Project description
Improved controls against vehicle emissions tampering
The recent implementation of stricter emission standards for vehicles and more efficient controls, has helped cut pollution from cars. However, car owners often manipulate the emission control systems to avoid high-cost reparations or fuel costs. Traditional on-board diagnostic systems (OBD) are not able to prevent such manipulations. The EU-funded DIAS project aims to develop protection and security hardware and software to detect and make such tampering of environmental protection systems (EPS) impossible. This interdisciplinary team will work on new measures and methodologies to detect attempts of manipulations and decrease the level of car emissions.
Objective
Emissions standards for vehicles have managed to introduce state-of-the art emissions controls that have brought significant reductions in the actual emissions levels. However, there is increasing clear evidence of illegal manipulation of emission control systems by vehicle owners and widespread usage is observed in the market. In general it is almost always the vehicle’s owner or operator that tampers the EPS for economic advantages; either to reduce fuel or urea costs, or to avoid costly repairs of aged or malfunctioning equipment. Traditional OBD systems are designed to inform users about malfunctions of systems and components and notify the users of the repair needs and cannot prevent tampering. The primary target of DIAS is thus to harden vehicle environmental protection systems (EPS) against such tampering. This means that any changes in EPS hardware, software that degrade the performance of the system will be prevented, or detected. DIAS will develop innovative protection and security measures to increase the level of prevention. In case detected, information about the tampering attempt is available and is used to introduce countermeasures e.g. the activation of the driver inducement systems. DIAS brings together a highly qualified interdisciplinary team that starts with OBD and takes a two-step approach that involves implementing first measures to take early action against these activities, and a second cloud-based step that prepares methodologies and means for dealing with tampering attempts in the future that are currently unknown. Additionally DIAS will take into account that effective upcoming new tampering countermeasures can also be applied on vehicles already in the field to have an even stronger impact on preventing unnecessary environmental pollution. Finally DIAS takes advantage of future vehicle connectivity, both as opportunity and challenge, since these systems are intended to operate throughout Europe and even on a global scale.
Fields of science
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftware
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringcontrol systems
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesenvironmental sciencespollution
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuels
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
546 36 THESSALONIKI
Greece