Major research and product development for future vehicle infotainment technologies is to go underway as Jaguar Land Rover and Intel plan the opening of a new Technology R&D centre in the States.

The new research facility to be built on the West Coast of the USA will help lead the development of future vehicle infotainment systems and will be responsible for collaborative work with a number of technology partners. The location of the centre was chosen as it is close to the technology industry hubs in Silicon Valley and Seattle, where the car giant has been developing collaborative partnerships with the world’s leading IT businesses and creative and technical talent.

The leading car manufacturer and technology giant have already begun work on multiple levels across engineering, research and marketing as Jaguar Land Rover aims to deliver on of the best in-car infotainment experiences. The close proximity of the new research facility to Intel Labs is enabling a collaborative relationship on advanced research projects.  Multiple programs are currently underway to explore and develop next-generation digital vehicle prototypes with in-vehicle cockpit experiences that connect car, device and cloud.  The companies advise insights gained from the research programs along with alignment on engineering efforts will speed development on new innovative in-vehicle experiences.   

Dr Wolfgang Ziebart, Jaguar Land Rover Engineering Director, said: “Our aim is to innovate and develop the ultimate user experience for our customers and by taking a collaborative approach with both technology start-ups and large organisations such as Intel, we will push the boundaries of future infotainment technology.

Elliot Garbus, Vice President and General Manager, Automotive Solutions Division, Intel Corporation, said: “Consumers expect their in-vehicle experiences to be an integrated part of their digitally connected lifestyle; this requires enhanced levels of connectivity and intelligence in the car.  As part of our work with Jaguar Land Rover, we are exploring innovative ways to inform, entertain and assist drivers and passengers in a safe way; speeding development of unique experiences from the car to the cloud.  Our goal is to accelerate opportunities for new types of in-vehicle services and applications in the Internet of Things.”

Creating the new technology centre in Portland in the States will help accelerate the next generation of in-car technologies, features and software for future Jaguar and Land Rover models. The facility will be Jaguar Land Rover’s first dedicated software R&D operation and will lead the optimisation for automotive applications of a range of new advanced technologies that are currently being developed on the West Coast.

The new ‘Open Software Technology Centre’, which will open in 2014, will support the established Jaguar Land Rover infotainment team based at the company’s product creation facility in Gaydon, UK. It will employ a team of around 30 infotainment specialists, including 16 highly experienced software engineers. Facilities will include a multimedia creative suite, innovation spaces, development laboratory and a six-bay vehicle workshop.

In the future, the technology centre will also complement the long-term research projects that will be undertaken by the Jaguar Land Rover R&D team at the National Automotive Innovation Campus (NAIC) at the University of Warwick when it opens in 2016. These research projects include electrification, smart & connected cars and Human Machine Interface.

Intel

www.intel.com