Components FPGA with many transceivers for infotainment systems

In an electric vehicle, not only the range is important to the end consumer, but also the driving experience inside the cabin. Here, he wants the same features and functions that he is accustomed to from his smartphone. A prerequisite for the smartphone on wheels are powerful components for infotainment systems.

Danny Fisher, Director of International Marketing, Gowin Semiconductor

The automotive industry is in the midst of a transformation from combustion engines to electric drives, and the basis of competition in this market is fundamentally changing. In the previous automotive world, the segments primarily differed in the drivetrain. For the end consumer, the differences in cost and appeal, for example between a small car with a 1-liter gasoline engine, a family sedan with a 2-liter diesel engine, and an upper-class vehicle with a supercharged 4-liter gasoline engine, were clearly recognizable.

Such a hierarchy no longer exists with electric drives. Instead, competition in the electric vehicle market revolves around other factors: styling, range, and particularly the driving experience inside the cabin. It is evident that the end consumer demands information, entertainment, and user interfaces, as well as audio functions and displays in the vehicle that they use outside of the vehicle as well.

The design philosophy of a smartphone on wheels is impressively demonstrated in the 2024 Xiaomi SU7, the first vehicle from the manufacturer known for smartphones and consumer electronics. While video content and user interfaces on a smartphone are limited to a small display, in the vehicle, information and entertainment can be shown on multiple screens in various sizes, formats, and resolutions.

Thus, the number and performance of displays become one of the most important distinguishing features. This, in turn, leads to a demand for a new generation of components for video bridging and signal processing to create a vehicle interior that more closely resembles a consumer electronics environment.

Smartphone-based system architecture in the vehicle

In the market for electric vehicles, functions are demanded that increasingly resemble those of a smartphone, beyond just mobility, such as:

• Communication with people and devices

• Audio and video entertainment

• Navigation

• Internet research and other forms of information delivery

• Work-related functions with productivity apps for spreadsheets and documents

And thus, vehicle manufacturers find that the best developments for these functions are based on smartphone-based hardware. Infotainment systems use platforms with application processors from the smartphone world, such as products like Qualcomm's Snapdragon or MediaTek's Dimensity 8000 SoC family. These SoCs directly support the implementation of products that emulate a smartphone, such as Apple AirPlay or Android Auto.

However, the architecture of these smartphone SoCs from Qualcomm, MediaTek, and other manufacturers cannot be directly transferred to the hardware configuration inside vehicles. The display output of the SoCs is optimized for a single small screen, usually with an HD signal over MIPI DSI or an Embedded DisplayPort (eDP).

The strong competition in the electric vehicle market leads to innovation in interiors, where manufacturers are installing more and larger displays, for example:

• a larger display in the center console that extends across part of the entire width of the dashboard

• a digitally generated virtual instrument cluster

• a holographic head-up display in front of the driver

• 4K displays on the back of the front headrests

• a large, roof-mounted central 4K display for rear seat passengers

These displays have various specifications regarding their resolution and refresh rate, size, and aspect ratio. A smartphone SoC with only one DSI or eDP interface is not sufficient for four or more different displays in the interior of a modern electric vehicle.

New solutions are required that distribute the output of the SoC across multiple display inputs. The technical challenges become even more complex as consumers in the vehicle want to use content and apps from their other devices. This is also evident in the transition of USB ports in the vehicle from USB 2 to USB 3 and USB Type-C. Particularly, individuals in the back seats can stream 4K content from a tablet, notebook, or smartphone through a Display Port over USB Type-C interface on the large central display on the vehicle roof. Similarly, the display can be used as a screen for a notebook, transforming the interior into a workspace for individuals in the back seats. At the same time, the rear central display must continue to provide an interface for the vehicle’s own infotainment SoC as the standard source of content when no USB Type-C device is connected (Image 1).

The increase in number, size, and quality of displays in the interior of the vehicle has fundamental implications for the philosophy of designing this space. The vehicle evolves from a mobility product into an entertainment and workspace. As this represents a new philosophy in response to profound and rapidly evolving shifts in consumer tastes and preferences, implementation will require a series of iterations as vehicle manufacturers determine what the end consumer desires and considers valuable.

To achieve this, automobile manufacturers need something that creates a link between the limited display outputs of the SoC and the numerous displays in the vehicle while also handling the high speeds of USB 3, LVDS, and MIPI D-PHY or C-PHY. Additionally, they must continue to respond quickly to changes in customer demands and revise their designs multiple times with as little effort as possible in hardware development.

FPGA in new UI for vehicles

For this development requirement, the FPGA is the ideal solution. FPGAs allow for very fast interfaces with high transmission rates. In network environments, FPGAs are commonly used as interfaces to meet new specifications of standards such as PCIe or Ethernet.

Because an FPGA is programmable, it offers the flexibility to quickly adapt developments to changed requirements without needing alterations to the circuit board. This is a tremendous advantage in today's electric vehicle market, as product development cycles are significantly shorter than in times when integrating and assembling complex drivetrains with diesel or gasoline engines meant a much slower pace throughout the entire development process for new products.

New electric vehicles are increasingly being developed like new smartphone products—quickly and with constant innovations in displays, cameras, and video technologies. For this, FPGAs for automotive products are needed to meet the requirements of a growing number of functions for video bridging and image processing.

Chinese market in focus

Gowin Semiconductor has a unique perspective on this increasing demand, as the planning and development of the FPGA manufacturer are based in China. China is committed to playing a leading role in the electric vehicle sector. The product innovations and technologies developed for electric vehicles in China will also be incorporated into vehicle developments in other parts of Asia, as well as in Europe and the USA.

Gowin's product developments build on experiences with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers. This approach provides new solutions for processing SoC output signals for smartphone displays, making them suitable for automotive displays as well.

Thus, a new series of FPGAs has been developed for the automotive sector, which can be used in applications such as:

• Display outputs for multiple screens with signal conversion for long cable distances. A single infotainment SoC, derived from a smartphone platform, has limited capabilities at video outputs. In new vehicles with multiple displays inside, these output signals for the displays in the front and rear parts of the vehicle must be processed and possibly converted into the MIPI or LVDS format (Image 2).

• Screen extension—the output signals from a tablet or notebook with a USB-Type-C interface need to be converted into a MIPI or LVDS format that can be displayed on a large automotive-compliant display. When no external video source is connected, the standard video source of the SoC is automatically switched to these screens. This requires a series of logic functions for source selection, bridging, for example from MIPI D-PHY to LVDS, and for video processing, such as scaling the video signal.

• Video bridging, signal splitting, and frame rate conversion (Figure 3).

• FPGA for new bridging applications

FPGAs are generally well-suited for video bridging and image processing applications. In response to the demand from Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers, Gowin Semiconductor has developed new automotive products that cover these applications in various ways. These include:

• The FPGA GW5AT-15 and GW5AT-60 with multiple transceivers and fixed MIPI C-PHY and D-PHY interfaces for data rates up to 5.7 Gbps, a USB Type-C interface, and SerDes capability up to 12.5 Gbps

• The GW2A-LV18 as an automotive version with MIPI D-PHY and LVDS capability up to 1.0 Gbps

All automotive FPGA products from Gowin Semiconductor are supported by the Gowin EDA FPGA development environment, which is certified according to ISO 26262. (se)