- Rivian does most of its {hardware} and software program work in-house, which means it is extraordinarily vertically built-in.
- The automaker’s second-generation R1T and R1S fashions are far easier beneath the hood. The long run fashions might even be extra simplified.
- That is what the discount in wiring and the variety of computer systems appears like in actual life.
Rivian raised eyebrows final 12 months with the debut of its second-generation electrical truck and SUV. The R1T and the R1S will not be solely extra superior than their earlier variations but in addition radically extra streamlined beneath the hood.
The California-based startup ripped out 1.6 miles of inner wiring harnesses from the outdated fashions, slashed the variety of onboard computer systems that handle numerous car features and made the vehicles simpler to restore. Now we’re attending to see what that appears like in actual life, thanks Kyle Conner of YouTube channel Out Of Spec Critiques, who just lately toured Rivian’s engineering headquarters in Palo Alto, California.
Photograph by: Rivian
Electrical vehicles have traditionally been dearer than their gas-powered counterparts. They’re additionally heavier as a result of high-voltage batteries. Now automakers are searching for methods to cut back prices, offset the heavy weight of the battery in different areas and make them simpler to restore and replace over time. Tesla began this obsession with effectivity and start-ups like Rivian are additionally getting actually good at it.
Within the video, Rivian’s Senior Vice President of Electrical {Hardware} Vidya Rajagopalan defined how the automaker shifted from its first-generation autos to the a lot easier second-generation fashions in simply two years.
On the second-gen R1T and R1S, Rivian lowered the variety of digital management models (ECUs)—or mainly the brains of the automobile—from 17 to only seven. ECUs management all the pieces from the drivetrain and infotainment to energy home windows and driver help techniques.
Fewer ECUs additionally imply much less wiring. Because the picture under reveals, 1.6 miles of wiring is an enormous quantity of fabric by way of sheer quantity. By eradicating it, Rivian shaved off 44 kilos of weight. Reducing down the variety of computer systems probably saved the corporate hundreds of {dollars} per car and freed up helpful area contained in the cabin and beneath the pores and skin. This theoretically additionally makes it simpler to restore, which wasn’t essentially the case earlier than.
One Rivian proprietor beforehand instructed InsideEVs that his first-generation R1T was out for restore for practically a 12 months. That’s as a result of the facet digicam bought broken in a minor crash, and to interchange that, the service middle needed to yank out your entire wiring harness. It additionally needed to dismantle the dashboard and take away the seats. All this, to interchange one small facet digicam.
That form of engineering complexity is strictly what Rivian got down to repair with its transfer to a “zonal structure.” As a substitute of counting on dozens of separate computer systems for particular features, Rivian now makes use of a handful of highly effective processors positioned in numerous zones of the car. These zones talk over a high-speed community linked to a central pc, drastically decreasing the quantity of wiring required. If one thing breaks, the analysis is way extra native—no must take away your entire wiring harness.
Rivian lowered 1.6 miles of wiring on the second technology R1 and a pair of.3 miles of wiring on the R2. That is what that appears like in actual life.
Photograph by: Rivian
When requested how the corporate constructed a full zonal structure in simply two years—a feat that will take a conventional automaker a few years—Rajagopalan credited three issues: being based mostly in Silicon Valley, prioritizing vertical integration and inspiring shut collaboration between {hardware} and software program groups.
“In a legacy OEM, if you wish to make a change, you begin with a gathering. Then product managers write up a scope-of-work doc, adopted by authorized contracts—and all of that takes time,” she stated.
At Rivian, it’s completely different. “The {hardware} and software program groups sit in the identical constructing,” Rajagopalan added. If you wish to make a change, you simply stroll over to the engineers, speak it out in a gathering room and get to work.
At Rivian’s engineering HQ, take a look at rigs that resemble life-sized car skeletons are outfitted with the corporate’s newest ECUs, wiring harnesses, sensors and cameras. These stripped-down frames simulate real-world failures and make sure the system is strong by the point it goes into an precise car.
Rivian can also be utilizing a liquid-cooled pc for its superior driver help system (ADAS) to handle the warmth generated by the huge quantities of knowledge it processes. It’s similar to a high-end gaming pc, however the ADAS computer systems are way more highly effective than your common gaming PCs. Sooner or later in future, additionally they goal to help larger ranges of autonomous driving options within the vehicles.
Apparently, Rivian’s ADAS and infotainment computer systems are bundled collectively for seamless communication between the 2. For infotainment and ADAS, there’s a number of info overlap—they each want GPS and navigation entry, for instance. So it is smart to bundle them collectively.
“The great thing about the zonal controller is that it’s geography-based,” Rajagopalan stated. “The older area controllers have been function-based.”
Rivian’s autonomy and infotainment computer systems sit on prime of one another.
Photograph by: Out of Spec Critiques (YouTube)
Rivian additionally does the entire software program and electrical structure work in-house, as an alternative of assembling elements made by tons of of various suppliers. That’s probably Rivian’s greatest benefit, regardless that it nonetheless has loads to show as a carmaker. Nevertheless, Rivian’s experience in software program and electrical structure is why Volkswagen agreed to take a position over $5 billion of their three way partnership for future VW and Rivian fashions.
“You can’t be a know-how chief in case you’re an integrator,” Rajagopalan stated. “It is advisable convey worth and differentiate. We imagine know-how is our differentiation. And by getting items off the cabinets from different individuals, you lose that differentiation.”
Have a tip? Contact the writer: suvratkothari@insideevs.com
