Vehicle Electronics or Automotive Electronics are electronic systems
used in road vehicles, such as: engine management, ignition, radio, carputers, telematics, in-car entertainment systems and others.
Electronic systems have become an increasingly large component of the cost of
an automobile, from only around 1% of its value in 1950 to around 30% in 2010.[1]
The
earliest electronics systems available as factory installations were vacuum tube car
radios, starting in the early 1930s. The development of
semiconductors after WWII greatly expanded the use of electronics in
automobiles, with solid-state diodes making the automotive alternator the standard after about 1960, and the
first transistorized ignition systems appearing about 1955.
The
availability of microprocessors after about 1974 made another range of automotive
applications economically feasible. In 1978 the Cadillac
Seville introduced a "trip computer" based on a 6802
microprocessor. Electronically-controlled ignition and fuel injection systems
allowed automotive designers to achieve vehicles meeting requirements for fuel
economy and lower emissions, while still maintaining high levels of performance
and convenience for drivers. Today's automobiles contain a dozen or more
processors, in functions such as engine management, transmission control,
climate control,antilock braking, passive safety systems, navigation, and other
functions.[2]
Modern electric cars rely on power electronics for the main propulsion motor
control, as well as managing the battery system. Future autonomous cars will rely on powerful computer
systems, an array of sensors, networking, and satellite navigation, all of
which will require electronics.
Engine electronics
A
modern car may have up to 100 ECU's and a commercial vehicle up to 40[citation needed].
Automotive
electronics or automotive embedded systems are distributed systems, and
according to different domains in the automotive field, they can be classified
into:
One
of the most demanding electronic parts of an automobile is the engine control
unit. Engine controls demand one of the highest real time deadlines, as the
engine itself is a very fast and complex part of the automobile. Of all the
electronics in any car the computing power of the engine control unit is the
highest, typically a 32-bit processor.
It
controls such things as:
In a diesel engine:
In a
gasoline engine:
Many
more engine parameters are actively monitored and controlled in real-time.
There are about 20 to 50 that measure pressure, temperature, flow, engine
speed, oxygen level and NOx level plus
other parameters at different points within the engine. All these sensor
signals are sent to the ECU, which has the logic circuits to do the actual
controlling. The ECU output is connected to different actuators for the throttle valve, EGR valve, rack
(in VGTs), fuel injector (using a pulse-width modulated signal), dosing injector
and more. There are about 20 to 30 actuators in all.
Transmission electronics
Chassis electronics
Passive safety
Driver assistance
Passenger comfort
Infotainment systems
All
of the above systems forms an infotainment system. Developmental methods for
these systems vary according to each manufacturer. Different tools are used for
both hardware and software development.
Electronic Integrated Cockpit systems
There
are of course challenges too. Given the complexity of this hybrid system, a lot
more rigor is needed to validate the system for robustness, safety and
security. For example, if the infotainment system's application which could be
running an open source Android OS is breached, there could be possibility of hackers to take control of the car remotely and potentially misuse it for anti social activities. Typically so, usage of a
hardware+software enabled hypervisors are used to virtualize and create
separate trust and safety zones that are immune to each other's failures or
breaches. Lot of work is happening in this area and potentially will have such
systems soon if not already.
Functional safety requirements
The IEC 61508 standard, generally applicable to
electrical/electronic/programmable safety-related products, is only partially
adequate for automotive-development requirements. Consequently, for the
automotive industry, this standard is replaced by the existing ISO 26262, currently released as a Final Draft
International Standard (FDIS). ISO/DIS 26262 describes the entire product life-cycle of safety related
electrical/electronic systems for road vehicles. It has been published as an
international standard in its final version in November 2011. The
implementation of this new standard will result in modifications and various
innovations in the automobile electronics development process, as it covers the
complete product life-cycle from the concept phase until its decommissioning.
Security
In
2015 the German general automobile club commissioned an investigation of the vulnerabilities of one manufacturer's
electronics system, which could have led to such exploits as unauthorized
remote unlocking of the vehicle.
Vehicle Electronics Vehicle Electronics,Automotive Electronics,Car Electronics,Auto Electronics Shenzhen Cartrend Technology Co, Ltd , http://www.cartrendthings.com
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Automotive engine electronics originated from the
need to control engines. The first
electronic pieces were used to control engine functions and were referred to as engine control units (ECU). As
electronic controls began to be used for more automotive applications, the
acronym ECU took on the more general meaning of "electronic control unit", and then specific
ECU's were developed. Now, ECU's are modular. Two types include engine control
modules (ECM) or transmission control modules (TCM).
These control the transmission system, mainly the
shifting of the gears for better shift comfort and to lower torque interrupt
while shifting. Automatic transmissions use controls for their operation, and also many semi-automatic transmissions
having a fully automatic clutch or a semi-auto clutch (declutching only). The
engine control unit and the transmission control exchange messages, sensor
signals and control signals for their operation.
The chassis system has a lot of sub-systems which
monitor various parameters and are actively controlled:
These systems are always ready to act when there is a collision in progress or to prevent it
when it senses a dangerous situation:
These are new generation hybrid ECUs that combine the
functionalities of multiple ECUs of Infotainment Head Unit, Advanced Driver
Assistance Systems (ADAS), Instrument Cluster, Rear Camera/Parking Assist,
Surround View Systems etc. This saves on cost of electronics as well as
mechanical/physical parts like interconnects across ECUs etc. There is also a
more centralized control so data can be seamlessly exchanged between the
systems.
In order to minimize the risk of dangerous failures,
safety related electronic systems have to be developed following the applicable
product liability requirements. Disregard for, or inadequate application of
these standards can lead to not only personal injuries, but also severe legal
and economic consequences such as product cancellations or recalls.
As more functions of the automobile are connected to
short- or long-range networks, cybersecurity of systems against unauthorized modification is required. With critical systems
such as engine controls, transmission, air bags, and braking connected to
internal diagnostic networks, remote access could result in a malicious
intruder altering the function of systems or disabling them, possibly causing
injuries or fatalities. Every new interface presents a new "attack surface". The same facility that
allows the owner to unlock and start a car from a smart phone app also presents
risks due to remote access. Auto manufacturers may protect the memory of
various control microprocessors both to secure them from unauthorized changes
and also to ensure only manufacturer-authorized facilities can diagnose or
repair the vehicle. Systems such as keyless entry rely on cryptographic techniques to ensure "replay"
or "man-in-the-middle attacks"
attacks cannot record sequences to allow later break-in to the automobile. [3]