The trend of cross-domain integration is gradually becoming clear, and the new generation of E/E architecture based on the central computing platform is accelerating.
Gaogong Intelligent Vehicle Research Institute pointed out that with the implementation of Nvidia and Qualcomm's central computing platforms, 2024 will be the first year of cross-domain (regional + central computing). Whether it is for car companies or suppliers, new market opportunities have been identified.
At present, including car companies, Tier1, and chip companies, all are moving from domain controller architecture to cross-domain integration and central computing, seeking to gain a first-mover advantage in the new industry cycle. In terms of car companies, including SAIC, Geely, GAC Aian, Xiaopeng, etc., have released a new generation of central computing + regional control architecture.
At the 2023 (14th) Gaogong Intelligent Vehicle Developers Conference held on June 8. Liang Chen, CTO of PATEO Internet of Vehicles, delivered a keynote speech on " PATEO Internet of Vehicles' Thoughts on the Second Half of Intelligentization ". Introduce in detail PATEO's comprehensive forward-looking layout in the fields of " integrated cabin, travel and parking " and " central integrated control brain of the whole vehicle ".
From cockpit domain control to cabin-driving integration to central computing + regional control, along with the rapid evolution of the vehicle's electrical and electronic architecture, top Tier 1 companies represented by PATEO have already taken the lead.
Launched the central computing platform, leading the next generation technology trend
"The smart cockpit is evolving into an emotional space centered on user experience." Liang Chen said.
Smart cars will gradually evolve into mobile smart terminals. The smart cockpit is a platform closely related to customer experience. Content software and personalized services have become the main features of the smart cockpit. The demand is evolving from a travel tool to a travel partner.
The next upgrade trend is that the smart cockpit will be further linked with autonomous driving, bringing consumers a scene-based in-depth experience and sense of participation through cross-domain and cross-function, which is also regarded as the core point of the next competition for smart cars. The current OEMs also need to deploy the smart cockpit platform for the next generation of smart cars in advance.
Behind this, the electronic and electrical architecture of the vehicle is evolving. The cockpit domain controller based on the high-performance computing platform integrates various functions previously implemented by multiple ECUs. At the same time, cross-domain integration is about to be implemented. "Central computing" has become the general trend.
"Based on the smart cockpit, the central computing platform that integrates advanced assisted automatic driving, body functions, gateways, 5G, and V2X is one of the core systems of the next-generation smart car architecture." Liang Chen said.
He pointed out that the electronic and electrical architecture based on the central computing platform + regional controller helps to simplify the signal matrix and functional structure of the traditional vehicle electrical and electronic architecture, and provides the hardware platform and software platform foundation for the entire vehicle to realize the smart car as an emotional space.
Under this trend of technological upgrading, PATEO has taken the lead in deployment.
As early as April this year, PATEO and Zongmu Technology Alliance announced that based on the current mainstream chip platform in the industry, they will jointly create a " cabin, travel and parking integrated" solution that is cost-effective and able to cover mainstream scenarios, and quickly achieve high market acceptance . As an innovative integrated architecture solution, the product form of "integrated cabin, travel and mooring" is further moving towards regional integration/central computing platform, which is very forward-looking.
Recently, PATEO announced that it has successfully developed the first vehicle central computing platform (Central Computing Module, hereinafter referred to as CCM), once again leading the evolution and upgrading trend of the electronic and electrical architecture of smart vehicles.
According to the data, the self-developed central computing platform CCM product has achieved a comprehensive breakthrough in hardware configuration, number of interfaces, efficiency, energy efficiency and other aspects.
Statistics show that PATEO's central computing platform CCM has a comprehensive AI computing power of 286TOPS and a CPU comprehensive computing power of 309KDMIPS. CCM expands computing power based on the central gateway, and integrates smart cockpit functions, advanced assisted automatic driving, body functions, and vehicle control functions.
The current central supercomputing + regional control architecture has entered a critical initial stage and is still facing many challenges. In addition to the exponential increase in computing power requirements for the main control SOC, the complexity of the software architecture has also increased dramatically.
Including how to efficiently integrate cockpit software and smart driving software, how to deal with the current issues of chip diversification, computing power, functional safety, and uncertainty in chip supply. Select the appropriate software and hardware adaptation solution in terms of mass production cycle, main model positioning, cost control, etc.
The PATEO CCM platform can well meet the development requirements of the next-generation automobile architecture of different OEMs . Based on the scalable high-computing computing platform, PATEO CCM can support 24 channels of high-definition cameras, 2 channels of laser radar, and 12 channels of ultrasonic radar , 5 channels of millimeter-wave radar and 4D millimeter-wave radar access; in terms of network interface support, PATEO CCM supports more than 16 channels of 100- and Gigabit Ethernet access; multi-domain fusion shared cooling system, compact structure and multi-dimensional improvement of thermal management Efficiency, resulting in a significant reduction in energy consumption.
It is worth mentioning that while integrating different chips and ECUs, the platform can further reduce the use of wiring harness and other components, which can further reduce the cost of vehicle R&D and BOM.
As a comprehensive smart cockpit full-stack solution provider in China, PATEO has the ability to provide integration of hardware, software, cloud services, operations, and manufacturing. Based on the full-stack capabilities, especially the underlying software and hardware capabilities, the bottom layer of multi-module products can be quickly opened up to realize the integration of functional integration, and the rapid deployment of high-performance computing platforms to achieve cross-domain integration.
"The successful development and application of CCM enables us to continue to maintain the international and domestic leadership in the field of next-generation intelligent networked vehicle technology." Liang Chen said.
Create multi-level solutions to help OEMs seize the opportunity
From cockpit domain control to cabin-driving integration to vehicle central computing, along with the rapid evolution of vehicle electrical and electronic architecture, the challenges to Tier 1 continue to escalate.
From a technical point of view, the complexity of the software under the domain control centralized architecture is becoming more and more obvious. Different chips and ECUs need to be integrated, covering multiple operating systems. The requirements for Tier1 system integration capabilities and the difficulty of supply chain management are greatly increased. In addition, the system solution also needs to meet the current deployment requirements of OEMs and E/E architecture upgrades in the next 3-5 years, which also tests the supplier's technical iteration capabilities.
In addition, in the current environment of cost reduction and efficiency increase, OEMs are still further shortening the development cycle and delivery cycle. In addition to taking into account the demand for cost reduction and accelerating the introduction of new cars to the market, it is also a major factor for maintaining the leading position of automotive products in the increasingly fierce competition. The key factor.
Liang Chen pointed out that the future smart cockpit solution provider is Tier 0.5, starting from the smart cockpit application service scenario, developing solutions in depth cooperation with OEMs, and providing integrated hardware products and software services.
As one of the few leading Tier 1 companies in China that have mastered the core technology of the full-stack software and hard cloud, PATEO’s smart cockpit platform ROADMAP has undergone multiple rounds of iterative upgrades, which can not only meet the needs of the current smart cockpit domain control solutions for diversification, high cost performance, and rapid implementation, It can also help OEMs to upgrade and deploy the architecture in the next 3 or 5 years, so as to seize the opportunity of the next generation of intelligent network technology.
According to reports, in response to the diversified and hierarchical needs of the current market, PATEO has launched a multi-level solution, including the ultimate cost-effective smart cockpit solution, which only uses a low-cost hardware platform, and the system BOM cost is greatly reduced, helping low-end and mid-end models to achieve smart Cockpit upgrade; in the series of Snapdragon cockpit platform solutions, based on the third-generation Snapdragon cockpit platform and the fourth-generation Snapdragon cockpit chips, different hardware configuration solutions can realize diversified and customized smart cockpit solutions .
It is worth mentioning that in order to better serve the overseas strategy of car companies, it has also launched an overseas version of smart cockpit product solutions, including overseas cockpit hardware, software platforms, overseas cloud platforms, and operation and maintenance service platforms.
In the current key implementation cycle of cross-domain integration, top Tier 1 companies with full-stack core technologies such as PATEO have also begun to show huge advantages.
For example, the above-mentioned "integrated cabin and parking" solution adopts a time-sharing multiplexing chip resource solution to meet the computing power requirements of the cockpit and intelligent driving system. In addition to integrating the current popular cockpit functions, it can further realize 360 Panoramic imaging, automatic parking and other functions are equivalent to realizing richer function expansion and creating a better user experience when the system cost is reduced by 30%.
PATEO's new-generation vehicle intelligent platform solution is based on PATEO's hardware-soft cloud full-stack technology + Qualcomm 8295 high-performance platform + underlying software platform , which can quickly expand the three-domain integrated vehicle intelligent level and integrate intelligent driving It integrates functions such as information display and interaction, and integrates exterior hardware such as rearview mirrors and lights to create more advanced and differentiated functions and user experience.
From a system point of view, this type of platform based on large computing power adopts technological innovations such as one core and multiple systems, reduces the number of ECUs, simplifies the burden of wiring harnesses, LIN/CAN, and Ethernet, decouples software and hardware, and modularizes software. , Not only brings more efficient information flow communication, system performance upgrade, but also achieves a substantial cost reduction.
Obviously, in the second half of the smart competition, the competition will be the upgrade of computing power platform, system optimization capability and iteration speed. The goal is to help customers reduce costs and increase efficiency by building a cost-effective and high-reliability solution platform. Create the ultimate experience products and realize the improvement of product power.
The few leading companies like PATEO who have mastered the full-stack core technology and already possessed the capability of a central computing platform are realizing service innovation and value growth through in-depth co-creation with OEMs.