Marelli, Microchip Pioneer Open-Standard Display Connectivity for Software-Defined Vehicles

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Marelli, a global automotive supplier, and Microchip Technology, a broadline supplier of semiconductors committed to making innovative design easier through total system solutions, announced a new solution that enables graphics and video content generated by a vehicle's central computer to be streamed directly to automotive displays using ASA Motion Link (ASA-ML), an open standard for automotive video connectivity. The demonstrator of this solution helps vehicle makers simplify display architectures, optimize system costs and increase sourcing flexibility while supporting the transition toward software-defined vehicles (SDVs).

ASA Motion Link is an open standard for automotive video connectivity and SerDes (serializer-deserializer) communication, defined by the Automotive SerDes Alliance (ASA), a global consortium of vehicle makers, Tier 1 suppliers and semiconductor companies. By enabling secure, high-speed video and graphics transmission across products from multiple technology providers, the standard supports greater compatibility across the automotive ecosystem and provides a scalable alternative to proprietary video transmission technologies. As a founding member of ASA, Microchip is advancing the automotive industry's transition from proprietary connectivity technologies to open, interoperable standards, and has demonstrated broad interoperability with its camera solutions and is now extending those solutions to enable display connectivity.

As vehicle architectures evolve toward centralized computing and software-defined vehicles (SDVs), vehicle makers are looking for connectivity solutions that can support growing performance demands while reducing complexity, controlling costs and enabling scalable vehicle electronics architectures. In the joint demonstrator solution, graphics and video content generated by the vehicle's central computer is processed and transmitted through Microchip's VS7000 ASA-ML chipset over a high-speed standardized link.

Marelli pioneers the display-side integration of the technology by enabling the configuration and optimization of the ASA ML deserializer to decode standardized video streams directly at the display. This ensures accurate reception, synchronization and delivery of centrally generated content, including camera feeds, navigation maps, infotainment graphics and vehicle control interfaces, while enabling simplified display-side electronic architectures.

"The transition to software-defined vehicles is driving demand for more open, flexible and scalable electronic architectures," said Kelei Shen, President of Marelli's Electronics business. "As an integrator within the automotive ecosystem, Marelli brings together best-in-class technologies from multiple partners to deliver complete solutions for vehicle makers. This collaboration highlights how open standards can accelerate innovation while providing interoperability needed for the next generation of vehicle architectures."

"Open standards play a critical role in accelerating innovation by reducing dependency on proprietary technologies," said Kevin So, Vice President of Microchip's Communications business unit. "Our collaboration with Marelli demonstrates how ASA Motion Link provides automotive manufacturers with a secure, interoperable and scalable connectivity solution that simplifies integration across the ecosystem."

Technology Highlights

• Open interoperability enabling seamless connectivity between cockpit systems and displays from multiple technology providers.
• Greater supplier flexibility thanks to open protocol specifications supported across the automotive ecosystem.
• Integrated security with link-layer authentication and encryption embedded in the communication channel.
• Robust data transmission with lossless communication and high immunity to electromagnetic noise.
• Scalable performance supporting data rates up to 16 Gbps to address a range of display requirements.
• Optimized efficiency enabled by embedded Time Division Duplex (TDD) functionality and simplified Forward Error Correction (FEC), contributing to lower power consumption.
• Path to increasingly Ethernet-centric vehicle architectures

The collaboration demonstrates how open-standard connectivity supports in-vehicle networking and electronics by enabling secure communication between centralized computing systems and displays. It also reflects Marelli's broader commitment to adopting open standards that help simplify development, optimize system costs, and promote a more open automotive ecosystem.