Modern cars have to react in fractions of a second. Sensors record the surroundings, assistance systems warn of dangers, cameras provide images. All this data must arrive simultaneously and at exactly the right time. The Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS in Dresden has developed a new digital component that sends data through a network much faster and more reliably.
The new 10G TSN endpoint enables transmission rates of up to ten gigabits per second. This is around ten times faster than the institute's previous solutions. At the same time, it ensures that the data not only arrives quickly, but also within precisely defined time windows. This is particularly crucial in safety-critical applications.
Precision in the billionth of a second range
The special feature lies in the time synchronization. The new module synchronizes all devices in the network so precisely that their clocks deviate from each other by less than ten nanoseconds. A nanosecond is one billionth of a second. This extreme accuracy is achieved directly in the hardware, i.e. in the electronic circuit itself. This makes synchronization particularly stable and fast.
"With our new 10G TSN endpoint, we are adding an important expansion stage to our portfolio," says Alexander Noack, Head of Data Communication & Computing at Fraunhofer IPMS. The aim is to enable networks that function precisely even with very high data volumes.
From autonomous cars to smart factories
In modern vehicles, the module can serve as the central backbone, for example for assistance systems, infotainment or on-board computers. Even if several cameras, radar and laser sensors send data simultaneously, it arrives without delay and at the right time. In industry, the technology ensures that robots, machines and image processing systems work together in precise synchronization. This increases the reliability and efficiency of production systems.
In the CeCas funding project, Fraunhofer IPMS is also developing a high-performance computer platform for highly automated vehicles, in which even faster solutions are already being tested. Further network components are set to follow this year.
