Mexican Media Brands
Toyota Partners with Kymeta on In-Vehicle Satellite Antenna Technology
Toyota Motor Corp. is investing $5 million in Redmond, Wash.-based Kymeta Corp. and signed an exclusive agreement to develop and test the startup company’s flat satellite antenna technology for automotive applications.
Share
Toyota Motor Corp. is investing $5 million in Redmond, Wash.-based Kymeta Corp. and has signed an exclusive agreement to develop and test the startup company’s flat satellite antenna technology for automotive applications.
Toyota’s investment is part of Kymeta’s latest $62 million fundraising campaign. The carmaker, which has been conducting joint research with Kymeta for more than two years, has fitted a prototype of the technology on a new research vehicle based on its Mirai fuel-cell car.
Flat antennas allow for increased data transmission and broader coverage areas without having to install traditional bulky satellite receivers, according to the partners. The technology promises to help drive next-generation telematic systems, including streaming movies and games, over-the-air software updates and data sharing with other vehicles and the infrastructure.
In the Mirai, the 6-inch-wide liquid-crystal antennas are installed in the car’s glass roof. The prototype communication system can download satellite data at 50 megabits per second, which is faster than typical LTE wireless services. Transmission speed is expected to be more than one gigabit-per-second within a few years, Kymeta says.
RELATED CONTENT
-
Jeeps Modified for Moab
On Easter morning in Moab, Utah, when the population of that exceedingly-hard-to-get-to town in one of the most beautiful settings on Earth has more than doubled, some people won’t be hunting for Easter eggs, but will be trying to get a good look at one of the vehicles six that Jeep has prepared for real-life, fast-feedback from the assembled at the annual Easter Jeep Safari.
-
Cobots: 14 Things You Need to Know
What jobs do cobots do well? How is a cobot programmed? What’s the ROI? We asked these questions and more to four of the leading suppliers of cobots.
-
Plastics: The Tortoise and the Hare
Plastic may not be in the news as much as some automotive materials these days, but its gram-by-gram assimilation could accelerate dramatically.
