4 months ago
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When Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, precocious spoke astir the transformative imaginable of Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), a technology for autonomous driving successful India, helium framed it arsenic a captious lever for safer roads, smarter postulation absorption and future-ready mobility. That imaginativeness is already uncovering factual look wrong Samsung Electronics-owned HARMAN Automotive’s India operations, which are emerging arsenic a planetary hub for software-defined and connected conveyance technologies, says Krishna Kumar, Managing Director and Automotive Head, HARMAN India.
Mr. Krishna Kumar told The Hindu that, “We’ve been preparing for software-defined vehicles for a portion now. Our attack is grounded successful gathering production-ready solutions, moving beyond concepts to deployable solutions and acceptable products. These are already with OEMs and assistance chopped clip to marketplace by astir half.”
He further said, a cardinal pillar of HARMAN’s production-ready strategy was V2X. For instance, from India HARMAN worked successful concern with HERE Technologies, a Dutch firm, to make nonstop and cloud-based V2X operator assistance systems that enactment Euro NCAP (new car appraisal programme) 2026 compliance. These systems enabled precocious roadworthy alerts—ranging from accidents and stationary vehicles to wrong-way drivers—reinforcing the information outcomes policymakers person been advocating, helium explained.
According to Mr. Kumar, HARMAN’s Ready Product portfolio spans aggregate aspects of the in-car experience: Ready Care focuses connected operator safety, wellness and cognitive load detection; Ready Vision is simply a next-generation integer cockpit solution; Ready Upgrade enables post-sale diagnostic additions, and Ready Display enhances in-cabin ocular experiences. ``All these are modular, production-grade platforms designed to help manufacturers bring products to marketplace faster by accelerating OEM timelines,’’ helium added.
Connectivity, however, is wherever HARMAN sees a large inflection point. Ready Connect, is simply a pre-developed all-in-one telematics power portion (TCU) that compresses conveyance improvement timelines. ``It offers built-in upgradability from 4G to 5G to SatCom done configurable design, reducing the full outgo of OEM ownership and maximising instrumentality connected investment,’’ Mr. Kumar claimed adding, by enabling ubiquitous connectivity, the TCU allowed OEMs to connection safe, unafraid and reliable connected experiences to consumers anyplace and anytime.
“This is wholly done retired of India, successful fact, extremity to end.We physique the hardware, make the software, and manufacture it here,’’ helium said, emphasizing the pb relation played by India. The TCU which comprises each intelligent electronics yet enables vehicles to enactment connected adjacent successful regions with mediocre terrestrial networks, switching seamlessly to outer connectivity erstwhile required.
Mr. Kumar further said, not conscionable technology, India was besides cardinal to HARMAN’s manufacturing and OEM partnerships. Its Pune installation served arsenic a planetary manufacturing hub for integer cockpits, TCUs (telematics power units) and automotive electronics, supplying to starring Indian automakers including Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki and Mahindra & Mahindra.
“From car audio standpoint, for Tata we integrate JBL branded audio, for Mahindra it’s Harman Kardon, and for Maruti it’s Infinity,” helium elaborated. “We besides make the implicit intelligent cockpit bundle successful India. This is genuinely Make successful India for the world.”
One standout illustration was the all-new Tata Sierra, which featured HARMAN’s precocious infotainment, integer instrumentality cluster, upgraded JBL audio strategy and Ready Connect connectivity—marking a caller signifier successful the long-standing HARMAN-Tata partnership, helium stated.
Looking ahead, helium said, HARMAN has plans to deepen investments successful bundle defined conveyance (SDV) platforms, V2X and immersive in-cabin experiences, moving intimately with aggregate OEMs and leveraging collaboration with genitor company, Samsung Electronics.
“With the talent, capableness and merchandise extent we’ve built—especially retired of India—we’re assured we tin enactment ahead,” helium stated.
As India accelerated toward connected mobility, HARMAN’s India-led V2X innovations were already shaping vehicles not conscionable for section roads, but for planetary highways, Mr. Kumar further said.
