Noise in Traffic: Signal Emulation for Automotive Apps
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Automotive applications present new challenges to high-speed serial (HSS) technology. Asymmetric, multi-gigabit signaling between sensors (like cameras, lidar, control and driver assistance systems, etc.), processors, and displays in the unique noise environments of both electric and internal combustion engine vehicles, plus life-and-death safety/reliability concerns, create new problems for signal and power integrity engineers. We introduce the signal impairments required for receiver testing in the emerging automotive standards like ASA, MIPI's A-PHY, Automotive Ethernet, etc. From "automotive cable crosstalk" to "car noise" to "fast transient pulses," the standards specify different sources of noise in different ways, some as in the form of time evolutions, others as spectra; our presentation focuses on techniques for generating and calibrating each noise source. In the process, we'll describe advanced de-embedding techniques and address test equipment limitations.