection and transmission remains a challenge for OEMs, as the true value of in-vehicle data is still being explored.
Some companies, like General Motors, prefer to sell wireless access rights or data to service providers. Vehicle condition and performance data, although smaller in volume, can be valuable. OEMs can use this data to improve product quality and address issues before they escalate, potentially reducing recalls and avoiding regulatory scrutiny.
Component suppliers pay OEMs for vehicle data, which could then be made available to owners for free. Thus, personal privacy isn’t the main issue—rather, the focus should be on responsible data collection to monitor and manage vehicle performance effectively.
Collecting too much irrelevant data isn’t beneficial. OEMs should aim to provide timely alerts about potential issues before they become dangerous. Real-time transmission of massive driver and passenger data is not only unnecessary but also risky.
Some may wonder if current driverless prototypes collect huge amounts of data constantly. While it's true that these systems require vast data for development and machine learning, this is just a phase in the evolution of autonomous technology.
So, there’s no need to worry about data collection infringing on personal privacy. The goal of car data collection is not about you—it’s about your vehicle.
This concludes our discussion on car electronics and the data generated by driverless cars. If you want to learn more, stay tuned for more detailed and updated content from Electronic Engineering.
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