Renesas Electronics has unveiled the R-Car S4 Starter Kit development board for automotive gateway systems. The low-cost development board facilitates building software using the Renesas R-Car S4 system on chip (SoC).

The SoC performance and communication features span cloud communication and safe vehicle control. Compared to the existing R-Car S4 reference board, the new starter kit is less expensive and is a readily available option. Designers can use the new kit to begin evaluating car servers, connected gateways and connectivity modules for rapid application development.

While the S4 was “well received” as a gateway SoC, customers wanted an inexpensive development environment that could be more widely used across design teams, Renesas said. The R-Car S4 solution enables designers re-use of up to 88 percent of software code developed for third-generation R-Car SoCs and RH850 MCU applications. The software supports real-time cores with various drivers and basic software such as Linux BSP and hypervisors.

Available now, the R-Car S4 Starter Kit includes interfaces such as Ethernet TSN switch and CAN FD, and memory, including 4 GB of LPDDR4, 128 GB of Universal Flash Storage (UFS) and 64 MB of quad SPI flash memory. Users can expand peripheral functions by using expansion connectors and can also customize the hardware.

Renesas also offers the R-Car S4 Whitebox SDK open-source automotive development environment for the R-Car S4, which works with the Starter Kit. The SDK consists of free-of-charge software without “complicated” license agreements. It includes sample software, test programs and resource monitoring tools for over-the-air software updates, intrusion prevention system and intrusion detection system for network security, allowing for various prototyping and evaluation. Users can use the sample software as a foundation to develop their own applications.

The R-Car S4 Starter Kit is available from major Renesas distributors. The R-Car S4 Whitebox SDK will be available by the end of August.

Infineon Technologies AG has expanded its automotive microphone portfolio with the launch of the IM68A130A  XENSIV MEMS microphone with a flat frequency response to frequencies below 10 Hz. This product builds on the launch of Infineon’s first automotive-qualified digital MEMS microphone, the IM67D130A.

In addition to a flat frequency response, the IM68A130A microphone features a stable phase response and a very low frequency roll-off (LFRO) of 10 Hz. The MEMS mic also provides a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 68 dB(A) and an acoustic overload point (AOP) of 130 dBSPL to provide excellent speech performance, making it suitable for general-purpose microphones in any audio system, said Infineon.

The MEMS microphone also can be used for beamforming and active noise cancellation (ANC), where microphones are placed in the cabin or at exterior locations to detect sounds in the cabin. “An inverted sound wave is then generated through the audio speakers to reduce the sound level in the cabin,” said the company.

Infineon said by using advanced ANC solutions instead of passive damping methods it significantly reduces the vehicle weight for greater vehicle efficiency.

The IM68A130A microphone is qualified according to the AEC-Q103-003 standard. The operating temperature range is -40°C to 105°C.

The IM68A130A XENSIV MEMS microphone is available now. The product will be available for at least the typical lifecycle of a vehicle, enabling savings in design-in effort and the development of platform solutions, said Infineon.

The next product scheduled to launch shortly is the IM66D130A with a high SNR, AOP and low LFRO. The universal microphone is also suitable for ANC and voice applications.

Melexis has launched its next-generation MLX81334 LIN motor driver. It is designed to optimize electric vehicle (EV) thermal valves for battery temperature control and expansion valves in the heat pump refrigeration loop to achieve longer range for EVs. The gen-3 driver also cuts material costs in automotive applications.


The 1-A rated, all-in-one driver targets automotive mechatronic thermal applications up to 10 W, and can drive small BLDC, stepper and DC motors via sensored or sensorless field-oriented control (FOC) algorithms. The 64 KB on-chip memory provides sufficient capacity for the use of sophisticated software. Each IC has an embedded microcontroller, four FET half-bridge drivers, data conversion circuitry and LIN or serial interfaces. The MLX81334 also supports over-the-air updates.

Providing high-power operation in a small form factor, the motor driver allows for implementation into the most space-constrained deployments. Application examples include small stepper/BLDC flap or valve, up to 1 A per phase and small DC flap or valve, or single-coil fan, up to 1.4 A. Over-temperature, over-current, over-voltage and under-voltage protection functions are included.

Melexis MLX81334 LIN motor driver applications.

Available now, the automotive AEC-Q100-qualified MLX81334 drivers are housed in 5 × 5-mm 32-pin QFN packages. They are suitable for use in 12-V and 24-V automotive systems and are designed for safety applications according to ASIL-B (ISO 26262).

THine Electronics, Inc. has unveiled two new serial transceivers that enable industrial machines, drones, electric vehicles, robots and consumer electronics systems to handle newly established sensing requirements. The THCS253 and THCS254 transceivers are called industry-first unique LSI products that can serialize different types of signals and allow users to add sensors functions by only changing the registers’ settings instead of extensive redesigns.
THine's THCS253 and THCS254 serial transceivers.

The transceivers enable systems with many peripheral sensors to simplify cabling for sensor and control functions, translating into system cost, size and weight savings. They also allow future expansion with additional features on the same platform systems with minimal redesign efforts or the use of FPGAs that require time-consuming redesigns, said THine.

As an example, the THCS253 can serialize sensing signals using 32 GPIO interfaces into two differential signals, reducing the number of cables and connectors by up to 88%. They not only lower noise emission inherent with the use of cables but also improve productivity in manufacturing processes by simplifying assemblies.

Given their ability to reshape waveforms in the receiving circuit, the transceivers can transmit data for long distances of 10 meters instead of approximately 1 meter for greater flexibility in the layout of manufacturing sites or warehouses, said the company.

Key features include support for up to 32-bit GPIOs, full duplex communications by two pairs of differential signals, support for up to 8-bit low-speed GPIO in standby mode with low power of 6 mA, an adaptive equalizer for high-loss transmission media, 8B10B encoding/decoding and error detection and notification. In addition, the transceivers feature I/O expansion via conversion from a two-wire serial interface to a parallel GPIO and digital noise filters that can be set for input and output.
Block diagram of THine's THCS253 and THCS254 serial transceivers.

Block diagram of the THCS253 and THCS254 serial transceivers (Source: THine Electronics, Inc.)

Key specs include power supply operation from 1.7 V to 3.6 V, a wide IO voltage range from 1.7 V to 3.6 V and an external reference clock frequency of 9 MHz to 133.3 MHz. The operating ambient temperature range is -40°C to 85°C. The THCS253 and THCS254 are available in QFN64 (9 × 9 mm) and QFN48 (7 × 7 mm) packages, respectively.

Rohm Semiconductor has launched a new BD94130xxx-M series (BD94130MUF-ME2 and BD94130EFV-ME2) of LED driver ICs for automotive LCD backlights, supporting large and higher-resolution displays that are increasingly used in car infotainment and instrument clusters for improved visibility. Applications include electronic mirrors, instrument clusters, car infotainment and head-up displays.

Using LED drivers with local dimming capabilities that can turn off only the backlight in dark areas of the LCD improves both performance and power consumption, said Rohm. Now, they are going into next-gen cockpits.

A single conventional direct-type LED driver IC controls less than 100 zones; however, this is a challenge as the number of components increases with larger displays with more zones, said Rohm.

The BD94130xxx-M series can control more zones than conventional ICs, reducing the number of LEDs required. These matrix LED drivers feature an 8-line switch controller with a 24-channel current driver that can be divided into eight lines, enabling dimming of up to 192 zones of mini-LEDs for backlighting with one IC. The mini-LEDs in each zone can be independently adjusted by using a local dimming function, which contributes to a larger contrast ratio and lower power consumption displays, said Rohm.

The number of switch controller lines can be selected from three patterns (4, 6, 8) using register settings to address a variety of zones and LED current consumption specs. Built-in feedback control provides a constant feedback voltage independent of LED temperature characteristics for lower thermal design person-hours and loss ratio.

In addition, for example, the LED drivers enable operation with one-fourth the number of LED drivers compared to existing 48-zone products in current mainstream 10-inch infotainment displays that use approximately 600 zones. This decreases LED driver mounting area by approximately 84 percent, according to Rohm.

The AEC-Q100-qualified BD94130xxx-M devices are embedded 24- channel constant current drivers with 12-bit PWM dimming. The devices can set LED constant current value by setting the external ISET resistor and communication with the μ-controller via the SPI is feasible. Other features include phase-shift function, 6-bit dot correct (50% to 100%), LED open and short detection, PGATE short protection, VINSW over-voltage protection and adjacent LEDCH short detection.

Currently, the devices are available from DigiKey, Mouser and Farnell. They will be available from other online distributors as they become available.

Nexperia has expanded its analog and logic product portfolio with the introduction of a new load switch family. The new line includes the NPS4053, an integrated 5-V load switch, which is designed with a small footprint and increased system protection.

“Load switches are essential components in the operation of a wide array of modern electronic systems,” said Nexperia. “They play a crucial role in managing current/voltage in a controlled manner from source to the load.”

Nexperia said the NPS4053 is positioned closest to the load, in a typical power chain, for power sequencing and inrush-current control and shutting off power islands to conserve power. This is a benefit in battery-operated equipment.

In addition, the load switch simplifies circuit design and has an 85% smaller PCB footprint than a comparable network of discrete components, according to the company. This makes them suited for portable devices such as notebook computers, docking stations, desktops and automotive infotainment systems.

The NPS4053 operates with an input voltage of 2.5 V-5.5 V and contains a 55-mΩ self-protected MOSFET, which manages the flow of power to the load. A key feature is the programmable current-limiting circuitry, which enables precise control of the load current over a range of 110 mA to 2.5 A with an accuracy of +6%. Other features include support for “true” reverse current blocking for end-to-end system protection and an integrated fault indicator pin that alerts the host controller of a fault event.

The NPS4053 is UL 62368 recognized and an automotive AEC-Q100 qualified version is also available. The device is offered in both leaded and leadless (HWSON 6) packages.

Diodes Inc. has launched two new families of monolithic, unipolar Hall-effect switches for proximity sensing in battery-powered applications. The AH138x/AH139x Hall-effect switches offer an ultra-low 1.1-µA supply current at 1.85 V and 1.6 µA at 1.6 V to 5.5 V. Battery-powered applications include smartphones, laptops, and wearables. They also can be used in domestic appliances, game consoles and industrial hardware.
Diode Inc.'s AH138x/AH139x Hall-effect switches.

The 1.6-V to 5.5-V operating voltage allows the Hall switches to be powered directly from a portable device’s battery, which eliminates the area and cost of power conversion, said Diodes. For the dual-output AH139x series, Output 1 responds to a North pole, while Output 2 responds to a South pole with typical operating points of 25G (AH1391) and 30G (AH1392). The single output on the AH138x series responds to a South pole on the part-marking side with typical operating points of 18G (AH1381), 30G (AH1382) and 45G (AH1383).

The Hall switches feature a chopper-stabilized design that provides minimal switch point drift and higher temperature stability. In addition, they offer a tight operating window to ensure a lower magnetic spread.

With push-pull outputs, the Hall switches do not require an external pull-up resistor, which simplifies system design, saves board space and lowers the bill of materials, said Diodes.

All the new devices are available in the industry’s smallest packages (DFN1010-4 and DFN1410-4). The AH1381, AH1382, and AH1383 versions are also available in SOT23 packages. Human body model (HBM) electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection includes 8 kV for the AH138x and 6 kV for the AH139x series.

In quantities of 1,000, the AH138x series is available in DFN packages at $0.17 and in SOT23 packages at $0.16. The AH139x series is available in DFN packages at $0.18 in quantities of 1,000. The company provides a Hall-effect sensor part selector to help choose the right part for your application.

Microchip’s LAN8650/1 MAC-PHYs with a built-in MAC and SPI connect MCUs without a built-in Ethernet MAC to a 10BASE-T1S Ethernet network.

Microchip Technology Inc. recently announced a new family of automotive-qualified LAN8650/1 MAC-PHYs with a built-in media access controller (MAC) and serial peripheral interface (SPI) that allows designers to connect 8-, 16- and 32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) without built-in Ethernet MACs to 10BASE-T1S Ethernet networks.

“This allows sensors and actuators that interface between the digital and the real world to become part of an all-Ethernet architecture,” said Microchip.

In addition, connection even to simple MCUs can reduce the overall size and cost of a design, said the company.

The 10BASE-T1S technology enables automotive designers to create new zonal architectures in automotive applications and allows low-speed devices to connect to a standard Ethernet network, eliminating the need for dedicated communication systems, said Microchip.
Microchip's LAN8650/1 MAC-PHYs automotive application

10BASE-T1S expands Ethernet to the edge of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) networks, despite a network of incompatible devices and different physical hardware. For automotive, it provides a 10 Mbits/s, multi-drop transmission medium that can include up to eight transceiver nodes. The transceiver nodes connect to a common mixing segment of up to at least 25 m.

10BASE-T1S lowers total system cost by using a single pair of wires and the multi-drop bus architecture, while increasing system scalability, said Microchip. Several nodes operate on the same bus line with high data throughput and the system requires fewer switch ports, cables and switches.

Key features of the LAN8650 and LAN8651 include a MAC and SPI to connect devices at the edge of automotive networks; time-sensitive networking (TSN) support, which allows for synchronized timing critical for many automotive applications including advanced driving assistance systems (ADAS) and compliance with the AEC-Q100 Grade 1 qualification standard. The devices also feature an extended operational temperature range from −40°C to 125°C and they are functional safety ready for use in ISO 26262 applications.

Ethernet solutions are important in automotive applications given their well-established security protocols for keeping network systems secure. These systems can be extended to the edges of the network without extensive changes or new development.

The LAN8650/1 MAC-PHYs are currently available and are supported by a set of network analysis tools, a LAN8651 SPI Evaluation Board and MPLAB Harmony 3 to help with the design process.

SiTime launched its Epoch Platform of MEMS OCXOs, delivering 2× better performance and 3× lower power for data centers and network equipment.

SiTime Corp. recently unveiled its Epoch Platform of MEMS-based, oven-controlled oscillators (OCXOs). The new precision timing platform, designed for complex timing issues in data center and network infrastructure equipment, is touted as the technology to “disrupt 100-year-old quartz-based technology.”

The Epoch Platform, leveraging a systems-based development approach that combines MEMS, analog, packaging and algorithms, provides an ultra-stable clock for data center and network infrastructure equipment, valued at a $2 billion served addressable market (SAM) in the next decade. Over time, the Epoch technology is expected to extend into other high-growth electronics markets, such as aerospace and defense and industrial controls.

“We are now in the intelligent connected electronics era,” said Piyush Sevalia, SiTime’s executive VP, marketing. “Modern electronic devices are always connected, and they are fast and easy to use. They are also making decisions and getting smarter.”

For this to work, ultra-fast networks that never fail are needed, he added. “We need processing in the core, in the edge and local, and then we need data to be synchronized so this is fundamentally different than what it was a decade or two decades ago.”

With precision timing, it enables electronic products that are smarter, faster and safer by delivering precise and reliable clock signals that always work in every environment, Sevalia said.

In network infrastructure, every infrastructure load must be time-synchronized, and this synchronization only gets more stringent with newer standards, he said. “For example, in a 4G network the time accuracy between any two nodes in the network is 1.5 µs and in a 5G network, the time accuracy is 130 ns.”

In addition, the equipment also often operates in harsh environments, which can impact the performance of the network. One of the challenges in the industry today is that legacy quartz OCXOs are inherently prone to performance degradation due to environmental stressors such as temperature changes and vibration.

There are challenges that network equipment vendors face with quartz OCXOs such as in fan-cooled routers where they are susceptible to thermal gradients inside the system and require workarounds to keep the clock stable, Sevalia explained.

In addition, some equipment vendors have been using two quartz OXCOs for redundancy, so if one fails, they can automatically fall back to another one, he said. “In our case, we are offering better reliability due to the silicon MEMS technology and therefore they don’t need to use two OCXOs.”
SiTime's Epoch Platform of MEMS OCXOs.

SiTime said the Epoch platform “sets a new bar in performance and reliability” with 2× better performance (holdover), 9× smaller size (9 × 7 × 3.73 mm) and 3× lower power (420 mW) in applications such as data-center switches and routers, 5G base stations and core infrastructure.

It also delivers 2× faster time to stability (60 seconds), 3× lower aging (±0.08 ppb/day) and 3× better ADEV under airflow (5e-12 at 10 seconds averaging time).  These devices are available with any frequency between 10 and 220 MHz and are programmable up to six decimal places of accuracy and ±1, ±3, ±5 ppb frequency stability over temperature. Operating supply voltages are 2.5 V, 2.8 V and 3.3 V. The highest operating temperature range is -40°C to 95°C. Digital control is via I2C and SPI interfaces.

In SiTime tests that compare the MEMS OCXO to a quartz OCXO, both with a stability of ±1 ppb, the MEMS OCXO offers better performance on a number of different parameters. Compared to a quartz OCXO, the MEMS OCXO’s warm-up time is a minute versus five minutes, Allan deviation (ADVE) [or short-term frequency stability] under airflow is almost a half an order of magnitude better, part-to-part deviation is 10× lower and it has 1/4 the power consumption and 1/8 the size, Sevalia said.

Holdover translates into higher reliability

One of the key performance features of the Epoch platform is the 2× longer holdover even during environmental stressors, compared with other solutions, which ensures higher reliability and continuous network operations.

As noted by Sevalia, all nodes in a 5G network must be synchronized within hundreds of nanoseconds, which is 10× more stringent than 4G, and it must be maintained even despite network outages, which is why the Epoch’s holdover performance is a big deal.

Synchronized networks use multiple, redundant timing devices to ensure continuous operation. One of these is an ultra-stable local oscillator, typically an OCXO. These devices “holdover” the networks to ensure continued operation when other timing sources are impacted.

OCXOs are used as local time sources across the network infrastructure in case there is a disruption in the GNSS time or network time due to a number of reasons such as weather conditions, jamming or spoofing. To ensure service continuity, OCXOs are used to holdover the network until the more accurate time comes into play.

The Epoch Platform offers eight hours of holdover, up to 12 hours with aging compensation.

“A long time ago carriers used to have a holdover time of 72 hours, but there was no performance reason for a holdover time of 72 hours,” Sevalia said. “If some network equipment went down, nobody would go out over the weekend and actually fix the box or replace it, so that’s why they had a holdover requirement of 72 hours.

“Today, you can’t get a 72-hour holdover time at the speed at which these networks are transmitting and so now carriers are asking for 8 hours, 12 hours, 16 hours or 24 hours, depending on what the accuracy levels are, so this spec becomes very crucial in the network,” he added.

Engineering samples of the SiT58xx Epoch Platform are available now for qualified customers. General samples will be available in October 2023, followed by volume production in early 2024.