The automotive industry should change the design methods for developing automotive electronic systems. Reducing the number of electronic control units (ECUs) and integrating more functions are the two main factors driving this change. Since more functions usually require ECUs to have higher performance and computing power, the above two factors seem to fall into a well-known dilemma.
Reducing the number of ECUs is mainly to save costs, including power consumption, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), printed circuit board (PCB) area and cable issues. Reducing ECU can also reduce communication between ECUs, thereby reducing system complexity and cost.
Reducing the number of ECUs can affect costs in several ways:
Hardware cost: A more efficient system architecture can reduce the hardware redundancy that currently exists in more than one control unit. Moreover, fewer nodes and multiplexers and more distributed load can reduce the complexity of the automotive network system and make it more concise.
Development costs: The reduction in the number of ECUs simplifies the system, and it may be based on automotive computer platforms such as AUTOSAR and GENIVI, or its own platforms such as QNX and Microsoft Auto, which is obviously conducive to shortening development time. Because many software components can be reused, the use of such platforms will further reduce the cost of software, and can also choose the car configuration at the final stage of the production chain according to the requirements of the region or market segment.
Maintenance costs: Flexible and capable control units are also conducive to system updates and upgrades, especially when relying on standard software platforms.
Judging from the above factors, it seems that future automotive systems will be similar to PC-based architectures, where software will play a more important role. IHS envisages that this will be the era of software-defined cars, and hardware functions such as navigation, telematics and communication will be applied as software and handled by several central ECUs. In addition, system updates and upgrades can also be achieved remotely by downloading new software packages.
The integration issues mentioned above are also related to system performance requirements such as computing power. Due to the integration of new functions in future cars, it is expected that computing power will need to be greatly improved. These functions include infotainment, telematics, and navigation. In addition, the traditional powertrain, chassis and ADAS functions will also add functions, and these functions require more technology, especially computing power. The gradual improvement of safety and higher fuel efficiency will require more updated electronic devices, most of which require higher computing power.
Multi-core and virtual
Virtualization can serve multi-task systems and help rationalize automotive ECUs, thereby achieving lower cost and more efficient solutions. However, virtual systems can only be used for low- to medium-performance systems. Virtualization can provide cheap and stable solutions for existing systems and help the original system transition to the next generation and high-end systems, which are based on open source operating systems.
Therefore, IHS believes that the multi-core architecture will be the basic choice for automotive electronics in the long run, and can meet the emerging and future requirements for high performance, maintenance control, and power consumption.
Market supply and indicators
Multi-core processors have been used in automotive systems. Freescale Semiconductor offers a dual-core processor with a speed of 130MHz. As an OEM, BMW is one of the first to adopt a multi-core architecture, and has adopted Freescale's solutions in BMW racing. BMW is also expected to adopt a multi-core system in future series 1, series 3 and X3 models.
ARM recently announced the introduction of Cortex-R5 and Cortex-R7 MPCore processors for 3G and 4G mobile devices, as well as automotive and industrial applications. The ARM processor series covers a wide range of high-performance, real-time embedded applications, just to meet the needs of the automotive market.
These new products are particularly suitable for embedded applications that require high performance and high reliability. These processors provide a series of safety-critical functions, including error management in all external buses, redundant dual-core systems, and error checking codes (ECC). These products also support high-frequency interrupts and fast and deterministic data transmission for real-time high-security applications.
Electronic design is also trying to reduce its size while continuously improving the performance of the whole machine. From mobile phones to smart small portable products, small is always the same pursuit. High-density integration (HDI) technology enables end-product design to be more compact while meeting higher standards of electronic performance and efficiency. HDI is currently widely used in mobile phones, digital (camera) cameras, MP3, MP4, notebook computers, automotive electronics and other digital products, among which mobile phones are the most widely used. HDI boards are generally manufactured using a build-up method. The more times the layers are stacked, the higher the technical grade of the board. Ordinary HDI boards are basically one-time laminate, high-order HDI uses two or more layers of technology, and adopts advanced PCB technology such as stacking holes, plating holes, and laser direct drilling. High-end HDI boards are mainly used in 3G mobile phones, advanced digital video cameras, IC carrier boards, etc.
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