The RH850/P1L-C is a group of low-end microcontrollers that is part of the RH850/P1x-C series of safety MCUs that meet the requirements of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).
Driver assistance systems have increased in sophistication and performance as the effort toward autonomous vehicles has continued, coordinating control with other vehicle control units. With regard to chassis systems, the need for coordination with ADAS has increased the volume of sensor data and, combined with high-speed communication capabilities, created a demand for more powerful information processing capabilities.
Furthermore, to prepare for new cybersecurity threats, such as vehicle hacking, microcontrollers must conform to vehicle safety specifications such as EVITA and the ISO 26262 automotive functional safety standard ASIL-D (Note 1) to avoid fatal situations caused by system malfunction.
To meet these needs in terms of sensors, connectivity, safety, and security, Renesas launched the RH850/P1H-C and RH850/P1M-C groups from the RH850/P1x-C series in 2014 as "one-stop" safety MCUs. The RH850/P1H-C group is suitable for high-end applications such as ADAS, and the RH850/P1M-C is suitable for mid-range applications such as stability control.
Along with the needs of these high-end/mid-range applications, there is also a need for system redundancy to allow operation to continue even in the event of a failure, and therefore for more compact ECUs. In particular, there is a growing demand for common software and development tools to reduce the time and cost associated with developing more sophisticated systems with advanced features.
The new Renesas RH850 / P1L-C was developed to meet these demands of low-end applications such as chassis and safety systems including anti-lock braking systems, airbag systems and compact engine control systems, as well as the needs to address the miniaturization of ECUs (control units), and the needs of system redundancy.
With the launch of RH850 / PL1-C, Renesas now offers a fully scalable product line of the RH850 / P1x-C series that allows customers to develop platforms that extend from high-end to low-end applications, reusing software resources and making use of common development tools.
Key features of the RH850 / P1L-C Group:
1) Inheriting the RH850/P1x-C product platform, it enhances scalability to simplify the development and expansion of new products and broaden product lines.
The new RH850/P1L-C group inherits the RH850/P1x-C platform and includes many of the proven built-in safety mechanisms, such as a redundant check core that operates in lockstep to the master core. These features enable the RH850/P1L-C devices to support ASIL-D systems, the most stringent safety level stipulated in the ISO 26262 automotive functional safety standard, as an out-of-context safety element. It also incorporates the Renesas ICU-S hardware safety module, which supports the SHE and EVITA-Light automotive safety standards (Note 3). The RH850/P1L-C group also inherits timers and communication functions such as CAN-FD (Note 4) from its high-end predecessors, for expanded scalability from the top end to the bottom end that simplifies the tasks of developing new products and expanding existing ones.
2) Smaller, Low-Pin Ranges for More Compact ECUs:
The 40-nanometer (nm) process used for microcontroller production has a proven track record of achieving low power consumption and high reliability. This process enables the use of LQFP packages that do not require a heatsink when using a single power supply and operate at a frequency of 120 MHz (typically 50 mA, 5 V, 25°C). These LQFP packages utilize a 0.4 mm pin pitch, resulting in a more compact ECU. For example, the 144-pin version package is 36 percent smaller (compared to previous products using a 0.5 mm pin pitch). Three pin sizes are available: 80 (10 x 10 mm), 100 (12 x 12 mm), and 144 (16 x 16 mm).
3) Various solution offerings to increase the development efficiency of system manufacturers.
As system development becomes increasingly complex, Renesas is assisting system manufacturers with security and safety support programs, virtual environments employing model-based development tools provided in collaboration.
Note 1) ASIL: Automotive Safety Integrity Level. Each level stipulates the ISO 26262 requirements and safety measures to prevent unacceptable residual risk. There are 4 levels, A to D, with ASIL D being the most stringent safety level.
Note 2) SHE: Secure Hardware Extension, EVITA-Light: E-safety Vehicle Intrusion Protected Applications
Note 3) CAN FD: Controller Area Network Flexible Data Rate (based on ISO 11898-1)
Note 4) MCAL: Microcontroller Abstraction Layer, AUTOSAR: Automotive Open System Architecture
