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Current automotive electrical architecture
The current most advanced automotive electrical architectures mainly include the following:
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48V Mild Hybrid System: This electrical architecture improves fuel efficiency, lowers emissions and provides additional power by combining a 48-volt electrical system with a traditional 12-volt system. The 48-volt micro-hybrid system is mainly used in mild hybrid vehicles, such as some models of Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW.
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High Voltage Hybrid System: This electrical architecture is mainly used in plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) and pure electric vehicles (EV). High-voltage hybrid systems typically use voltages from 300 volts to 800 volts to provide higher energy density and faster charging. This electrical architecture can be found in vehicles such as Tesla, Chevrolet Bolt and Nissan Leaf.
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Automotive Ethernet: Automotive Ethernet is a communication network used to connect various electronic devices inside the car. It provides high-speed, high-reliability data transmission to support advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), infotainment systems and in-vehicle communications. In-vehicle Ethernet has become a standard feature of many high-end car brands, such as Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
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Electronic Architecture Integration (E/E Architecture Integration): As the complexity of automotive electronic systems continues to increase, automakers are working to simplify electronic architecture and reduce redundancy between systems. With an integrated electronics architecture, automakers can reduce costs, improve reliability and simplify repairs. Volkswagen Group's MEB platform and Tesla's electronic architecture are typical representatives in this regard.
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Software-Defined Vehicle: Software-defined vehicle means that the functions and performance of the car are mainly controlled by software instead of traditional hardware components. This electrical architecture allows automakers to improve and upgrade the car's functionality through software updates, making the car more flexible and scalable. Tesla is a representative of software-defined cars, and its vehicles can gain new features and performance improvements through over-the-air software updates.
High-voltage hybrid system
The High Voltage Hybrid System is a power system that combines an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. The high-voltage battery provides energy to the electric motor, allowing the internal combustion engine and the electric motor to work together. Such systems offer significant advantages in improving fuel economy, reducing emissions and improving drivability. The main components of the high-voltage hybrid system include:
- Internal combustion engine: Usually a gasoline or diesel engine, responsible for providing the main power output.
- Electric motor: As an auxiliary power, it can provide additional power when starting, accelerating or driving at low speeds, thereby reducing the burden on the internal combustion engine.
- High-voltage battery: Provides energy to the electric motor, usually a lithium-ion or nickel-metal hydride battery.
- Electric power controller: Responsible for controlling the distribution of energy between the electric motor and the internal combustion engine to achieve optimal fuel economy and driving performance.
- Transmission: Transmits the power of the internal combustion engine and electric motor to the drive wheels, and can be a traditional automatic transmission, a dual-clutch transmission, or an electronic continuously variable transmission. How the high-voltage hybrid system works: Under different driving conditions, the high-voltage hybrid system automatically adjusts the working conditions of the internal combustion engine and electric motor to achieve optimal fuel economy and driving performance.
Starting and low-speed driving : During starting and low-speed driving, the electric motor provides power and the internal combustion engine is shut down, achieving zero emissions and low noise.
Medium speed driving : When driving at medium speed, the internal combustion engine and electric motor jointly provide power to improve fuel economy.
High-speed driving and acceleration : When driving at high speed and accelerating, the internal combustion engine provides the main power, and the electric motor provides additional power to improve driving performance.
Braking and deceleration : During braking and deceleration, the electric motor acts as a generator, recovering kinetic energy into electrical energy and storing it in a high-voltage battery to improve energy utilization.
High-voltage hybrid power systems have obvious advantages in energy saving and emission reduction, improving driving performance and reducing operating costs, and have become one of the development trends in the automotive industry.
E/E Architecture Integration
Electronic architecture integration (E/E Architecture Integration) refers to the integration of various electronic systems and components of automobiles (such as sensors, actuators, controllers, communication equipment, etc.) into a unified architecture to achieve more efficient and more efficient Reliable and safer automotive electronic systems. This integrated architecture can simplify the design, manufacturing and maintenance processes of vehicles, reduce costs, and improve vehicle performance and reliability. In electronic architecture integration, various electronic systems and components communicate and work together through standardized interfaces and protocols to achieve seamless integration of various functions. These functions include: power system control, chassis control, body control, infotainment system, driver assistance system, in-vehicle communication system, etc. With the continuous development of automotive electronics technology, the integration of electronic architecture has become an important trend in the automotive industry. Future cars will have more complex and intelligent electronic systems to provide drivers with a more comfortable, safe and convenient driving experience.
Automotive Ethernet Technology
Automotive Ethernet technology is a solution that applies Ethernet communication technology in cars to achieve high-speed data transmission and connection inside the vehicle. As the automotive industry's demand for high-bandwidth applications such as autonomous driving, Internet of Vehicles, and high-definition video streaming continues to grow, in-vehicle Ethernet technology has gradually become a key technology for automotive network communications.
Automotive Ethernet technology has the following characteristics:
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High-speed transmission: Automotive Ethernet technology can provide data transmission rates up to 1Gbps or higher to meet the real-time transmission needs of large amounts of information such as high-definition video streams and sensor data.
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Scalability: Automotive Ethernet technology has good scalability, and can adjust network topology and bandwidth according to the needs of automotive systems.
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Anti-interference: Vehicle Ethernet technology adopts differential signal transmission mode, which has strong anti-electromagnetic interference ability and ensures the stability of data transmission.
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Cost-effectiveness: Compared with traditional automotive network technologies, automotive Ethernet technology is more cost-effective, which can reduce the cost of automobile manufacturers.
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Compatibility: Automotive Ethernet technology can be compatible with existing Ethernet technology, which facilitates system integration for automakers.
The application of automotive Ethernet technology in the automotive industry mainly includes the following aspects:
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Vehicle infotainment system: Vehicle Ethernet technology can realize high-speed audio and video data transmission and provide functions such as high-definition video playback and real-time navigation.
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Advanced driver assistance system (ADAS): In-vehicle Ethernet technology can realize high-speed transmission of sensor data and improve the real-time and accuracy of ADAS systems.
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Internet of Vehicles: Vehicle Ethernet technology can realize high-speed connection between vehicles and external networks, and support functions such as remote diagnosis and vehicle tracking.
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Autonomous driving: In-vehicle Ethernet technology provides a high-speed and stable data transmission channel for the autonomous driving system to ensure the safety performance of the autonomous driving system.
In short, in-vehicle Ethernet technology brings high-speed and stable data transmission solutions to the automotive industry, which is of great significance in promoting the intelligent and networked development of the automotive industry.
Software defined cars
Software-Defined Vehicle is an automobile design concept that emphasizes the tight integration and collaborative work between the automobile's software and hardware systems. In this design, the car's individual functions and performance features are primarily controlled by software rather than traditional hardware components. This approach allows automakers to develop and deploy new features more quickly while improving vehicle performance, safety and user experience.
Here are some key features and benefits of software-defined cars:
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Highly integrated software and hardware systems: Software-defined cars integrate various sensors, actuators and controllers into a unified software platform, allowing the various systems of the car to work together more effectively. This integration helps improve vehicle performance, safety and reliability.
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Rapid iterations and updates: Software-defined cars allow manufacturers to quickly develop and deploy new features through software updates without having to replace hardware components. This allows cars to continue to improve as technology develops, improving user experience.
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Personalization and customization: Software-defined cars can provide customized functions and services based on user needs and preferences. For example, car manufacturers can offer different driving modes, seat settings and entertainment options to different users.
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Data-driven optimization: Software-defined cars can collect and analyze vast amounts of data to optimize the car’s performance, safety, and user experience. For example, by analyzing driving data, automakers can identify potential safety hazards and take appropriate measures.
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Internet connectivity and cloud computing: Software-defined cars often have Internet connectivity that enables real-time communication with other devices and services. This allows cars to leverage cloud computing resources for advanced computing and data analysis to provide smarter functions and services.
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Electrification and autonomous driving: Software-defined cars provide an ideal platform for electrification and autonomous driving technology. Through software control, cars can achieve more efficient energy management and more precise driving control, thereby improving the range of electric vehicles and the safety of autonomous vehicles.
In short, software-defined cars are a car design concept that tightly integrates software and hardware systems, which can improve the performance, safety and user experience of cars, while providing car manufacturers with the ability to develop and deploy new features more quickly. With the development of electrification, autonomous driving and Internet connection technologies, software-defined vehicles will become an important trend in the future automotive industry.