• SeaJ@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    44
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    4 months ago

    Software that is completely unnecessary. There is zero reason a battery powered vehicle needs to be much different software wise than an ICE. They do not need 20" touchscreens packed with a custom infotainment system written by hardware focused developers.

    • mindlesscrollyparrot@discuss.tchncs.de
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      4 months ago

      The Megane E-tech has functionality in its satnav that lets you plot a route with charging stations on the way, showing how much capacity you will have left when you get to them. Not essential, but very useful for somebody who is new to EVs.

      Software that communicates with power companies to allow the car to charge overnight at advantageous rates, or even feed energy back into the grid. Again, not essential, but good for the customer and helps with the transition to green electricity.

    • workerONE@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      8
      arrow-down
      13
      ·
      edit-2
      4 months ago

      Electric cars need software to smooth out motor output to create an enjoyable driving experience. They also need to manage battery health and regenerative braking.

      Edit: cars like the Ioniq N seem to be the exception while most cars have problems like the Mercedes EQS that people report has unpredictable braking which means you can’t learn how to control it.

      • SeaJ@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        12
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        4 months ago

        The first thing is something ICE vehicles also do. A BMS, figuring out regenerative braking, and maybe one or two other things are the only things that need to be different. Car makers have shoved all the software they can into EVs without the experienced developers to do it on the hopes that they can fix shit in the future and charge subscription fees for it.

        • workerONE@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          edit-2
          4 months ago

          Yeah but when ice vehicles aren’t perfect it’s not a huge deal for the average driver. When an electric car isn’t smoothed out well you have the same problem but it’s amplified any times because of the instant torque.

      • nublug@lemmy.blahaj.zone
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        10
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        4 months ago

        battery controllers and motor controllers are available as cheap, simple, stable, off-the-shelf dedicated hardware and there’s no reason budget evs would need to do any coding for them, maybe just some variable adjustment. those things are not controlled by the user facing software being talked about here.

        • workerONE@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          edit-2
          4 months ago

          Maybe it’s like you say if you’re making a shit box but you can’t make a driver’s car without careful consideration. This conversation would be better to have with car enthusiasts rather than technology enthusiasts.

          • nublug@lemmy.blahaj.zone
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            4 months ago

            shit box or luxury car, this article is not talking about motor controller or battery controller software.