Automotive

Integrated inertial measurement unit stabilises autonomous vehicle robots

Mon, Apr 17, 2023

The IMU330RA is an integrated inertial measurement unit (IMU) developed by Aceinna. It has high accuracy and low latency characteristics, delivering one degree per hour bias instability and 0.1 degrees per square root angular random walk. As such it provide localisation and safety for autonomous vehicles, self-driving taxis and delivery vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), said the company.

The IMU330RA is a six DoF (degrees of freedom) inertial sensor packaged in a ruggedised, sealed over-moulded plastic housing, sealed to IP69K level. It features a redundant three-axis accelerometer and three-axis rate gyroscope sensors for accuracy and reliability, said Aceinna. 

The module supports both 1000Base-T1 automotive Ethernet and CAN-FD interfaces and provides up to 1000Hz update rate with low latency. The IMU330RA is an automotive grade, ASIL B-certified device which serves as the basis for customer positioning system integration to ASIL D, advised Aceinna.

It is designed for use in Automotive Level 3 and higher ADAS, confirmed Teoman Ustun, vice president of Aceinna’s automotive business unit. “This new sensor module provides encrypted data, at up to 1000Hz output rate over both Ethernet and CAN-FD interfaces, and supports precise synchronisation based on gPTP 802.1AS:2020 and unified diagnostic services.”

The operating temperature range is -40 to +105 degrees C. The IMU benefits from encrypted software updates and communication, with an on board hardware security module (HSM).

IMUs work together with a variety of perception sensors (for example, lidar, cameras, radar, odometry) to ensure that a vehicle stays on the correct path. If, however, the perception sensors fail because of location or environmental challenges (such as heavy rain, snow, dust, or smoke) the IMU can keep the vehicle on its projected path until data from the perception sensors re-engages or the vehicle is safely brought to a stop.

Aceinna is headquartered in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, USA. The company provides edge MEMS-based sensing solutions designed to help customers improve the reliability, cost, features and performance of end products and equipment. 

The company has manufacturing facilities in Wuxi, China, and R & D facilities in San Jose California, Andover Massachusetts and Chicago Illinois, USA.

http://www.aceinna.com

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Low noise, high PSRR uModule regulator powers noise-sensitive applications

Thu, Mar 23, 2023

Patented silicon, layout and packaging contribute to the low noise, dual output DC/DC uModule regulator released by Analog Devices (ADI). The LTM8080 operates from up to 40V input.

The front-end is a high efficiency synchronous Silent Switcher step-down regulator followed by two separate low noise, low dropout (LDO) regulators. The packaging integrates an EMI barrier wall or shield, designed to further suppress switching noise, explained ADI. The company said that the result is exceptional low noise values of less than 1.0 microV RMS (10Hz to 100kHz), 2nV/√Hz (10kHz) spot noise, and 80dB PSRR (100kHz). Compared to discrete solutions without an EMI shield, the LTM8080 reduces output ripple voltage by up to 70 per cent for a simplified and quiet design. 

The LTM8080 is specifically designed to power digital loads that are susceptible to switching regulator noise such as data converters, RF transmitters, FPGA I/O and clock, op amps, transceivers and medical scanners. 

The LTM8080 µModule regulator’s integrated Silent Switcher architecture enables the device to pass CISPR22 Class B and CISPR25 Class 5 without an input filter. The adjustable switching frequency (200kHz to 2MHz) and selectable operation modes minimise the risk of frequency interference for very low noise instrumentation and high speed/high precision signal chain applications.

  The LTM8080 has a dual 500mA or single 1.0A output current with output voltages of 0 to 8.0V. The design includes a voltage tracking function to minimise power loss and features a 100 microA set pin current with ± one per cent. Initial accuracy can be paralleled for lower noise and higher current. 

Two versions are available and in full production now. The LTM8080EY#PBF and the LTM8080IY#PBF are both provided in a 9.0 x 6.25 x 3.25mm BGA.

http://www.analog.com

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onsemi combines low power consumption and security in BLE MCU family

Wed, Mar 15, 2023

The NCV-RSL15 combines the industry’s lowest power consumption and latest in embedded security, claimed onsemi. The low power automotive-grade wireless microcontroller with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connectivity is designed for vehicle manufacturers using wireless connectivity to reduce the cost and weight of excess cabling as the number of sensors and in-vehicle communication grows. It also addresses heightened security concerns resulting from more sensors and increased attack vectors.

They can be used, for example in tyre monitoring systems and other applications which use multiple sensors. Some applications now have a requirement for a 10-year battery lifetime. The NCV-RSL15 is certified by the EEMBC as the industry’s lowest power secure, wireless microcontroller, reported onsemi. It also features the proprietary smart sense power mode.

Its small size also makes it suitable for portable remote access devices and other space-constrained in-tyre and in-vehicle locations, said Michel De Mey, vice president of the Industrial Solutions Division at onsemi

As the number of access points increases, so does the number of potential attack vectors that must be secured to protect against unauthorised wireless access to the vehicle’s central body computer or central processing unit. The NCV-RSL15’s embedded security is based on the Arm CryptoCell featuring hardware-based root-of-trust secure boot, many user-accessible hardware-accelerated cryptographic algorithms, and firmware-over-the-air (FOTA) capabilities to enable future firmware updates and deployment of security patches.

The software development kit has a library of sample code.

onsemi focuses on automotive and industrial end-markets and says it is accelerating change in megatrends such as vehicle electrification and safety, sustainable energy grids, industrial automation, and 5G and cloud infrastructure. Onsemi’s product portfolio includes intelligent power and sensing technologies.

http://www.onsemi.com 

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STMicroelectronics reveals scalable, automotive high-side drivers 

Thu, Feb 09, 2023

STMicroelectronics has released single-, double- and four-channel automotive high-side gate drivers in a common PowerSSO-16 package style, with pin assignments that simplify scaling circuit designs to add more driver channels.

The gate drivers target applications throughout the vehicle, including safety, comfort and powertrain, body electronics, infotainment and driver assistance systems.

Meeting the automotive industry’s LV124 test schedule for deep cold cranking permits use with heavy loads such as engine starters and ensures reliable operation even in extreme winter conditions. With very low standby current, at just a few microamps, these drivers minimise the drain on the battery when the vehicle is turned off and not being used.

The drivers are manufactured using ST’s proprietary VIPower M0-9 technology , which permits extensive integration within a small die size in addition to high current capability and high efficiency. On-chip features include protection such as load-current limiting, load-dump protection up to 35V and limiting of fast thermal transients. Flexible reset management lets the designer configure the driver’s responses to faults and so best meet the needs of the application. The drivers provide reverse-battery protection through self-turn-on capability, which limits the power dissipation on the PCB to a survivable level.

In addition, diagnostic capabilities include proportional load-current sensing that permits detecting malfunctions in the load, such as disconnection of an LED string. There is also overload, short-to-ground, short-to-VCC and off-state open-load detection. All diagnostics are maintained whether the driver is turned on or off, permitting faults to be detected even when the load is not supplied.

The series comprises five single-channel drivers: VN9004AJ; VN9006AJ; VN9008AJ; VN9012AJ;  and VN9016AJ. The dual-channel drivers are the VND9008AJ, VND9012AJ, VND9016AJ, and VND9025AJ. The VNQ9025AJ and VNQ9080AJ each have four channels. All are housed in the PowerSSO-16 package, which has a space-saving 6.00 x 4.9mm footprint, is only 1.7mm high and is pin-to-pin compatible. They are also compatible with the previous- generation M0-7 family.

https://www.st.com/

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