Vol. 28, No. 9 u hansenreport.com u November 2015 Conversation with Genivi Unclean Diesels, Where to from Cybersecurity Thought Here? Leader, Bill Weinberg Since the story broke in September, “A very cozy equilibrium had grown up most Hansen Report readers will have seen in Europe between manufacturers, test plenty of news about the Volkswagen diesel houses and governments. The arrangement Bill Weinberg is senior director of open emissions cheating scandal. Software was producing very good sounding num- source strategy for Black Duck Software, aboard Volkswagen Group diesel vehicles bers. CO2 was falling, fuel economy was which helps companies secure and manage enables them to emit much, much lower going up. NOx was coming down. The sys- open source software. Black Duck is a levels of nitrogen oxides (NOx) during tem with its unrepresentative test was pro- member of Genivi, and Mr. Weinberg has emission tests than they actually spew on ducing test numbers that were making been working closely with the alliance to the road. Installed on more than 11 mil- everyone happy, but did little to improve highlight the importance of cybersecurity lion vehicles globally, the defeat devices air quality or reduce CO2. (See the graphic to members and the surrounding ecosys- have allowed Volkswagen vehicles to emit on page 2.) tem. With Genivi, he has produced Webi- up to 40 times the U.S. legal limit of NOx. According to Emissions Analytics’ tests, nars, moderated panel sessions and A component of smog and acid rain, high at 300mg per kilometer the average real- presented at Genivi events, all “aimed at NOx levels in the air we breathe has been world driving emissions of NOx in Europe getting the word out on automotive cyber- linked with respiratory and cardiovascular are nearly four times higher than the maxi- security, getting users and developers think- illness, as well as premature death. mum of 80mg/km permitted by Euro 6 ing about the subject, moving beyond The diesel emissions story broke in the regulations. The equivalent U.S. regula- panic,” said Mr. Weinberg. “The primary United States where NOx emissions regula- tion is 31mg/km. “Mercedes and BMW problem with cybersecurity is the lack of tions are strict, but the problem of diesel diesels meet the U.S. requirement. It can information.” emissions is a greater problem in Europe, be done. It is an issue of regulation in Eu- With 30 years of embedded systems where 53% of new vehicles are diesel pow- rope, an issue of not forcing carmakers to experience, including work in the automo- ered. The issue of disparities between clean up diesels,” said Mr. Molden. tive market with MontaVista, Wind River emission test results and real world perfor- and Mentor Graphics, Mr. Weinberg offers mance in Europe is not at all new. European Emissions Standards and Con- a unique perspective on secure systems, Emissions Analytics helps automotive formity Tightening, Somewhat open source hygiene and the Internet of businesses increase fuel efficiency and re- NOx emissions from diesels have made Things. duce emissions through tailpipe testing and the air in a number of European cities un- analysis. Using portable measurement healthy. Recognizing that laboratory tests No Cybersecurity through Obscurity equipment, Emissions Analytics has tested severely understate the amount of air pollu- Carmakers tend to be secretive about more than 1,000 vehicles, 700 in Europe tion emitted during real driving condi- their vulnerabilities and about what they and 300 in the United States. “We got into tions, the European Commission’s are doing to defend against cyberattacks. this four years ago because we believed Technical Committee voted last month to Despite Genivi’s efforts, it’s been nearly there was a big gap between official labora- tighten the difference between laboratory impossible to get carmakers to speak pub- tory tests and what is happening in the real and real driving emissions (RDE). The cars licly, to appear on panels, or even talk can- world,” said Emissions Analytics CEO, will be driven outside, on real roads, where didly with experts about their cybersecurity Nick Molden. “We have been telling gov- NOx pollutants (and at a later stage partic- challenges. An automotive ISAC (Informa- ernments and regulators about this for ulates) will be measured by portable equip- tion Sharing and Analysis Center) has been years. People weren’t denying there were ment. set up in the United States, where auto- problems, but no one was acting very Currently Euro 6 diesel cars exceed the makers can share information about cyber- speedily to do anything about it.” NOx limit by 4 to 5 times. In a first step, threats and vulnerabilities—but real sharing New regulations in Europe were being by September 2017, carmakers will have to and openness among carmakers is not discussed very slowly, and the automotive bring this discrepancy to a conformity fac- expected. industry was trying to water them down. tor of no more than 2.1 times the legal lim- “Carmakers haven’t benefited from “As soon as the Volkswagen scandal be- it for new models. In a second step, by openness nearly as much as other indus- came news, the political momentum January 2020 the conformity factor will be tries,” said Mr. Weinberg. “Automakers changed completely, and people have final- further reduced to 1.5 times the limit. need to take a page from the playbooks of ly changed their positions,” Mr. Molden networking equipment manufacturers and observed. Continued on page 2 Turn to Cybersecurity, page 8 The Hansen Report on Automotive Electronics, www.hansenreport.com Page 1, November 2015 Diesels… Continued from page 1 For 18 years Margo Oge was the direc- BMW and Mercedes vehicles, which late number, requiring a sensor that tor of the Office of Transportation and Air conform to U.S. standards, employ SCR doesn’t exist yet.” Quality for the U.S. Environmental Protec- technology. VW took a different approach. Cylinder pressure sensors, which have tion Agency. Ms. Oge helped to finalize a “VW had access to the SCR technology. It been talked about for a long time but have program in 2000 that required commercial is now on the Passat and on an increasing not yet found wide adoption, will not be diesel manufacturers to reduce nitrogen number of vehicles,” said Mr. Molden. used in the short or medium term, accord- oxides and particulate emissions by 95%. “But they wanted the lean NOx trap (LNT) ing to Mr. Macaudière. It is Ms. Oge’s opinion that the Europe- system to work because it was cheaper and ans need to change their whole compliance easier for the consumer.” (Urea tanks have Diesels a Bridge to Zero Emissions system. “Their system relies on third par- to be frequently refilled.) According to Mr. The diesel engine has received a big ties hired by the carmakers to make sure Molden, an LNT system costs in the range black eye from the VW emissions scandal. the carmakers are doing the right thing. It of a few hundred dollars compared with But, according to the experts, it’s too soon is not an efficient system. Compliance the high-hundreds of dollars for an SCR to expect the demise of diesel light vehi- oversight should come from the govern- system. cles. They do pollute and are largely re- ment,” she said. sponsible for the dirty air in many Diesel Sensors Needed European cities. But in their favor, Europe- Selective Catalytic Reduction PSA Peugeot Citroën decided to stan- ans like the way they drive, and they pro- The go-to technology for cleaning diesel dardize on SCR for all its Euro 6 engines, duce 15% less CO2 than gasoline engines. engine exhausts today is selective catalytic beginning in 2008. “We are convinced that “There are still opportunities to contin- reduction (SCR), described here from the SCR is the only technology that can signifi- ue to improve the carbon footprint of die- Volkswagen website. cantly reduce NOx to a level that will con- sel while further limiting nitrogen oxides The SCR catalytic converter (Selective Catalytic form to the RDE conformity factors, even and particulate matter pollution,” said Ms. Reduction) converts the exhaust constituent nitro- for small vehicles,” wrote Pierre Oge. “You have to look at diesel along with gen oxide (NOx) into nitrogen and water without Macaudière, emission control systems ex- more efficient gasoline engines as a bridge producing undesirable by-products. This conversion pert at PSA Peugeot Citroën, in an email to a future where you are not going to be takes place using a synthetically produced aqueous to the Hansen Report. burning fossil fuels for personal transporta- urea solution, which is carried in an auxiliary tank. The substance, containing 32.5 percent Clean diesel technology still has some tion.” urea, is added continuously to the exhaust tract upside as new or improved sensors are de- Margo Oge’s book, Driving the Future: upstream of the SCR catalytic converter. It is me- veloped. Mr. Macaudière expects that more Combating Climate Change with Cleaner, tered according to the mass flow rate of the ex- accurate NOx sensors and even ammonia Smarter Cars, was published in April 2015. haust gas and is precisely regulated by the engine sensors will be required to more precisely u management system, which receives information control the urea dosing and to fulfill on- from the NOx sensor behind the SCR catalytic board diagnostic requirements. “A drastic converter. decrease in sensor costs is expected since According to Allen Shaeffer, executive the current cost level is not acceptable in director at the Diesel Technology Forum © 2015 Paul Hansen Associates, 150 the long term.” in the U.S., “SCR has proven itself to be Pinehurst Road, Portsmouth, NH 03801 Mr.