Microchip Technology and Marelli have developed an open-standard display connectivity solution that streams graphics and video from a vehicle’s central computer directly to automotive displays.
The demonstrator uses ASA Motion Link, an open standard for automotive video connectivity and serializer-deserializer communication. The approach is intended to reduce reliance on proprietary connectivity technologies while allowing components from multiple suppliers to operate within the same vehicle architecture.
Graphics and video generated by the vehicle’s central computer are transmitted through Microchip’s VS7000 ASA-ML chipset over a standardized high-speed link. Marelli integrates the display-side deserializer to decode and deliver centrally generated content to vehicle displays.
The technology supports data rates up to 16 Gbps and incorporates link-layer authentication and encryption. It is also designed to provide lossless data transmission and resistance to electromagnetic interference in electrically noisy automotive environments.
As electric vehicle (EV) architectures become increasingly software-defined, centralized computing can reduce the number of distributed electronic control units while placing greater demands on the networks connecting vehicle systems and displays. High-speed links are needed to carry data between centralized compute platforms and cockpit electronics without compromising signal integrity or security.
The solution also incorporates Time Division Duplex functionality and simplified Forward Error Correction to reduce communication overhead and power consumption.
Microchip and Marelli developed the demonstrator to support greater interoperability between vehicle electronics from different suppliers and provide a path toward increasingly Ethernet-based vehicle architectures.
Filed Under: Software