Infineon in cooperation with Volkswagen

The chip, which delivers the performance of a 32-bit microcontroller, is a member of the XC2200 family recently unveiled by Infineon. Volkswagen will use the microcontroller to provide gateway capabilities in automobile body and convenience electronics to support the increasing networking and communication requirements between individual automotive subsystems. Today’s cars have as many as 50 different subsystems, grouped in separate communication networks. These subsystems take care, for example, of everything from engine and powertrain management to body and convenience electronics and infotainment applications, and need to communicate with one another, depending on current driving conditions. This communication is managed by a dedicated control unit known as Central Gateway Unit which is built around the microcontroller. The central gateway unit’s task is to exchange, reconcile and prioritize data across the various networks. It controls all of the internal interfaces, including those for engine management, entertainment systems, the instrument cluster, and the control units that manage the body and convenience electronics, as well as the external communication capabilities needed to allow future software updates to be installed by auto dealerships.