Xilinx Automotive Solutions Enable Networking for Vehicle Infotainment Systems

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DETROIT, October 20, 2008: At the Convergence(R) Conference and Exhibition, Xilinx, Inc. , the world's leading programmable logic device (PLD) provider, is highlighting Xilinx Automotive (XA) programmable solutions that are being applied by a global automotive supplier in the development of rear-seat entertainment systems supporting the MOST(R) (Media-Oriented Systems Transport) networking standard. Visteon Corporation, a leading supplier of automotive systems and technology, applies Xilinx(R) Automotive (XA) programmable solutions in some of its rear seat entertainment systems, which are used by a variety of automotive manufacturers.

The XA solution is the industry's only programmable MOST Network Interface Controller (NIC) that allows in-vehicle devices to communicate via the MOST network, and the embedded digital signal processing (DSP) capabilities of XA Spartan(R)-3E FPGAs and CoolRunner(TM) CPLDs for implementing advanced audio/video functions. In addition, application-specific intellectual property (IP), middleware, and design services delivered by Xilinx in collaboration with Mocean Laboratories and other Xilinx Alliance Program member companies, supports Visteon's goal of realizing more efficient design implementations and shorter development cycles.

Xilinx and its ecosystem network bring proven expertise in automotive applications, providing automotive suppliers the programmability needed to 'future-proof' production designs for evolving industry standards and new market requirements. "Having a high-quality supply chain that delivers innovative solutions is critical to our ability to meet the technology, quality and cost needs of vehicle manufacturers around the world," said David O'Rourke, electronics engineering manager at Visteon.

Flexible, Cost-effective MOST Solution

Powered by the XA Spartan-3E FPGA, the Xilinx LogiCORE(TM) IP NIC solution for MOST supports a 24Mb per second (Mbps) stream over plastic fiber that enables both synchronous and asynchronous data transfer. This LogiCORE incorporates a unique LocalLink streaming port that allows direct access to the real-time MOST synchronous channel data. This makes full use of the parallel processing capabilities of the FPGA for real-time DSP operations, such as audio and video processing, filtering, and noise cancellation on streaming MOST data. In addition to the LogiCORE IP solution for MOST; XA Spartan-3E and XA CoolRunner-II devices also offer built-in DSP support, enabling Visteon developers to integrate more advanced audio/video features with its rear-seat entertainment unit, including video splitting, FM audio modulation, and video reformatting functions.