The third generation of the AURIX microcontroller family, TC4x, offers the same scalability in terms of performance, memory and housing variants as the previous generations, AURIX TC2x and TC3x. Among other things, AURIX TC4x was designed for usage in ZCU and HPC. Further focus applications are radar, chassis and safety and powertrain/electrification.
A key element of the new microcontroller series is the RRAM (Resistive Random Access Memory) memory technology used by Infineon. This technology is already used successfully in chip cards, for example when doing cashless payments and for secure authentication. For the first time, RRAM technology is now applied in the automotive sector. AURIX TC4x products enable effective, fast and safe exploitation of essential vehicle systems potential. When a vehicle is started, functions like parking assistance, air conditioning, heating and suspension are available within fractions of a second. Thanks to the AURIX TC4x architecture, essential software programs are almost constantly on stand-by. In addition, it enables significantly faster and more secure Over-the-air updates of software components.
The use of powerful Zone Control Units is the next decisive step towards a software-defined vehicle. For Continental, a first major step was the development and delivery of an HPC high-performance computer for the electric vehicle models ID.3 and ID.4 from Volkswagen.
The zone control unit platform, to be developed as part of the cooperation with Infineon, forms the middle level of the electrics/electronics architecture between the server level (HPC) and the base level with numerous sensors and actuators.
In the E/E architecture of the future, a zone control unit bundles all electronic and electrical connections in a local section of the vehicle. For instance, zone control units take over all control, data and communication management tasks in the vehicle from areas at the front right, front left and rear. Bundling the software components centrally will thereby increase cybersecurity and updatability. The AURIX TC4x product family puts a focus on state-of-the-art cybersecurity functions, developed according to the ISO/SAE 21434-certified process. Among other things, the cybersecurity concept of the AURIX TC4x supports post-quantum processes. This already strengthens protection against quantum computer attacks, which pose a threat to the cryptographic methods currently in use.
Data streams from different vehicle domains merge in the zone control units. The data will then be processed and passed on to the HPCs as the top control level via secure Ethernet connections. Conversely, the zone control units act as a coordination point for executing commands from the server level.
With its holistic “Functional Safety” concept, the AURIX TC4x family meets the highest requirements for functional safety up to ASIL D, in accordance with the ISO26262 standard. Moreover, the AURIX TC4x family includes network accelerators (“routing accelerators”) to relieve Ethernet and CAN communication, as well as latest communication functions such as 5 Gbit/s ETH, PCIe, 10 Base-T1-S and CAN-XL.
