Toyota planning its own in-car operating system

We've certainly seen all sorts of exotic vehicles run on Windows XP before (so to speak), but Toyota execs are mulling the idea of crafting its own in-car operating system in order to keep that competitive edge alive. Currently, OS' are "built from scratch" for every new vehicle model, but the automaker is realizing that an in-house squad focused on delivering a single system to run behind the scenes could not only dramatically cut R&D costs, but also " boost efficiency and speed up development." Although Toyota wouldn't comment directly, it is presumed that the project is an integral part of the new VI (Value Innovation) initiative, in which the firm is hoping to consolidate the amount of parts used in their vehicle. Still, we aren't going to see a Toyota-branded OS until "closer to 2015," so we hope fully expect an auto-pilot feature to be in there somewhere.

[Via Wired]

[tuna @ Mar 31st 2007 10:51AM]

Good. For some reason, I don't feel comfortable driving a car that runs Windows.

[Sam @ Mar 31st 2007 10:59AM]

"For some reason"? LOL.

[Ken J @ Mar 31st 2007 11:11AM]

How about Linux you smacktards? Have fun wasting cash on development when the resources you desire are already free.

[Evan @ Mar 31st 2007 11:16AM]

Ken J = Linux Hippie

[Johan S @ Mar 31st 2007 11:25AM]

KenJ, for various reasons .. they probably want it to be a real-time OS. Linux isn't one .. there are extensions to it such as rtlinux (which has a commercial and free version) .. but the OS isn't really made for it.
To those who don't know what a realtime OS is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real-time_operating_system

Anyway, it's I'm guessing they could be basing this OS on Linux or TRON (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRON_Project).

[colin @ Mar 31st 2007 11:18AM]

What at stupid decision. How going proprietary going to reduce R&D and give them a competitive advantage unless their OS has AI or something; they can't leverage all the code that already exists. Windows CE (or Unix based) should be the way to go. This is what annoys me about Toyota and Lexus - the failure to adopt standards that would allow their vehicle computers to be so much more than they are.

[AC @ Mar 31st 2007 12:24PM]

I think you miss the point. They go "proprietary" for every single car at the moment anyway. They're saving costs because they will use a universal proprietary platform (OS) for all their cars rather than an individual one for each different model. I'm sure it is just as cost effective for them to build an OS from scratch specifically for their "hardware" as it is for them to adapt something that already exists because they already have their own technologies. Essentially it's just a consolidation of their resources.

[colin @ Mar 31st 2007 12:29PM]

They could consolidate across the industry, rather than just internally.

[zach @ Mar 31st 2007 12:59PM]

Johan S,
Linux is a RTOS. Go look at the article yourself.
Its listed right there under open source.
If you go to sourceforge, you can find some some applications for linux for an in-car computer.

[Ken @ Mar 31st 2007 1:17PM]

I thought Linux has been out of the box embedded capable since 2.6.18?

http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS9566944929.html

Toyota will most likely go with TRON as you mentioned considering the mutual Japanese heritage. I'd be fine with either, but I'm completely fed up with proprietary software on hardware I purchase.

[ALEEM @ Mar 31st 2007 11:23AM]

go shorty, its your birthday, were gonna party like its your birtday......

[TheCount @ Mar 31st 2007 11:35AM]

I hope it looks nothing like the picture. People really need to stop subscribing to the Google theory of User Interface and actually hire designers. There's a big difference between hypothetical "simplicity" and usability. Customers want usability, simplicity is just a byproduct of that. There's no law that says it can't look good either.

[Adam J @ Mar 31st 2007 11:32AM]

Any idea what toyota vehicle that screen shot is from?

[Leonard Nimrod @ Mar 31st 2007 11:46AM]

I think Linux really sucks for the average users' OS, but for this setup it seems obvious that Linux would be a great choice here.

[Zeke @ Mar 31st 2007 11:48AM]

Countdown to hack letting you play Doom on your Corolla... 5...4...3...2...

[Rick (the original Rick) @ Mar 31st 2007 11:53AM]

The second they get it running you just know it'll appear in alt.binaries. Then their OS will begin showing up in Kias.

[riggs @ Mar 31st 2007 3:53PM]

they should buy out the people that makes centrafuse so they can use it cause their interface looks like crap

tell me who wouldnt want this to run in their car:
http://www.fluxmedia.net/

[Richard @ Mar 31st 2007 12:31PM]

So, will they have crash test ratings for this OS like they do for the car itself?

[Blake @ Mar 31st 2007 12:39PM]

I puked in my mouth when i saw the blue e in that screenshot...

[ganzhimself @ Mar 31st 2007 12:55PM]

LOLz! T0y0t@ i5 t3h n00bz0r!1!SHIFT!!1ONE!!ELEVENTY!1!!11 IE? J00R c@r \/\/1|| b t3h h@xx0rd!

[paloooz @ Mar 31st 2007 1:04PM]

Lame.

[TC Giant @ Mar 31st 2007 3:59PM]

This has me thinking, why not get a coupla other major manufacturers together and create some kind of unified car systems architecture that both fills roles outlined by the vehicle in question, such as being able to control the cabin features of a passenger car or the load-bearing demands of a truck designed for industrial use, OR whatever kind of operations need to be automated on a piece of heavy industrial equipment attached to a vehicle, and also serves the underlying diagnostic functions presently served by systems like OBD I/II and related proprietary systems? Certainly coming up with an adaptable centralized successor to the On-Board Diagnostic system that encapsulates diagnostic sensors for systems like tire pressure, ride control, etc, could be infinitely more versatile and undoubtedly save a lot of money in the long run if it were a joint project that created an open-source operating system that could be made available to all automobile/vehicle and accessory manufacturers free of charge.

Am I just dreaming here?

And why can I almost see the driver architecture flowcharting itself in my mind?

[ALex @ Mar 31st 2007 4:39PM]

2015!?!?! It doesn't take that long to make a new operating system. Oh wait, yeah it does. *cough..vista...cough*

[August @ Mar 31st 2007 5:06PM]

Hahaha!1!!11!!!1!!eleven!1!!1!! ZOMGGG you are tehh funnysssS!11!!1!!!!11!one!!1!!

[JohnWPB @ Mar 31st 2007 6:24PM]

This is NOT from a Toyota. This is a Skin for the Road Runner CarPC front end. You can find it here:
http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/rr-skins/62195-release-proximos-cf-style-skins.html

[Aldyn @ Apr 1st 2007 1:17AM]

thankgod. that interface is hideoussssss.

[nikster @ Apr 1st 2007 6:15AM]

Linux is most definitely not a RTOS and you would not want it to be either. RT means guaranteed response times for all tasks. That needs to be built deep into the OS.

An end user OS wants to react as fast as possible to anything happening but still work when things slow down.

A RT OS wants to react within a certain time frame to anything happening. And it's not good enough when things slow down (you have already hit the tree). Guaranteed response time is key here.

You could make an RT OS based on Linux but it would probably be just as much work as creating one from scratch or buying an existing one. Toyota would be stupid to base anything on a GPLd solution - they would be giving away their competitive advantage.

Final word: I wish they made OSs as reliable as Toyotas. That would be nice.

[chris b @ Apr 4th 2007 5:22AM]

Let's not forget that Formula 1 will run standard ECUs from 2008 onwards; ECUs developed by - none other than - Microsoft.