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RESCAR 2.0 Enhances the Robustness of Electronic Automotive Components

4th May 2011

ES Admin

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Whether in the powertrain, in central control units or in body and convenience electronics – there is a constant increase in the proportion of electronic components used in the car. This trend is accompanied by growing complexity of the systems installed, meaning that designers are forever faced with new challenges in the fine tuning. Six partners from all levels of the development chain have now joined forces in a quest to come up with overarching solutions. The members of the RESCAR 2.0 research project (RESCAR being the German acronym for the robust design of new electronic components for applications in the field of electromobility) seek to enhance the reliability and robustness of electronic automotive components. The project is receiving support from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) to the tune of approximately Euro 6.5 million as part of the funding program known as “STROM” (German acronym signifying key technologies for electromobility). Together with the partners, the joint research investment volume is planned at about Euro 13.3 million over the coming three years.

As the proportion of electronic components used in the car increases, so the interplay between the individual modules becomes ever more complex. Furthermore, in changing over central vehicle systems – such as the steering and brakes – from mechanical and hydraulic components to their electrical and electronic counterparts, compliance with the strictest safety standards is required. These safety aspects as well as the diverse interdependencies of the components have to be factored also into the semiconductor development process and reconciled with the requirements of the respective application.

RESCAR 2.0 aims at optimizing the entire development process of electrical and
electronic components of electromobility systems to enable the robustness and reliability of the overall system to be predicted right from the outset. Among the tasks planned is the development of methodology to capture and process the requirements for new components. Moreover, robustness analyses will be designed to investigate the suitability of the components for the application envisaged. The components under study will encompass analog and digital circuits in the low-voltage range as well as high-volt mixed signal ICs and sensor systems.

Partners from all levels of the development chain are participating in RESCAR 2.0: AUDI AG, the BMW AG (associated project partner), ELMOS Semiconductor AG, the Research Center for Information Technology (FZI), Infineon Technologies AG and Robert Bosch GmbH. Support is provided by the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration (IZM) Berlin, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS) Dresden, the University of Bremen, the Dresden University of Technology, the University of Hanover and the University of Tuebingen. The project is coordinated by Infineon.

In the light of the increasing demand for energy and growing need for personal mobility, the significance of electric drives is gaining in momentum. They enable the use of renewable energy sources and thus contribute to reducing pollutant emissions. The German Federal Government has set itself the goal of turning Germany into the lead market and leading supplier for electromobility by having one million electric vehicles on the road by the year 2020. RESCAR 2.0 makes an important contribution, given that achieving the necessary public acceptance of electric cars is reliant on them matching the performance, safety and convenience of conventionally powered vehicles.