Fujitsu rolls first FRAM solution for automotive market
Fujitus’s new FRAM chip bears the unspeakable product name MB85RS256TY, but engineers perhaps should memorize this designator. The, sorry, MB85RS256TY covers the entire automotive temperature range up to 125°C and down to -40°C; a company spokesperson said it would be feasible to make chips that can stand even -55°C. The 256 kilobit device is guaranteed to retain its data content for ten years or even longer, even under worst-case conditions of 85°C constantly.
As a consequence of the rising demand from automotive customers for electronic control systems accessing multiple and various sensor types, the demand for high-performance non-volatile memory technologies is increasing. Only with such memory types as FRAM, the sensor data can be stored without any delay and reliably. FRAM is the technology of choice when fast access is equally required as the capability for frequent writing – something where both EEPROMs and NOR Flash hits its limits. Applications include data monitoring and analysis applications in cars such as airbag data storage, data event recorders (DER), battery management systems (BMS), advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) as well as navigation and infotainment systems. In such applications, FRAM helps reducing system complexity, improving data integrity and enabling continuous data storage.
The MB85RS256TY comes with an SPI interface and operates under an extended voltage range from 1.8 to 3.6V. Fujitsu specifies the chip for 1013 write cycles, far more than components with comparable density in EEPROM and Flash technology.
Development samples are available now; the automotive qualification according to AEC-Q100 will be completed by July 2017.
More information: https://www.fujitsu.com/feeu
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