Continental reveals its exhibits for CES 2020

At its press conference at CES in Las Vegas, Continental will demonstrate the role the technology company is playing in the development of safe, convenient and efficient solutions in the mobility ecosystem.

Based on the pillars of connectivity, data and high-performance computing, as well as automated driving and user experience, Continental will show its latest innovations and technologies in a private exhibition area at CES 2020 in Las Vegas.

“Digital technologies are driving smart and autonomous mobility,” said Dr. Dirk Abendroth, Chief Technology Officer (CTO). “At CES, we will demonstrate how we are shaping the future and how we are creating a wow-factor in mobility in the areas of software, high-performance computing, safety, user-experience and connectivity.”

Continental's “transparent hood” function is first to market globally. Displaying the area beneath the hood, it enables the driver to see terrain and obstacles that would otherwise not be visible. The transparent hood is based on Continental's Surround View system, which consists of four satellite cameras and an electronic control unit. An intelligent image processing algorithm reconstructs the image below the vehicle and inserts this image exactly into the view displayed to the driver. Continental received the CES 2020 Innovation Award for this innovative technology.

Continental is working with partners to integrate ultra-wideband (UWB) technology into future vehicles to make keyless vehicle operation more secure and convenient. When integrated into smartphones, UWB technology can enable new functions, such as secure passive entry or parking vehicles remotely. UWB will complement the existing short-distance radio standards in keyless vehicle access.

The technology company has played a leading role in developing the basis of the UWB wireless standard in relation to vehicle access in the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC) with key members including BMW and Apple and looks forward to working with more automakers to integrate the technology into future vehicles. The CCC is working on standardizing the use of UWB and digital keys in general to enable their use for all smartphone operating systems and models.

UWB makes keyless vehicle access more secure by preventing unauthorised access via relay (man-in-the-middle) attacks. In this theft strategy, the radio signal of the vehicle key is extended by radio technology in order to make the vehicle appear to be in close proximity to the driver. But the driver's location is pinpointed almost to the centimeter using UWB communication. This information is used to control access.

Introduced in 2019, the 3D Lightfield technology that powers the Natural 3D Centerstack display enables all passengers in the vehicle to enjoy a 3D experience without special glasses or head tracker cameras. Continental will demonstrate the next generation of the Natural 3D Centerstack display, bringing the technology to the center of the cockpit as a key element of human-machine interaction for the first time. The Natural 3D Centerstack display also offers drivers and passengers a touch function. Three-dimensional highlighting, accentuation and complex lighting effects convey information conveniently and safely.

Now Continental and its partner Leia are also integrating the technology into the centre console display and for the first time in 4K resolution. In addition, the optimised display board can be operated by touch and provides haptic feedback, which further increases convenience and operating safety.

The importance of software for vehicles is growing rapidly. This development often poses challenges for automobile manufacturers who have to integrate the exponentially growing amount of software into future vehicle generations. To significantly reduce this effort and increase the quality of the software to be integrated, Continental has developed an online platform that automates and standardises software development and integration in the vehicle.

The Continental Cooperation Portal automates the back-and-forth between software delivery, testing and validation, as well as restoring data for all software suppliers in the event of errors. This ensures that only error-free applications are transferred to the actual development system. Up until that point, the online platform will reduce the need for correction loops and free up capacity for implementing other electronic control unit functions. As a system integrator, Continental enables the development of digitally connected vehicles with an electronic architecture that focuses on high-performance computers (HPC) and reduces the importance of classic electronic control units, sensors and actuators.

At CES 2020, Continental will showcase a new cooperation for its loudspeaker-free audio system, which fills vehicles with lifelike three-dimensional sound. The cooperation combines two premium audio concepts. The innovative Ac2ated Sound concept eliminates the need for conventional speakers, instead causing existing surfaces in the vehicle to vibrate.

Vehicle networking comes with a huge responsibility for the entire automotive industry. That is why the specialists from Continental's subsidiary Argus Cyber Security have joined forces with the experts from T-Systems to present their first Automotive Security Operations Center (SOC) at CES 2020. In this Automotive SOC, vehicle manufacturers and fleet operators can continuously monitor the IT security of their vehicles on the road, detect attacks and react as quickly as possible.

The new Contact Sensor System (CoSSy) detects contact between a vehicle and a person or object at cutting speed. CoSSy helps to make applications like automated parking safer. The recording of sound signals by CoSSy can be used to detect a collision impact at low speeds so that the vehicle can be stopped immediately. Once installed, the CoSSy sensor signals can support many other applications, such as detection of vandalism (scratching), slow parking knocks, recognition of the road condition, driver identification by voice and detection of approaching emergency vehicles.