Webinars

MIPI Automotive Webinar Series: Exploring the MIPI Specifications Supporting Next-Generation Automotive E/E Architectures

Written by MIPI Alliance | 02 May 2024

MIPI Automotive Webinar Series

 

Machine-vision-enabling image sensors and advanced in-vehicle displays are essential enablers for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving systems (ADS). As the number of image sensors and displays increases, to enable ever more capable systems within each new generation of vehicle, MIPI CSI-2® (a standardized image sensor protocol) and MIPI DSI-2℠ (a standardized display protocol), are becoming ever more essential to automotive E/E architectures.

Presented on 15-16 May 2024, this series of six MIPI webinars provides a comprehensive overview of MIPI automotive initiatives supporting and streamlining the integration of state-of-the-art images sensors and displays into next generation E/E architectures.

 
 

Sessions and Presenters

 
 

Enabling Functionally Safe Automotive Camera Applications Using MIPI CSI-2 and MIPI Camera Service Extensions

Presenters: Peter Lefkin, Haran Thanigasalam and Ariel Lasry
 

After a short introduction to the use of MIPI specifications within the automotive market, this session focuses on the use of the CSI-2 camera protocol and associated MIPI Camera Service Extensions (CSE℠) specification to enable functionally safe and secure automotive camera applications.

The session describes the MIPI CSI-2 capabilities that benefit automotive imaging systems, enable sensor aggregation optimization, realize superior objective image quality, and help system energy consumption reduction. Presenters discuss CSI-2 provisions to alleviate RF emissions while supporting “region of interest" extraction, always-on inferencing, wire reduction and reduction of current leakage, and highlight available physical layer options. In addition, the session explores the functional safety capabilities provided by the CSE specification, which defines extended functions for CSI-2 that can be leveraged within automotive imaging systems to achieve functional safety goals from ASIL B through to ASIL D.

MIPI Automotive Displays and MIPI Protocol Adaptation Layers (Double-Header)

Part 1: Using MIPI Display Specifications To Meet the Growing Bandwidth and Safety Requirements of Next-Generation Automotive Displays

Part 2: How MIPI Protocol Adaptation Layers Enable MIPI Higher Layer Protocols Over Automotive In-Vehicle Networks

Presenters: Ariel Lasry and Nadav Banet
 

This two-part session provides an overview of MIPI protocols to enable automotive displays and describes the MIPI protocol adaptation layers (PALs) that enable the use of higher layer protocols over in-vehicle networks (IVNs).

Part 1 details the MIPI specifications that standardize and streamline connectivity of automotive displays to their associated ECUs, with built-in functional safety and security support. The presentation describes the components of the MIPI automotive “display stack,” which includes MIPI DSI-2 and MIPI Display Services Extensions (DSE℠) specifications, with particular emphasis on functional safety features, and support for multiple connectivity topologies, heterogeneous displays and lossless compression.

Part 2 provides an overview of the MIPI PALs℠ that define the adaptations necessary to carry MIPI (and approved third-party) protocols over IVN physical layer links. The presentation covers existing A-PHY PALs, which include PALs for MIPI CSI-2, MIPI DSI-2, VESA eDP/DP, Ethernet, I2C, SPI and GPIO, and offer a preview of upcoming PALs for MIPI I3C over A-PHY and MIPI CSI-2 over IEEE1722.

MIPI CSI-2 Camera Cybersecurity Specifications for Automotive

Presenter: Rick Wietfeldt
 

This session describes the approach MIPI has undertaken, through provisions in four upcoming specifications, to secure connections between MIPI CSI-2 image sensors and their related ECUs from the perspectives of authentication, integrity and confidentiality. The presentation explains how security can be applied to CSI-2 data streams and how MIPI’s application-based security approach is distinct from other methods in its extent and configurability, enabling end-to-end security at the CSI-2 protocol layer.

MIPI A-PHY High-Speed Automotive SerDes Interface – Addressing Harsh Automotive Environment Challenges to Enable Resilient High-Speed In-Vehicle Networks

Presenters: Edo Cohen, Raj Kumar Nagpal and Eyran Lida
 

This session takes a deep dive into MIPI A-PHY, the first industry-standard automotive serializer-deserializer (SerDes) physical layer interface offering native coupling to MIPI CSI-2, DSI-2 and other higher-layer protocols. The presenters explain how the interface is designed to operate in harsh automotive environments that include sudden and prolonged attacks of electromagnetic interference, and dynamic channel response variations caused by thermal and humidity fluctuations. The presentation also covers how the interface operates reliably using interconnects, composed of multiple cable segments combined with reflection-generating inline connectors that, over years of use, suffer shielding degradation and channel attenuation. In addition, the session:

  • Introduces MIPI A-PHY, provides an overview of the enhancements delivered in A-PHY v2.0 (which doubles the downlink data rate to 32 Gbps and increases uplink data rate to over 1 Gbps), highlights the use of A-PHY in software-defined vehicles, and introduces new power-over-A-PHY power classes.
  • Addresses the design, diagnostic and testing methodologies required to ensure robust, error-free automotive SerDes communication links throughout the vehicle lifespan. It explains how conventional high-speed serial equalization and forward error correction methods are inadequate for automotive applications and how only a highly adaptive SerDes that dynamically tracks channel variations and is capable of interference cancellation will meet the signal-to-noise ratio and error rate demands required for automotive environments.

Navigating the Complexity of In-Vehicle Network Test and Measurement To Build a Reliable MIPI A-PHY Compliance Program

Presenters: Kevin Kershner, joined by Tom Kopf for Q&A segment
 

Integrating new technologies and protocols into in-vehicle networks presents automotive OEMs with both opportunities and challenges. The need for standardized, comprehensive testing methodologies quickly become paramount when implementing new, state-of-the-art, long-reach high-speed interconnects such as MIPI A-PHY.

This session explains why a standardized compliance test specification and compliance program are essential enablers for new in-vehicle network technologies. The discussion also explores how these enablers not only ensure product interoperability and compliance, but also give OEMs flexibility in component supply and high confidence in system performance, while also helping to control overall sourcing costs. With specific focus on MIPI A-PHY electrical testing, this session highlights key requirements from the MIPI A-PHY compliance test specification and explains the general architecture of the MIPI A-PHY compliance program.

Proof of Concept: MIPI A-PHY Camera Ingestion for Intel Automotive SoC Architectures

Presenters: Frederik John and Stephanie Friederich
 

This session focuses on Intel’s MIPI A-PHY proof of concept (PoC) that demonstrates the enablement of A-PHY links on the Intel x86 based automotive platform. The presentation begins by describing how the Intel platform supports an add-in card hosting two quad MIPI A-PHY deserializers, enabling the connection of up to eight full-HD image sensors over 5-meter-long coax cables. It also covers how the PoC implements video streaming by leveraging the connection to the MIPI CSI-2 RX ports of the system on chip (SoC), with the raw camera data being processed in the image processing unit (IPU) inside the SoC, utilizing dedicated hardware accelerators for gain control, white balance and HDR stitching. As a final step, the PoC routes the video data stream to a display to prove that the video links are functional.