NG eCall means the next-generation in-vehicle emergency call built on the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), as distinct from the old circuit-switched (2G/3G) approach. It runs over the packet domain and maps to European standards such as EN 17184 and EN 17240; it is not the same as old CS end-to-end.
The "IM" often mentioned in NG eCall projects is the Implementation Matrix - a document that maps the vehicle, the STU unit and the eCall functions across to regulatory clauses, test items and conformity evidence. It is part of the technical file, not a project stage. Get the matrix solid and the walk to EU type approval (EC type-approval) is smoother. Vehicle makers and component makers also move at different paces: the former follow the type-approval authority, the latter the laboratory, so do not put one cycle on both.
The mandatory scope is only M1 and N1 - buses, heavy trucks and two-wheelers are outside it, while components may be certified voluntarily. Confirm which category your vehicle falls into first, because picking the wrong chapter wastes the whole effort. Passenger cars with no more than nine seats and light trucks up to 3.5 tonnes are the ones inside these two categories.
Standards follow the current European versions. The basic eCall Minimum Set of Data (MSD) is 140 bytes; NG eCall adds IP-domain extension information on top, so the total length grows - do not reserve only 140 bytes during development. End-to-end consistency follows EN 17240, and the IMS packet-domain requirements overall follow EN 17184. From 2026, new applications go by the new versions, so set the right version at project launch.
A third-party laboratory runs against those standards: positioning accuracy (CEP95, 50 metres in an open environment), the audio path, trigger logic and backup power retention. The test vehicle has to be production-consistent with locked firmware, or the data does not count.
A component (STU) certificate only exempts the component from repeat testing of its own body. Once fitted, antenna matching, the audio path, crash-trigger linkage and whole-vehicle EMC still have to be tested. Do not assume that a component certificate clears the vehicle; the in-vehicle integration item stops a fair number of projects, so put it into the plan early.
Assemble the file against the (EU) 2017/79 technical requirements and the (EU) 2017/78 administrative annex templates, covering the MSD, test reports and the privacy and data protection statement, which the owner's manual has to spell out clearly. The templates have a fixed official format - do not invent your own.
Data is transmitted only in an emergency and deleted once the call is done; write that into the file and into the manual. A missing privacy item gets the file bounced straight back by the type-approval authority, and the EU watches personal data closely, so this is no place to be casual - remediation costs more than getting it right the first time. The MSD field definitions also have to be aligned with the backend operator; if the vehicle maker and the operator each fill in their own version, the file comes back, so fix the interface between the two at project launch.
File with the type-approval authority of a member state, which reviews the technical file and the test results and, if compliant, issues the EU type-approval certificate; the vehicle then carries the e marking. Applications use the (EU) 2017/78 annex template, and the file has to be complete to enter review. EU whole-vehicle type approval is automatically valid across the EU once issued by a member state - it is not a separate "multi-country mutual recognition framework". Local labelling, manual language and a local representative in each member state are market-placement requirements, not certificate-recognition steps, so budget them separately.
The certificate numbering system follows the annexes to 2007/46/EC: one country issues and the whole EU recognises it. From a complete IM to the certificate can be a few months, and longer when remediation runs on. During remediation the original slot is not held, and after fixing you re-queue - do not leave that out of the account.
Once the EU type-approval certificate is in hand, the vehicle carries the e marking, in the style and position the regulation requires; missing or wrong marking gets stopped on the road. The certificate and test reports are archived for ten years and more, so they can be produced when regulators trace back - do not let them become unfindable with age.
A hybrid solution has to meet the NG packet-domain standards and may also touch the old circuit-switched clauses, so run the two test plans separately. For a facelift that changes only software, assess whether the change affects the NG eCall trigger, IMS communication, MSD generation, audio or backup power logic; if it does, a change filing is needed. Purely unrelated head-unit UI software changes do not need one. Component makers and vehicle makers again move at different paces - do not measure both with one ruler.
NG and the old circuit-switched approach are two different things, and a hybrid touches both standards, so do not test only one and call it done. In-vehicle integration and the privacy statement are the two items returned most often, so list them as mandatory checks at project launch.
Before the sample firmware, antenna and backup power scheme are frozen, align the current standard version and test items - do not schedule against an old forum post. Submit only when the file, the sample and the privacy statement are all complete; going back and forth costs more time than getting it right once. For eCall programmes, BlueAsia builds the Implementation Matrix first, then sequences the component, vehicle and privacy work off it, so the file does not come back for a missing interface.
Contact: King Email: king.guo@cblueasia.comAddress: Building C, Hongjingda Industrial Park, No. 107 Beihuan Road, Shiyan Street, Bao'an District, Shenzhen, China BlueAsia delivers more than service!
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