Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/565949
24 The PCB Magazine • September 2015 "Driving Innovation" has taken on an entirely new dimension. Following is the excerpt of the interview. •••••••••••••••••• Dan Feinberg: How are you involved in the auto- motive industry and when did you start? NVIDIA: For more than 15 years, NVIDIA has played a role in automotive design and engi- neering. Areas we have been involved with in- clude virtual crash test simulations, wind tun- nel simulations, laying out the factory floor, marketing,* etc. The automotive business unit first started out bringing CPUs from PCs into the car but now the fully integrated Tegra unit is driving the screens, navigation, entertain- ment, sensors and soon even mirror replace- ment, using cameras and screens instead of mirrors. This has already started with back up cams, especially the ones that show your path of movement based on how you turn the wheel. (* Note: We all thought that those spinning and wall-climbing cars were done by stunt driv- ers, that is not so. Innovative NVIDIA graphics design is being used to generate rendered cars such as the ones you see in TV ads. What you think are real cars spinning around could be NVIDIA-generated graphics.) Feinberg: What sort of electronics, under the hood and in the interior, are involved with today's vehicles? Fuel savings due to more efficient driving, safer commutes due to the elimination of most human error, freed-up time behind the wheel— these are just some reasons to embrace autono- mous vehicles. Lawmakers from California, Texas and Vir- ginia and now Nevada are wooing the auton- omous-car industry, because of increased jobs and tax revenue. I have read that they are "fi- nancing research centers, building fake suburbs for testing the cars and, perhaps most impor- tant, going light on regulation, all in an effort to attract a rapidly growing industry." It is esti- mated that automakers will spend at least $20 billion on development over the next five years, according to an analysis by Gartner. Every poli- tician wants a piece of this pie. As Richard Biter of the Florida Department of Transportation ex- plained, "The first thing is, don't do anything to discourage." Google, known for its pioneering work in autonomous vehicles, states, "Imagine if every- one could get around easily and safely, regard- less of their ability to drive. Aging or visually impaired loved ones wouldn't have to give up their independence. Time spent commuting could be time spent doing what you want to do. Deaths from traffic accidents—over 1.2 million worldwide every year—could be reduced dra- matically, especially since 94% of accidents in the U.S. involve human error. Our self-driving cars are designed to navigate safely through city streets." Yes, NVIDIA has entered the field of automo- tive electronics in a very big way. Their slogan AuTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGy continues FEAturE