"GOOGLE’S INTEREST IN
PROJECT ARA ISN’T NECESSARILY ABOUT CHANGING THE WORLD TOMORROW — IT’S ABOUT
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE"
Project Ara is the codename
for an initiative by Google that aims to develop a free, open hardware platform
for creating highly modular
smartphones. The platform will include a structural frame that holds smartphone
modules of the owner's choice, such as
a display, keyboard or an extra battery. It would allow users to swap out
malfunctioning modules or upgrade
individual modules as innovations emerge, providing longer lifetime cycles for
the handset, and potentially reducing
electronic waste.
The project was originally
spearheaded by the Advanced Technologies And Projects team within Motorola
Mobility, then a subsidiary of
Google. Although Google is selling Motorola to Lenovo, it is retaining the
team, who will work under the direction
of the Android division.
motivation=
Google says the phone is designed
for "six billion people",including the one billion smartphone users
and the five billion feature phone users. Google
intends to sell a US$50 starter pack that includes a frame, a screen, a
battery, a low end CPU and WiFi.
Google wants Project Ara to lower
the barrier entry for phone hardware manufacturers so there could be
"hundreds of thousands of developers"
instead of the current handful of big manufacturers. Anyone will be able to
build a module, without requiring a licence
or paying a fee.
modules and frames=
- Ara phones are built using modules inserted into metal endoskeleton frames. The frame will be the only component in an Ara phone made by Google. It acts as the switch to the on-device network linking all the modules together.
- There will be three frame sizes available at first: "mini", which is about the size of an iPhone, "medium", which is about the size of a 4.7 inch phone, and "phablet", which is about a third larger than "medium".
- Frames have two slots on the front: a space for the screen and a small horizontal bar. On the back they have square and rectangular slots of various sizes. Each frame is expected to cost around US$15.
- Modules can provide common smartphone features, such as cameras and speakers, but can also provide more specialized features, like a medical device, receipt printer, laser pointer, pico projector, night vision camera, or game controller buttons.
- Each slot on the frame will accept any module of the correct size. Modules can be hot-swapped without switching the phone off. (The frame includes a small backup battery so the main battery can be swapped.)
- Modules are secured with either latches or electropermanent magnets. The enclosures of the modules are 3D printed, so customers can design their own individual look and replace them as they wish.
- Modules will be available both at an official Google store, and at third party stores. Ara phones will only accept official modules by default, but users can simply change a setting to install unofficial modules. This is similar to how Android handles app installations.
technical details=
The first version of the
developers' kit relies on a prototype implementation of the Ara on-device
network using the MIPI UniPro protocol implemented on
FPGA and running over an LVDS physical layer with modules connecting via retractable pins. Subsequent
versions will soon be built around a much more efficient and higher performance ASIC implementation of UniPro,
running over a capacitive M-PHY physical layer.
the team =
Project Ara was developed and is
led by Paul Eremenko.The project falls under Regina Dugan, who runs Google's Advanced Technology and Projects
(ATAP) organization. Both Eremenko and Dugan come to Google from DARPA, where Eremenko originated
the Fractionated Spacecraft concept and ran the Adaptive Vehicle Make program, before heading the
Tactical Technology Office. The core Project Ara team at Google consists of
three people, with most of the work done
by outside contractors. One of the main contractor is NK Labs, a Massachusetts engineering firm. (Project Ara is
named after NK Lab's co-founder Ara Knaian). Another contractor is 3D Systems.
reception=
Initial reception to the earlier
modular Phonebloks concept was mixed, citing its infeasibility, lack of a
working prototype, as well as other
production and development concerns. The current prototype is 9.7mm thick, slightly thicker than conventional smartphones.
future of project ara=
Sure, Project Ara and modular
phones might seem like a pipe-dream right now, but ten years from now?
Technology moves quickly. Ten years ago from today, advanced mobile operating
systems like Android and iOS would have seemed unbelievable. Quad-core phones?
Forget about it.
Bottom-line, modular phones have a
ton of potential, particularly from the angle of improving end-user/customer
experiences, even if such a model is still unproven in the mobile world.
Whether modular phones can actually live up to this potential remains unseen
for now.
But according to the latest news, google has cancelled the project ara.To know more go to fortune.com
