In-Vehicle Network Standards Dance to Automakers' Tunes
by John H. Day, Contributing Editor Even as CAN, LIN and other communications protocol standards mature, OEMs' apparently endless demands for variations threaten vendors' economies of scale....
Special Report
Turning Comfort and Convenience into Vehicle Differentiation
by Randy Frank Contributing Editor How many body electronics modules will carmakers supply to satisfy the average automotive buyer? The answer apparently is as many as it takes. According to Strategy Analytics, body electronics represent the highest volume electronics applications in today's vehicles. This report explores just a few of the changes that can be expected within the next few years....
Technical Features
New Options in Vehicle Dynamics Control
by Dr. Aly Badawy, Dr. Alois Seewald, Dr. Dirk Kesselgruber TRW Automotive Vehicle manufacturers are increasingly interested in reducing body roll in cornering maneuvers as evidenced by the launch of active roll control systems for BMW 7 series vehicles as well as the new Mercedes SL with active body control. This trend is likely to extend beyond luxury vehicles as manufacturers of vehicles with higher centers of gravity seek technologies that mitigate the rollover tendency of these vehicles....
RKE - Opening More than Doors
by Tom Tang Lear Corporation The history of remote keyless entry products has been characterized by the increase of range performance from a few meters back in the 1980s to a few hundred meters today. The key milestones of RKE product history can be summarized as follows: radio frequency technology replacing the infrared technology, VHF/UHF band replacing the 27 MHz civil band, and the superheterodyne receiver replacing the super-regenerative receiver. Now, RKE engineers face a new challenge, namely to overcome the range limitation of today's RKE technology. Is it possible to achieve more than 500 meters of range as contrasted to today's technology?...
From the Editors
Automotive Electronics Spurs Semiconductor Growth
by Ashok Bindra Editorial Director, RF Design Because there is pressure to implement emerging advanced automotive safety, engine, infotainment, chassis control, and wireless technologies, analysts predict this decade will witness an unprecedented growth in automobile electronics content....
HEV Battery Technology Advances Surely but Slowly
by David Morrison Editor, Power Electronics Technology Though forward steps are being taken, hydrogen-powered fuel-cell vehicles are still several years from entering mass production. Much closer to showroom reality are hybrid electric vehicles, which the FreedomCAR program views as an intermediate technology step to a pure hydrogen economy and hydrogen vehicles....
Technology Update from Germany
BUSDOCTOR - A Tool for Systematic Tests MORE AND MORE MECHANICAL and hydraulic components in motor vehicles are being replaced by electronic control units that communicate using the FlexRay...
Top Level Architecture is Scalable NEW WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS standards, new multimedia standards and new digital services will increasingly find their way into the future automobile....
Under the Hood of the 2005 Mercedes Benz SLK350 Roadster
by Randy Frank Contributing Editor This month, WAE looks under the hood and all the rest of the sheet metal of a vehicle that has four in-vehicle networks. The Mercedes-Benz SLK350 Roadster has a high-speed and low-speed CAN bus, a LIN bus and a fiber-optic MOST bus....
Executive Viewpoints
Emerging Vehicle Technologies and Services
by K. Venkatesh Prasad Ford Motor Company Emerging technologies and associated services to enhance the productivity and entertainment attributes of the automobile experience are at various phases...
Technologies Driving Tomorrow's Safe Car
by Jim Schwyn Valeo-North America For many years, automotive manufacturers have placed an emphasis on keeping motorists safe during collisions. Several passive safety systems have been...
Product Spotlight
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT SURFACE-MOUNT LEDS BRIGHTEN AUTOMOTIVE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR Agilent Technologies Inc. and Lumileds Lighting have introduced the first three products...
