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Interviewed by
Mastufa Ahmed
Vehicle
manufacturers are coming up with sophisticated digital systems
addressing infotainment, vehicle safety, and telematics! What are
some of the hot auto technologies being used in next-gen vehicles?
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Consumer demand for
high-performance, smart connectivity is revolutionizing consumer
in-car experiences and creating growth opportunities for silicon
providers that offer automotive-grade products capable of meeting
the rigorous demands of the automotive industry.
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Vehicle manufacturers are
increasing working on providing sophisticated digital systems
addressing vehicle safety, infotainment, and telematics. Computing
functions in various forms is becoming an integral part of a car.
On-board motor digital content such as rear seat entertainment
systems, navigation systems, and driver assistance applications
are no more add-ons in a car model as they are considered
mainstream products in automobile industry.
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hspace="4" vspace="4">Car communication is one such future
technology to be adopted by more and more manufacturers. This
technology enables cars to communicate and enabling a warning
system for the driver. This technology is a real lifesaver,
especially when visibility is low, due to fog etc. or roads with
sharp turns.
Do you think
future generations of vehicles will require increased on-board
computing power?
Today, automotive market is
witnessing a swift electronic control evolution. New auto
technologies offer consumers cars that are safer, more fuel
efficient and more pleasant to drive than any previous generation
cars. Much of this has to do with the unprecedented expansion of
global market encompassing all aspects of the industry, from
government environmental mandates to vehicle manufacturing to
semiconductor solutions design.
The researchers are coming up with
innovative technologies to improve the driving experience for the
car occupant. Some of the technologies may simply not work in a
varied environment if implemented without taking into
consideration the environmental challenges.
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On- board computers is the
technology which our cars need today, offer features both for
efficiency and infotainment and comfort. For example, information
about a car's current or average fuel consumption on a display in
the instrument cluster can be really beneficial, both to the owner
and environment. With this information the technology can compute
how far one can drive with the fuel left in the tank. The data
also helps the driver to drive in an efficient and economical way.
With increased demand for the fuel efficiency and concerns for
environmental challenges, the technology is much sought after and
will be available in future generation vehicles.
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This is just the beginning of the
era when we will see advanced automated cars. Automotive
electronic systems built on innovative, zero-defect technology
will enable this vision, and Freescale is continually investing in
new designs that will help our partners redefine the vehicle.
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What are some
of the most compelling solutions for the auto industry?
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Ever since we began designing and
manufacturing automotive semiconductors in the 1950s, we have
partnered with nearly every automaker and tier one supplier in the
world. Freescale is actively developing market-ready solutions for
powertrain control and hybrid technologies to improve fuel
efficiency and lower emissions, advanced safety and chassis
applications to reduce and even prevent accidents, body
electronics and driver information systems to improve driving
experience.
Freescale has expanded its
portfolio of Qorivva 32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) built on Power
Architecture technology to power the next wave of automotive
instrument cluster applications. Freescale's Qorivva MPC5645S MCU
family builds on the MPC5606S family with additional advanced
features such as high-quality digital graphics, dual displays and
video input capabilities (for applications such as backup camera
feeds), while supplying enough processing performance to
efficiently display data from a variety of internal systems
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Freescale in association with
Broadcom Corporate and OmniVision Technologie announced a jointly
developed 360-degree surround view parking assistance system —
Ethernet-based parking assistance solution. The collaboration is
an important step in the migration from a closed application to an
open and scalable Ethernet-based driver assistance network in
which several systems can easily access information
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Freescale Qorivva MPC567xK family
of 32-bit MCUs, built on Power Architecture technology, provides
designers of automotive safety systems the ability to engineer
advanced safety features, such as blind-spot detection,
lane-departure warning systems, side view assistance and adaptive
headlights. These and similar advanced automotive safety systems
are part of the rapidly growing market known as advanced driver
assistance systems (ADAS).
Freescale, i.MX 6 series
processors have been selected to power a variety of automotive
infotainment/telematics platforms, from entry-level systems to
highly advanced offerings. Freescale MM912J637 intelligent battery
sensor (IBS) accurately measures the voltage, current and
temperature of lead-acid batteries and calculates the battery
state, all while operating in harsh automotive conditions.
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