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Could it happen to cars?


DonPeffers

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See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-41011659  regarding owners being told to update software otherwise the DJI Spark drone won't fly after 01 Sep 2017.

I've heard vague rumours this could happen to mainstream cars in the not too distant future (not the flying bit but disabled because software not updated) If the updates are free then ok but what if manufacturers start charging for updates as part of a yearly service?

End of car DIY?

Anyone heard about this?

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I could certainly imagine it applying to some car functions, eg autonomous driving, safety systems etc,

it does make you think though, software/PC makers only support devices for so long. Makes you wonder what the life span of modern cars may be. 

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1 hour ago, Rhett - Joint Black Country AO said:

 

it does make you think though, software/PC makers only support devices for so long. Makes you wonder what the life span of modern cars may be. 

I agree- it's the built-in tech that goes out of date way before the mechanicals!

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This must presume an on-board clock that counts down to update (threat) day.

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But with all things electronic someone will make a cheat that can be programmed in to get round it , it's the same as manufacturers trying to make you have the servicing carried out At a main dealer in the end the court ruled that it was ok to use a independent . Unless the government puts in reliable public transport cheep cars are hear to stay or the average Joe blogs will not be able to get to work. 

 

 

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In this case, I believe the back story that DJI aren't going out of their way to publicise, is that the drones are occasionally dropping out of the sky due to some problem with the battery management causing them to shut down. Given that that has the potential to cause injury or damage and potential liability, I can understand them wanting to ensure that the old firmware is taken out of circulation. That, and the fact that hacking of this device to remove geofencing of safety critical airspace is commonplace.

I would imagine car manufacturers would do the same if a fault in an engine ECU could cause the car to stop unexpectedly.

I wouldn't be surprised if the life of the flash memory in the ECUs becomes the limiting factor in the life of modern cars.

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2 hours ago, Kevin Wood said:

I would imagine car manufacturers would do the same if a fault in an engine ECU could cause the car to stop unexpectedly.

 

Found http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/cars/827667/Volkswagen-cars-emissions-scandal-limp-mode-defeat-device-software  after software 'upgrade' to remove emissions defeat device and cars apparently dropping to 20mph.

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1 hour ago, DonPeffers said:

Found http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/cars/827667/Volkswagen-cars-emissions-scandal-limp-mode-defeat-device-software  after software 'upgrade' to remove emissions defeat device and cars apparently dropping to 20mph.

I was always sceptical of the miracle upgrade "fix". After all, surely there was a good reason for the software to be fiddling the emissions in the first place?

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Same with Microsoft software, buy a new version now and again or your old operating system will not be usable.

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26 minutes ago, SootySport said:

Same with Microsoft software, buy a new version now and again or your old operating system will not be usable.

Quite! I use an app called Xmeye for Android with my CCTV system and it upgraded to a new version recently. The app then ceased to work so I rolled it back to the previous version and stopped automatic upgrades. It wasn't broken so why did they 'fix' it?

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