The Automotive Ethernet

There was buzz around the release of OnStar in 2009, General Motors' in-car navigation, anti-theft, and emergency response solution, and even more talk when Audi began offering WiFi in its cars in 2011. Yet the difficulty with implementing internet capability into moving vehicles is that so far they've relied on spotty (and expensive) phone company networks, and as customers dramatically increase their data useage, WiFi on the road leaves much to be desired. 

With the coming deluge of connected and autonomous vehicles, spotty network availibility is no longer a luxury--it's a necessity. And phone company network WiFi won't cut it.

However, NXP has just announced its solution: automotive ethernet. Ethernet provides high data bandwidth, speed, weight reduction, and cost efficiency appropriate for the future of connected cars.

NXP announced its full automotive portfolio, consisting of both ethernet transceivers and ethernet switches, will be available for both entry-level and luxury cars. The video below demonstrates the technology in a connected car.

"...By 2023, 162 million Ethernet nodes containing 242 million ports will be included in produced consumer vehicles, worldwide."--Thilo Koslowski, vice president and automotive practice leader at Gartner.

NXP places the components of the infrastructure where they're needed within the framework of the car. That means faster, more response, and more accurate data analyzation. This is indeed an exciting announcement for the future of connected cars and their connected drivers.