Google releases Android Auto API

Following the announcement of Android Auto in June, Google today released the platform's first APIs as part of the Android 5.0 (Lollipop) SDK, which allows developers to add customized in-car experiences to their existing Android apps.

Developed under the Open Automotive Alliance, Android Auto is a telematics standard that enables in-car electronics to control Android devices. With Auto, drivers can use their device's map, search, multimedia, SMS and phone functions through the car's audio control unit. They can operate their Auto-enabled phone or tablet through touch or voice recognition, preferably the latter, which is less distracting.

In the initial release of the API, Google provided Android device audio and SMS functional interfaces. This made the following two applications possible:

• Audio Applications – Allow users to browse and play audio content such as music, podcasts, news, etc. in the car.
• Messaging Application - Allows sending and receiving SMS messages. Incoming messages can be read aloud using text-to-speech and replied to via voice recognition.

To help developers write their first Auto app, Google has also released several resources. The Auto Getting Started Guide shows developers how to create an Auto project and describes in detail the process of integrating the audio and messaging APIs. In addition, to demonstrate the Auto API, Google has also updated two of its sample apps:

• MediaBrowserService Sample - Demonstrates how to use Auto to display a directory of media files for playback.
• MessagingService Sample - Demonstrates how to use the Auto API to notify users when a message is received on their device.

Developers need to pay special attention to Google's strict "Auto App Quality" guidelines. These guidelines set the highest standards for the visual design and user interaction of apps. Google enforces these guidelines as part of the driving safety review when submitting to the Play Store. The focus is on reducing driver interaction and the resulting distraction by reducing animations, alerts, and unnecessary notifications.

Developers should be aware that they cannot submit apps that use the Auto API to the Google Play Store yet. In the announcement, Google mentioned that "apps that use Android Auto extensions are not yet ready for release." As for when the Play Store will allow developers to submit apps that use Auto, they did not provide more information.

The first car to support Android Auto will be commercially released soon. So far, Google has listed 28 manufacturers that will integrate Auto into their cars. Hyundai is one of them. At the Los Angeles Auto Show last week, they demonstrated how to integrate Android Auto into their new 2015 Sonata.

Google Releases Android Auto APIs