DSPs achieve ISO 26262 ASIL D compliance

The processors enable design engineers to develop automotive subsystems with the processing capability needed for ADAS applications and autonomous vehicles, while staying within strict power, cost and schedule constraints.

The DSPs and task-optimised processors are very effective for processing the raw data from sensors to extract features, analysing the results and taking critical actions in real time at lower power and cost points than general-purpose processors.

The Tensilica Functional Safety products comply with ISO 26262 1^st Edition and 26262:2018 2^nd Edition standards.

Cadence works with safety industry leaders such as SGS-TÜV Saar and TÜV SÜD to ensure and certify compliance up to ISO 26262 ASIL D. TÜV SÜD has certified ASIL D compliance for Tensilica development tool software and libraries, and SGS-TÜV Saar has certified ASIL D compliance for the Tensilica IP design process.

System designers can optimise an ISO 26262-compliant processor/DSP for tasks spanning AI, vision, radar, audio and specialised control, including adding their own processor architectural ideas, and programmers can develop optimised ISO 26262-compliant software using the matching optimised C/C++ development tool suite and runtime libraries to create highly efficient ASIL D systems.

Customer-defined processor enhancements such as new instructions, custom SIMD datapath or VLIW parallel execution slot can be implemented with Tensilica Instruction Extension (TIE) language, and yet are still within the scope of ISO 26262 compliance.

Lower power consumption and higher performance are achieved for optimal target application efficiency and with less effort for compliance.

“There is a growing need for DSPs and controllers in automotive applications. New technologies are transforming the way data from the many sensors in today’s cars are used in safety-critical systems,” confirms Günter Greil, Business Line Manager Generic Safety Systems at TÜV SÜD. “The Cadence Tensilica software compiler toolchain and runtime library have been certified by TÜV SÜD for use up to ASIL D for functional safety.”

“Processors are essential elements in automotive safety applications and must be developed to meet to the most stringent requirements,” said SGS-TÜV Saar expert Wolfgang Ruf, Product Manager Semiconductor. “Following a rigorous evaluation, the Cadence Tensilica hardware design process has been certified by SGS-TÜV Saar as compliant with ISO 26262 ASIL D, allowing Tensilica Functional Safety processors to be used as design elements in ASIL D systems.”