Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/969348
18 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2018 To support the design process for automo- tive, we have been focusing on four key areas for the last 10 years or so: automotive compli- ance, traceability and documentation, linking new engineering disciplines, and tighter inte- gration with mechanical. Zuken was the first EDA company to offer ISO 26262 verification for PCB design with CR-8000 to help companies achieve their compliance requirements. Engi- neers can easily design and manage assembly variants necessary to support their custom- ers or suppliers, with complete traceability of any design element throughout the process. To support model based design, we are link- ing MBSE (model-based system engineering) solutions to our architectural planning tools to enable a seamless flow from conceptual design and requirements definition to detailed prod- uct design. CR-8000 allows easy collaboration for electromechanical design with the ability to bi-directionally exchange and accept complete PCB and mechanical data models, and author your PCB in a native 3D environment with accurate MCAD models. Shaughnessy: Which segment of automotive do you think is driving the electronics market right now? Mandavia: In the past, we had infotainment systems and collision detecting sensors driv- ing the increase of electronics in a car. With the collaboration between traditional OEMs and companies in Silicon Valley, the push for autonomous vehicles and having integrated "smart" features for safety, entertainment, and fuel efficiency is driving the growth for elec- tronics in automotive. We're seeing more sen- sors, cameras, and wireless applications, along with better integration with other electronics that many drivers already own. I am personally amazed by how some companies are evolving and dominating new markets in the semicon- ductor market. Take Nvidia, for example. They have not only dominated the big data and AI, but they are leveraging their GPU technology to drive autonomous systems. We see most chip makers focusing many of their new prod- ucts on automotive in response to expanding demand and implementation of electronics in this area. Shaughnessy: What do you think are some of the biggest challenges, if you're a PCB designer working on a board for automobiles today? Mandavia: There are three key areas that can be considered major issues. The first issue is around high-speed/RF design. Design teams need to continuously design and verify the electrical and physical performance of a PCB or system during the product design cycle, including SI, thermal, EMC, stress/structural, and more. The second issue is around sys- tem connectivity management and optimizing placement of electronics to balance cost, per- formance weight and other factors. Due to the increasing PCBs and IOs in the system from all the new ECUs, GPUs, and other processing devices, it has become too complex to manage the interconnection of a sys- tem on a spreadsheet. Engi- neers need an intelligent and 3D visual approach to help with this. We also see companies struggle with the implementa- tion and optimization between new ICs, packages and PCBs within the electronic system. As processing, memory and bandwidth demands increase to support all the technologies in current and future automo-