Implementing Next Generation Automotive Communications

In-car electronics plays an important role in many automotive applications, such as, for example, steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire, and is expected to gradually replace mechanical or hydraulic means to control these systems. The number of electronic components in a car has therefore significantly grown up, thus leading important implications on the vehicle engineering process. In particular, in-car networks used to interconnect electronics equipments are a key point. While in the past extensive use of wiring was a common design practice, nowadays, for the sake of reducing the vehicle weight and fuel consumption, in-car bus networks are largely adopted. This paper points out current automotive communication standards, i.e., CAN, LIN, Byteflight and MOST, together with upcoming automotive communication standards, namely, TT-CAN, TTP and FlexRay. The work focuses on discussing open issues with the current FlexRay