An analysis of possible architectures and MQTT communication protocol applied to the connected vehicles scenario

Lately, we have assisted the boom of the so-called “Internet of Things” (IoT): this phenomenon describes a network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors, software and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging real time data with other devices and systems over the Internet. Connectivity applied to objects of common use is maybe one of the most important technological revolutions of the 21st century, capable of producing numerous benefits both from the business side and for the final consumers, in terms of effectiveness, efficiency and productivity. Among the many possible IoT devices that can be connected nowadays, this thesis work will focus on the connected vehicles scenario. Following the introduction of a normative that obliges carmakers to install a SIM card and to implement a mechanism to make an emergency call on board, the main OEMs have necessarily had to add specific hardware and software on the vehicle and have therefore decided to exploit this to their own advantage, by installing telematic boxes. These embedded devices were then connected to various control units to obtain useful information about the vehicle, which can then also be sent to the customer's mobile app. This means that carmakers have seen a big chance in using telemetry data retrieved from vehicles to build a better user experience for vehicles’ owners and to offer new dimensions of infotainment. This was a fundamental change of paradigm, because features that were previously considered as optionals are now becoming part of the production chain of the car in all respects. Furthermore, car manufacturers will now be able to continuously update the cars with new software and this is a crucial difference from the traditional model of car ownership in which vehicles immediately depreciate in terms of performance and value. In such a particular scenario, in which the network is not reliable and in which, due to the hardware limitations of the vehicle, the embedded device can not always be connected to the network, the MQTT protocol enters the scene, because it best fits this scenario. This protocol, which is briefly presented in one of the opening chapters, fits well to a real-time communication model, is capable of transmitting information with a many-to-one paradigm and is well suited for asynchronous communications, which is a classic requirement of the IoT. This thesis work aims to analyze a real context and was therefore made on the basis of information made available by an important global OEM with offices in Europe and North America. Although the implementation details of the box were not made available together with the complete architectural choices, the data were sufficient to conduct a study of the ways in which the MQTT protocol can be applied to the connected vehicle world, in particular as regards the messages exchanged between the vehicle and the cloud. In particular, after having presented an high level overview of the infrastructure of the connected vehicle platform similar to the one actually used by the company, the operating mechanisms of the embedded telematic box installed on board the car have been analyzed, in order to prove that this kind of IoT devices take full advantage of all the additional features made available by the MQTT protocol. In the final part of the work, real use cases of application of the MQTT protocol on the embedded box have been presented, to perform remote operations.