New EB Guide features consumer-inspired features

24th October 2013

Staff Reporter

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With features such as 3D content import and speech recognition for dynamic data, Elektrobit has taken the lead from the consumer and released a new EB GUIDE with a wide range of consumer-inspired features. EB GUIDE 5.5, Elektrobit's HMI development platform, also enables carmakers and suppliers to create multi-modal HMIs enriched with HTML5 app-like content.

The latest version of EB's HMI development platform was released at the International Conference "Electronic Systems for Motor Vehicles" in Baden-Baden. EB GUIDE 5.5 delivers an inter-process framework (IPC) for the integration of a HTML5 sandbox or any similar technology. The HTML5 integration is based on the EB GUIDE Graphic Target Framework (GTF) and an HTML5 enabled browser engine which is displayed in the core HMI via a HTML5 widget. The API (Application Programming Interface) available for app developers is directly generated from the development tool EB GUIDE Studio making it easier to grant HTML5 content a controlled channel to in-car data.

"The auto industry is working to provide drivers with the same seamless experience they've come to expect from their smart phones and other consumer electronics products," said Martin Schleicher, EB's vice president of Infotainment Products and Strategy. "New EB GUIDE 5.5 features such as dynamic speech recognition and HTML5 enable carmakers to bring web-based applications into the car. With EB GUIDE, carmakers are able to integrate the latest consumer applications into their vehicles while taking into account driver distraction. The result is a safe, convenient and superior driving experience."

Management of pop-ups and possible driver distraction is handled by the core HMI. As a result, carmakers are able to model the usability of the whole HMI and the security level access for external applications, ensuring that the device will always be up to date during the car's life-cycle and allowing the delivery of new content for the driver. The newest version of EB GUIDE also offers a DirectXRenderer, which enables EB GUIDE GTF on Microsoft Windows 8 RT. It also supports several new speech options, since external grammar files can be used directly in EB GUIDE Studio for more creative speech interfaces. In addition, version 5.5 allows dynamic vocabulary to adapt speech recognition to real-life data like MP3 lists, address books or radio stations. Furthermore, EB showcases a technology preview on the usage of statistic language models (SLM) to create more natural voice user interfaces.

EB GUIDE 5.5 offers an improved support for customers in Japan - the EB GUIDE Studio user interface and the first part of documentation are now available in Japanese.