This press release is copyrighted by The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE). Its use is granted only to journalists and news media. Embargo date: 26 March 2002, 5:00 p.m. ET.
Carmakers are spending more on silicon these days as electronics and software spread throughout motor vehicles, from underhood control units to driver information systems and rear-seat entertainment modules. It is now estimated that the cost of the electronics in a new car rises by 9 to 16 percent each year. In the 2001 model year, electronics accounted for 19 percent of a mid-sized vehicle's cost. In the year 2005, it may be 25 percent for mid-sized cars and possibly 50 percent for luxury models.
So, in addition to being pervasive, automotive electronics had better be reliable. The failure of a 10-cent part can ruin a US $30 000 car purchase. Failures in braking and steering can cause injury or death. To make matters worse, many of these components must function under the car's hood where temperatures can reach 200 degrees Celsius. Moreover, servicing a system buried deep within a car is costly. And designers of automotive systems must be prepared for users who give the product almost zero maintenance.
In this article in IEEE Spectrum, Ivan Berger describes the lengths to which automakers go to ensure that car electronics will work reliably for the life of the vehicle. Measures include cycling automobiles through extremes of temperature, from the icy cold of a Michigan winter to the scorching heat of a Death Valley summer. They have also adopted formal verification techniques that can replace lengthy simulations by proving whether or not an electronic system will work as planned.
Contact: Elizabeth A. Bretz, 212 419 7552, [email protected].For a faxed copy of the complete article ("Can You Trust Your Car?" by electronics writer Ivan Berger, IEEE Spectrum, April 2002, pp. 40-45) or to arrange an interview, contact: Nancy T. Hantman, 212 419 7561, [email protected].
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