Sina Technology News on the afternoon of May 8. Recently, Micron announced the release of the world's first automotive-grade four-port SSD, the 4150AT SSD. The product provides up to four system-on-chip (SoC) interfaces, allowing four different SoCs and 64 different virtual machines to simultaneously run 64 virtual functions in parallel with the solid-state drive, thereby maximizing performance and enabling centralized storage for software-defined smart cars.
In communication with Sina Technology and others, Kris Baxter, vice president of Micron Enterprise and general manager of the Embedded Products Division, explained, “Compared with traditional multi-SoC connections to multiple single-port SSDs, 4150AT SSDs can save hundreds of dollars in costs during the production process.” In addition, the solution incorporates ASIL-B functionality, and the performance is stable for a long time, “helping to reduce TCO and avoid the additional costs of frequent maintenance after users purchase equipment.”
According to Kris Baxter, in the current automotive architecture, we are moving from a distributed architecture to a more centralized architecture. The distributed architecture is equipped with multiple ECUs (electronic control units) around the vehicle, and in order to improve efficiency, performance, and reduce costs, these ECUs are gradually being centralized. As a result, multiple ECUs may have been distributed in vehicles in the past, but now there are regional computational processing and centralized computational processing.
Within the existing domain architecture, in-vehicle systems are grouped according to their functions, such as in-vehicle infotainment systems (IVI), connectivity, powertrains, etc. Although this approach was possible, as automotive systems became more complex, the number of sensors, cameras, and electronic devices grew exponentially, with some cars having as many as 150 electronic control units (ECUs). This made the line layout more complicated and heavy, increasing the cost and body weight.
“If we consolidate distributed storage into a unified storage solution, we can make full use of data from multiple different SLCs. Furthermore, by centralizing large language models, AI algorithms, high-definition maps, and in-vehicle entertainment content (such as movies) in a single storage device, it is also possible to maximize the utilization of storage devices.” Kris Baxter said.
According to Kris Baxter, “A centralized storage solution can maximize the utilization of storage devices, which is a smart choice for the future of automobiles.” (Wen Meng)