Company: Socionext Europe GmbH
Category: Automotive Product of the Year
The SC1702 is a Display Controller ideal for next generation cluster and center information display (CID) applications and has been introduced to meet the need for high resolution widescreen automotive displays. Integrating intelligent systems into automotive displays is one of the major challenges for vehicle manufacturers today. In order to address these challenges Socionext has introduced the next generation of highly integrated Smart Display Controllers for automotive remote display applications. Of course, different applications have different requirements. For example, the Cluster requires a certain ASIL level which can be fulfilled by several safety features such as freeze detection and signature check. Whereas the CID application needs a relatively high resolution, maybe touch IF as well as key features such as HDR or, depending on the contents, a wider gamut.
The SC1702 is a fourth generation smart display controller capable of transferring data at rates of up 12Gbps using the latest APIX®3 technology. It is equipped with a newly developed Panel Interface Port (PIP) that supports the most advanced, high resolution wide landscape format display such as 8K x 1K, which cannot be supported with conventional interfaces. In addition the SC1702 has been designed to conform to the latest encryption technology HDCP 2.3, making it possible to effectively utilize rich, 4K-resolution content for multi-displays and other uses in a vehicle. Supporting these new technologies, the SC1702 can detect display abnormalities that are unobservable with current technology. In addition to the conventional safety features, displays can now recognize panel link loss, inconsistencies of CRC of pixel data and other behaviours at the source drivers and gate drivers, enhancing the capabilities to meet further safety requirements.
The Automotive industry is currently shifting towards domain architecture where all the different applications are executed via a central ECU. More and more functionalities are required to be displayed in the cockpits of the future, such as safety, high resolution and peripheral system integration. Display controllers need to be smaller but display richer content at the same time. In order to fulfil these two contradicting requirements the display system would need to be less expensive but ‘smart’ enough in order to deal with state-of-the-art functionalities. The SC1702 Smart Display Controller is ideal for domain computing architecture.
Product innovation
The SC1702 has an integrated high-speed video link receiver, a 2D graphics engine, and a flexible display timing controller to display up to 4K panels or two F-HD panels independently. It also supports rich safety features such as a Signature Unit (CRC dynamic monitoring of the display outputs), Identity Hash (mismatch tolerant contents checker), and other self-diagnostic features. The programmable Command Sequencer offers flexibility for customers by supporting system integration including safety features and peripheral device control.
Market Impact
The biggest objective was to support applications which require larger and higher resolution panels. This has been achieved by integrating the new generation video link technology which has wider bandwidth. Furthermore, system integration, which the SC1702 offers is trending now in display applications particularly in safety cluster applications. For example, it is common for customers to require non-volatile storage memory in their systems in order to store safety contents such as warning telltales and emergency graphics. It is also very likely that a microcontroller will be necessary to support flexible integration of the peripheral devices. The Embedded Flash and Command Sequencer within the SC1702 helps customers to eliminate some of these HW components and reduce the BOM cost.
Plus link to video: https://www.eu.socionext.com/company/videos/sc1701-2-from-socionext.html
Socionext-SC1702-Smart-Display-Controller-for-Automotive-Applications-Graphic-video-link.docx