Automotive dev platform unifies wireless connectivity
Semiconductor designer and manufacturer NXP Semiconductors has announced an automotive-grade development platform that integrates a wide variety of NXP wireless technologies, from broadcast radio, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth, to secure car access with Ultra-Wideband (UWB) and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), and 802.11p-based V2X. Designed as a modular platform, the OrangeBox is a single, security enhanced, modular development platform that provides a unified interface between the vehicle’s gateway and its wired and wireless technologies.
By doing so, says the company, it provides a means for next-generation cars to securely communicate with the world around them. OrangeBox unifies current and emerging external wireless interfaces into a single, security-enhanced connectivity domain controller, which then connects to the secure vehicle gateway through NXP high-speed Ethernet.
This consolidated, turn-key approach works to reduce development effort, optimizes the movement of data across multiple communication interfaces, enables consistent, state-of-the-art security protection to be applied to all traffic entering the car, and eases the deployment of V2X and cloud applications such as over-the-air updates for software-defined vehicles.
“By consolidating automotive wireless technologies into a centralized domain controller with a high-speed connection to the vehicle gateway, we are creating a single pathway for the vehicle to seamlessly connect to the rest of the world,” says Dan Loop, Vice President and General Manager for Automotive Edge Processing at NXP. “Not only can this help to reduce costs and streamline development, it addresses a critical piece of the puzzle for data-enriched vehicles that require centralized, secure connectivity.”
The OrangeBox development platform integrates leading technologies from the company, including an advanced applications processor, a software-defined broadcast radio tuner, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth. It also includes secure car access with BLE and UWB, as well as 802.11p-based V2X, both secured by certified EdgeLock discrete NXP secure elements.
Support for 4G LTE or 5G cellular and GPS connectivity is also included. It makes it easier for automakers to consistently apply state-of-the-art cloud-managed security technologies, such as next-generation firewalls, to data traffic entering or leaving the vehicle. The central processor of the OrangeBox is a i.MX 8XLite applications processor running a unified Linux-based software platform to manage the automotive wireless connectivity. It includes an NXP gigabit Ethernet connection to the central vehicle gateway, allowing other automotive systems to more easily leverage the benefits of integrated wireless connectivity.
The OrangeBox automotive development platform is expected to be available to customers in 1H 2023.
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