Cummins Inc. has teamed up with Bosch Global Software and India’s KPIT to introduce Eclipse CANought, an open-source project aimed at revolutionizing commercial vehicle telematics. This initiative is part of the broader Eclipse Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) project and the Open Telematics initiative, designed to lower the costs of developing telematics applications for commercial vehicles.
Brad Sutton, Executive Director of Powertrain Engineering at Cummins Inc., explained the partnership: “Cummins is collaborating with industry leaders Bosch Global Software and KPIT, who have extensive expertise in vehicle telematics and CAN communication. Together, we can innovate and deliver new solutions more efficiently, adding significant value for our customers.”
Driving Innovation with Open-Source Technology
Eclipse CANought is designed to standardize and secure access to the CAN (Controller Area Network) bus, facilitating advanced features like over-the-air (OTA) software updates. The CAN bus serves as the communication backbone for vehicle Electronic Control Units (ECUs). By simplifying and streamlining the development of connectivity applications that interact with vehicle ECUs, this initiative helps OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and suppliers reduce both time and costs.
“This collaboration between industry leaders showcases the power of open-source models in accelerating automotive innovation. CANought combines open-source collaboration with established industry standards, such as CAN and SAE J1939, speeding up the development of Software Defined Vehicle applications,” said Mike Milinkovich, Executive Director at the Eclipse Foundation.
Enhancing Telematics Capabilities
Eclipse CANought offers secure, standardized access to vehicle ECUs, complementing another project, Eclipse Kanto, which provides hardware-agnostic solutions for running containerized applications on any telematics hardware. Together, these projects simplify the deployment and integration of telematics features across various vehicle systems.
Pracheth Rao, Senior Director of SDV Programs at Bosch Global Software, emphasized the importance of coordinated software updates for commercial vehicles, especially as cybersecurity regulations tighten globally. Sven Kappel, VP of Product Portfolio and Architecture at ETAS, added, “By creating standard interfaces, our update systems will seamlessly integrate with OEM and Tier 1 ECU software, ensuring smooth and efficient software updates across all vehicle systems.”
Looking Ahead
Over the coming months, Cummins, Bosch, ETAS, and KPIT will continue contributing to the Eclipse CANought project, refining and improving it with the help of the Eclipse SDV community. These innovations are expected to become production-ready and will be incorporated into telematics products starting in 2025.
Anup Sable, CTO of KPIT Technologies, highlighted the long-standing partnership with Cummins: “We are thrilled to bring KPIT’s expertise in remote diagnostics and OTA technology to this collaboration. This open-source, standardized solution, supported by the Eclipse Foundation, will transform the experience for engineering and service professionals in the commercial vehicle industry.”
