Toshiba Expands Ethernet Bridge IC Lineup for Automotive and Industrial Applications

Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation (“Toshiba”) has expanded its lineup of automotive Ethernet bridge ICs with the new “TC9562 series”: TC9562AXBG, which offers more interfaces than Toshiba’s current bridge ICs, the TC9560 series; TC9562BXBG which supports Ethernet TSN^[1] and Ethernet AVB^[2]; and TC9562XBG, which offers simpler IC configuration than current products.

Sample shipments will start in February, and volume production will start in October.

The Ethernet AVB specification offers real-time reliable data transmission and is increasingly used in vehicles. Toshiba currently offers the TC9560 series of Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000Mbps) solutions compliant with IEEE 802.1AS^[3] and IEEE 802.1Qav^[4].

More and more road vehicles now have on-board connectivity, equipping them with internet and cellular access, and allowing information to be shared among on-board systems and devices and with external systems and services. On top of this, low latency communications are essential for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving technologies. These developments all require more complex automotive communication systems supported by reliable transmission standards with real-time data delivery. The Ethernet TSN standard was developed expressly to meet these needs.

Toshiba’s new product family responds to market demand with support for both the current AVB and the new TSN networking standards. The TC9562XBG offers simpler implementation than the current product family. TC9562AXBG supports expanded interface capabilities with SGMII, plus the RGMII, RMII and MII^[5] interfaces, of current products. TC9562BXBG supports Ethernet TSN standards IEEE 802.1Qbv, IEEE 802.1Qbu^[6] and IEEE 802.3br^[7] in addition to TC9562AXBG’s capabilities.

Toshiba is targeting a low-power mode for the TC9562 series of 0.5mW power consumption and a 100ms recovery time (typical)^[8].

The new bridge ICs will be AEC^[9]-Q100 grade 3 qualified.