EPN Automotive Electronics Blog

IC for door and window

While most driver assistance functions in modern cars are connected to and controlled by electronic systems, windows of all things are using reliable Old-fashiond electromagnetic pulses.

CAN and LIN out of the palm

In vehicle assembly or the manufacture of mechatronic assemblies and systems it is often the case that operating functions must be executed at units to be mounted in vehicles without availability of related ECUs and control elements. This is the moment for a handheld terminal supporting those bus systems.

AUTOSAR solidified

The worldwide development partnership for a standardized automotive software architecture started fairly promising. Unfortunately, 'versionitis' has taken hold and now the two lines 3.x and 4.x are in use concurrently and both need to be developed. The newest v4 release is mainly dealing with stability issues.

Broken bonds of brakes

It's difficult to imagine a major automotive supplier without brake technology in its portfolio, but it's bound to happen: the Bosch Group intends to sell its global foundation brakes business to a private equity firm. Since Bosch is not known for making rash decisions, this carve-out is certainly going to have some impact on the industry.

In the aftermarket

Modern cars are practically heaps of electronic components, and various interfaces allow for diagnostic access of the subsystems. One of the consequences is that it has become increasingly difficult to conduct even small repairs yourself, another is a booming service tools market. A market everyone wants a share of.

Between sun and light

Remember the development of the Laser? At first, it was a »solution looking for a problem«, then it replaced traditional components and today, most of modern technology wouldn’t be possible without it. The OLED – organic LED – seems to be on a similar track; since these are not the sixties however, it’s going much faster and the categories blur. The thin lines between nonsense, good idea and outstanding innovation are hard to make out, even when you’re looking up to your car’s roofliner.

The second world strikes back

We got used to car and semiconductor manufacturing migrating from Europe to China, and subcontractors and EMS providers moving to obscure post-soviet states. A few years ago, Chinese companies started building infrastructure in Africa in a way, legions of western development workers weren’t able to, European and US governments ask for financial help and now the unheard-of happens: a Chinese car manufacturer opens a plant in a European low-wage country.

Ethernet drive

Happy new year, dear readers - welcome to the future! One vision of the future is the ‘connected car’, and many drivers seem to want that. As consumer demand for in-vehicle connectivity continues to grow, automotive manufacturers are under pressure to deliver competitive, innovative features while minimizing cost. A major stumbling block is cabling - it’s heavy, difficult to design and expensive.

Backpack car

The concept of adding a trailer to a car is not exactly new but traditional solutions require a fixed coupling, extended mirrors and in many countries a special license. A Swiss car designer changes the game with a plug-in solution.

World Solar Challenge 2011 wrap-up

»Outback racers« makes it clear that European technology can compete successfully, even in Australia. And it keeps getting better!