The behavior of car companies arbitrarily OTA (aerial download technology) is being put on a "tight curse".
On April 15, the Equipment Industry Development Center of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the Notice on Carrying Out the Filing of Online Upgrades of Automotive Software (hereinafter referred to as the Notice). The Notice clarifies that to further standardize the online upgrading of automotive software (OTA upgrade), automotive vehicle manufacturers and their production of automotive vehicle products with OTA upgrade functions and the implementation of OTA upgrade activities should be filed. The applicant is a vehicle manufacturer.
The Notice clarifies five parts: the scope of filing, the requirements for filing, the workflow of filing, the implementation arrangements and corporate responsibility. Among them, the filing requirements are: First, enterprises implementing OTA upgrade activities should ensure that automotive products comply with relevant requirements such as national laws and regulations, technical standards and technical specifications to ensure the consistency of automobile product production; second, enterprises should complete the filing of enterprise management capabilities, model and function filings and specific upgrade activities in turn before they can implement OTA upgrade activities; third, each specific upgrade activity is graded for filing, and is divided into three levels according to the impact assessment of upgrade activities Fourth, the enterprise is the main body responsible for the safety and consistency of product production of OTA upgrade activities, and should perform the obligation of vehicle user notification before and after the upgrade; fifth, the enterprise should identify the electronic control system affected by the upgrade activity, and save the initial and upgrade versions (sets) of the software to support the implementation of upgrade traceability management.
Specifically, before an enterprise carries out an OTA upgrade activity, it should submit the specific upgrade activity filing and related certification materials in accordance with the filing information and requirements listed in the filing system. Within 5 working days after the completion of the upgrade activity, submit a report on the implementation of the specific upgrade activity. Where the interval between the start and end of the upgrade activity exceeds 6 months, a phased report on the implementation status shall also be submitted every 6 months.
Those who apply for access to new products in the Announcement shall submit the model and function filing and related certification materials within 15 working days after the release of the Announcement, in accordance with the filing information and requirements listed in the online upgrade filing system for automotive software. Products that have been announced before the issuance of the Notice shall complete the supplementary filing within 60 working days after the filing of the enterprise management capacity.
The filing period is 3 years, and if the validity period expires or the enterprise management ability cannot be maintained continuously, a new application for filing is required. The Notice emphasizes that enterprises are responsible for the security of OTA upgrade activities and product production consistency. Enterprises should fulfill the obligation to inform, inform vehicle users of the purpose, content, required duration, impact of the upgrade, precautions and other information before the upgrade is implemented, and inform the vehicle users of the upgrade results after the upgrade is implemented.
In recent years, with the accelerated application of mobile Internet in the car end, automotive OTAs have become a major selling point of sales. It refers to downloading software update packages from remote servers over the network to upgrade their own systems and technical firmware. However, OTA programs pushed by car companies to individual users will also be accompanied by "hidden dangers" involving data privacy and security.
In the past two years, Tesla, SAIC Roewe, GAC Toyota, WM and other brands have been exposed, through the OTA upgrade technology to "lock" the battery output power, artificially reduce the charging ceiling, thereby slowing down the battery attenuation, and preventing the battery from thermal runaway and other failures. However, the "power lock" operation will also lead to a decrease in charging speed and a shrinking mileage, so that the vehicle products cannot reach the technical level of the record.
Judging from the content of the Notice, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will strictly manage the OTA upgrade activities of car companies, and the behavior of car companies to evade recall responsibility through OTAs will also be regulated. Previously, on April 7, Tesla recalled 127785 Model 3 vehicles in China due to potential failures in semiconductor components that could lead to crashes, and Tesla handled the process of upgrading motor control software for vehicles covered by the recall for free through OTAs.
The "Notice" requires that enterprises can directly carry out upgrades after filing without involving relevant upgrade activities related to changes in technical performance such as product safety, environmental protection, energy saving, and anti-theft.
Related upgrade activities involving changes in technical performance such as product safety, environmental protection, energy saving, and anti-theft should submit verification materials to ensure that the products comply with relevant requirements such as national laws and regulations, technical standards and technical specifications. Among them, related upgrade activities involving the change of technical parameters of the Announcement, enterprises should apply to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology for product changes or expansions in accordance with the administrative provisions of the Announcement before filing, and can carry out upgrades after completing the product access of the Announcement according to the process to ensure the consistency of production of automobile products.
It should be mentioned that the relevant upgrade activities involving the automotive autonomous driving function (driving automation classification level 3 and above) should be approved by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
The full text of the Notice is attached
Notice on the filing of online upgrades to automotive software
Relevant automobile manufacturers:
According to the "Measures for the Administration of Road Motor Vehicle Manufacturers and Product Access" and the "Opinions on Strengthening the Management of Access to Intelligent and Connected Vehicle Manufacturers and Products" and other relevant provisions, entrusted by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Equipment Industry Development Center of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology organized the filing of online upgrades of automotive software (also known as OTA upgrades). The relevant matters are hereby notified as follows:
1. Scope of filing
Vehicle manufacturers (hereinafter referred to as "enterprises") that have obtained road motor vehicle production access permits, as well as their complete vehicle products with OTA upgrade functions (hereinafter referred to as "products") and the OTA upgrade activities implemented should be filed for the record. The applicant should be a vehicle manufacturer.
II. Filing Requirements
(1) Enterprises implementing OTA upgrade activities shall ensure that automotive products comply with relevant requirements such as national laws and regulations, technical standards and technical specifications, and ensure the consistency of automotive product production.
(2) Enterprises should complete the filing of enterprise management capabilities, model and function filing and specific upgrade activities in turn as required before they can implement OTA upgrade activities.
(3) According to the impact assessment of the upgrade activities, the specific upgrade activities should be filed at different levels, and the requirements are as follows:
1. It does not involve product safety, environmental protection, energy saving, anti-theft and other related upgrade activities, and enterprises can directly carry out upgrades after filing.
2. Related upgrade activities involving changes in technical performance such as product safety, environmental protection, energy saving, and anti-theft should submit verification materials to ensure that the products comply with national laws and regulations, technical standards and technical specifications and other relevant requirements. Among them, related upgrade activities involving the change of technical parameters of the Announcement, enterprises should apply to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology for product changes or expansions in accordance with the administrative provisions of the Announcement before filing, and can carry out upgrades after completing the product access of the Announcement according to the process to ensure the consistency of production of automobile products.
3. Relevant upgrade activities involving the automotive autonomous driving function (driving automation classification level 3 and above) shall be approved by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
(4) The enterprise is the main body responsible for the safety of OTA upgrade activities and the consistency of product production. Enterprises should fulfill the obligation to inform, inform vehicle users of the purpose, content, required duration, impact of the upgrade, precautions and other information before the upgrade is implemented, and inform the vehicle users of the upgrade results after the upgrade is implemented.
(5) Enterprises should identify the electronic control system affected by the upgrade activities, and save the initial and upgraded versions (sets) of the software to support the implementation of upgrade traceability management. The relevant ICP Filing information shall be true, accurate and complete.
3. Filing workflow
(1) Filing of enterprise management capabilities. Enterprises should carry out OTA upgrade management capability assessment, and submit enterprise management capability filing and relevant certification materials. The filing period is 3 years, and if the validity period expires or the enterprise management ability cannot be maintained continuously, a new application for filing is required. The filing of models and functions, the filing of specific upgrade activities and the implementation of upgrading activities shall be carried out within the validity period.
(2) Model and function filing. After the issuance of this notice, those who apply for the admission of new products in the Announcement shall submit the model and function filing and related certification materials within 15 working days after the release of the product Announcement in accordance with the filing information and requirements listed in the online upgrade filing system for automotive software. Products that have been "announced" before the issuance of this notice shall complete the supplementary filing within 60 working days after the filing of the enterprise management capability.
(3) Filing of specific upgrade activities. Before carrying out specific OTA upgrade activities, enterprises should submit the specific upgrade activities for the record and related certification materials in accordance with the filing information and requirements listed in the online upgrade filing system for automotive software. Within 5 working days after the completion of the upgrade activity, submit a report on the implementation of the specific upgrade activity. Where the interval between the start and end of the upgrade activity exceeds 6 months, a phased report on the implementation status shall also be submitted every 6 months.
4. Implementation arrangements
From the date of issuance of this notice, enterprises shall carry out the filing of enterprise management capabilities, the filing of models and functions, and the filing of specific upgrade activities. Enterprises should fill in the filing information and relevant supporting materials by logging on to the "Automotive Software Online Upgrade Filing System" (url https://ota.miit-eidc.org.cn/). When the enterprise logs on to the homepage of the system, it first registers, and it is necessary to fill in the relevant information of the enterprise when registering. After successful registration, use the registered account to log in to the ICP Filing system.
5. Corporate Responsibility
Enterprises should continue to fulfill the requirements of filing commitments. If it is found that the enterprise has not filed in accordance with the regulations, concealed the true situation, provided false materials, cannot continue to maintain the OTA upgrade management ability of the enterprise, and there are problems such as product consistency, it shall be reported to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology for handling in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Announcement.
Notice is hereby given.
Equipment Industry Development Center of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
April 15, 2022