STMicroelectronics Unveils Features of
Multi-Application, Deterministic Automotive Microcontrollers to
Maximize Safety and Security in Next-Generation Domain/Zone
Architectures
- ST jointly developed with Bosch deterministic high-performance
open-market MCUs that can host multiple applications including
virtualization of safety and security by HW
functionality
- New approach enables integration of multiple applications
developed with different tooling and on different software
schedules, in contrast to today’s Linux/Posix-based
integration-platform solutions
- Non-volatile Phase-Change Memory (PCM) supports safety by
delivering single-bit overwrite capability and very effective
Over-the-Air updates with no downtime
Geneva, Switzerland, October 20, 2020 –
STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor
leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics
applications, has revealed further details of its innovative
Stellar automotive microcontrollers (MCUs) to show how the devices
ensure reliable and deterministic execution of multiple independent
real-time applications. This is one of the toughest challenges
facing manufacturers in today’s automotive sector as the complexity
of new car architectures leads to the consolidation of independent
applications into a single powerful Integration MCU and typically
involves choosing either determinism or virtualization. Stellar
delivers both.
Pioneering this new class of controllers, Stellar Integration
MCUs are designed with exceptional computing power to significantly
simplify the concurrent and deterministic execution of
multiple-sourced software while guaranteeing the highest levels of
safety and performance. These capabilities meet system requirements
in the electrics/electronics (E/E) architecture of the next
generation of connected cars. To do this, Stellar introduces
features that include a state-of-the-art processor with hardware
support for virtualization, quality of service settings, the
ability to firewall peripherals, and perform resource separation at
interconnect levels. These features allow independent applications,
or Virtual ECUs, to coexist in the same physical MCU by
guaranteeing freedom from interference and secure
compartmentalization of software functions while supporting
concurrent multiple ASIL safety levels.
ST has developed this new technology with Bosch, the well-known
tier-one automotive electronic module supplier, to meet future OEM
integration demands.
We have set up Stellar’s functionality to cover integration
challenges, while maintaining isolation and compartmentalization,”
said Axel Aue, Vice President, Bosch. “The computing performance
for this kind of system is outstanding, with Phase Change Memory
performance equal to, or surpassing, that of alternative Flash
technologies. Moreover, Stellar’s performance concerning Firmware
Updates Over-the-Air (FOTA) has been flawless with zero down time
and zero recovery time.”
“We designed Stellar to meet the demands of future Domain/Zone
architectures and service-oriented communication needs, setting
aggressive real-time performance, safety, and determinism goals,”
said Luca Rodeschini, Strategy & Automotive Processors and RF
Division General Manager, STMicroelectronics. “The setup,
evaluations and validations performed by Bosch now provide expert
confirmation, showing that our teams’ integration of outstanding
real-time performance, embedded PCM non-volatile memory, and
comprehensive virtualization ensure efficient software isolation
and compartmentalization that will add to consumers’ safety and
convenience in their vehicles.”
Further Technical Information
Stellar embeds multiple Arm® Cortex®-R52 cores — some operating
in lockstep and some in Split/Lock – and features a 2-level Memory
Protection Unit and a low-latency Generic Interrupt Controller. The
MCU is suited to hard real-time applications up to the highest
safety integrity level, ASIL-D, specified in the automotive
functional-safety standard, ISO 26262. There are also multiple
powerful accelerators for secure data routing, processing, and
mathematical functions, with advanced security support and
extensive communication command and control.
The Integration MCU offers a comprehensive virtualization at
multiple levels using a Virtual Machine ID (VMID) at the
network-on-chip and memory levels. Firewalls ensure complete
separation at all interconnect levels including the peripherals.
These firewalls allow Stellar to manage Virtual Machines (VMs)
accesses and privileges to peripherals, ensuring the isolation of
entire mission-critical functions.
With its unique architecture and hardware-based virtualization
capabilities, Stellar assures safety through freedom from
interference. It also provides significant advantages over software
virtualization, including offloading of processor cores and
reducing virtualization’s impact on memory.
At the same time, Stellar manages increasing software complexity
and integration with better utilization of its hardware resources.
This reduces total overhead of multiple separate ECUs performing
their own housekeeping and managing communication-stack-related
latency. In fact, Stellar can support several real-time operating
systems (OSes) running independently, without interference. These
OSes can separately manage applications with different
functional-safety levels and superior processing capabilities for
encrypted communication over Ethernet or CAN1 buses with dedicated
AES2 accelerators to offload the main Hardware Security Modules
(HSM) for MACSec3, IPSec4, and CAN authentication.
Stellar Integration MCUs feature non-volatile Phase-Change
Memory (PCM), offering fast read access times, and single-bit
alterability that is not available in Flash memory. PCM ensures
Over-The-Air (OTA) updates with zero down time, even for full-sized
memory updates. In addition to increasing flexibility and
erase/write cycles, single-bit alterability at runtime (no erase
required) extends safety setup by refreshing bits to eliminate
single-bit failures and extend the memory’s lifetime.
ST’s embedded-PCM technology has been developed and tested to
operate within the most stringent automotive requirements for
robust high-temperature operation, radiation hardening, cycling and
data retention. ePCM achieves automotive requirements for AEC-Q100
Grade 0 with an operating temperature up to +165°C.
To date, ST has delivered more than 3000 samples to customers
and samples have been running in vehicles for about a year. For
additional information, please contact ST sales.
About STMicroelectronicsAt ST, we are 46,000
creators and makers of semiconductor technologies mastering the
semiconductor supply chain with state-of-the-art manufacturing
facilities. An independent device manufacturer, we work with our
100,000 customers and thousands of partners to design and build
products, solutions, and ecosystems that address their challenges
and opportunities, and the need to support a more sustainable
world. Our technologies enable smarter mobility, more efficient
power and energy management, and the wide-scale deployment of the
Internet of Things and 5G technology. Further information can be
found at www.st.com.
For Press Information Contact: Michael
Markowitz Director Technical Media Relations STMicroelectronics
Tel: +1 781 591 0354 Email: michael.markowitz@st.com
1 Controller Area Network
2 Advanced Encryption Standard
3 Media Access Controller (MAC) Security
4 Internet Protocol Security
- P4269A -- Oct 20 2020 -- Stellar MCU Update_FINAL FOR
PUBLICATION
- P4269A -- Oct 20 2020 -- Stellar MCU Update_IMAGE
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