Audi’s next-generation in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) system is all set to debut by 2021. It has decided to have itself powered by Samsung’s first automotive-branded processor, the Exynos Auto V9.
The Exynos Auto V9 is the latest innovation by Samsung and is a powerful automotive processor specifically designed for advanced IVI systems that simultaneously display contents on multiple displays and provide drivers and passengers with assistive information for a safer in-vehicle experience. It has its basis in the latest 8-nanometer (nm) process technology and also boasts of ARM’s Cortex-A76 CPU cores, ARM Mali G76 GPU, premium HiFi 4 audio digital signal processor (DSP), intelligent neural processing unit (NPU), and is coupled with a safety island core supporting Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL)-B standards. It has also been equipped to support fast and power-efficient LPDDR4 and LPDDR5 DRAM.
Audi thrives to bring the most exciting, yet the safest automobiles when we vision the drive of tomorrow. Samsung has been a valued technology partner over the past few years and we are extremely pleased to have the Exynos Auto V9 power our next-generation platform that will shape the future in-vehicle infotainment experiences. – Alfons Pfaller, head of Architecture & Platform Development E/E at Audi
While Kenny Han, vice president of the Device Solutions Division at Samsung Electronics, has qualified that, “Samsung is fully committed to bringing top-of-the-line automotive processors for safer and more pleasant driving experiences. We are thrilled to introduce the new Exynos Auto line of products, starting with the Exynos Auto V9, which brings powerful processing performance to the next generation of automotive in-vehicle infotainment systems while meeting the industry’s strict reliability requirements.”
Samsung Exynos Auto V9 has been equipped to support up to six displays simultaneously, along with twelve camera connections for various sub-system content in the premium IVI system. Its eight Cortex-A76 cores provide a speed of up to 2.1 gigahertz (GHz), and the GPU has been arranged in three sets of Mali G76 GPU cores in order to allow it to support multiple systems like the multi-display, central information display (CID), and rear-seat entertainment (RSE) simultaneously and without a glitch.
For their part, the chip’s four HiFi 4 audio processors come with the promise of premium audio quality, allowing for vivid and realistic sounds. As far as functional safety is concerned, the Exynos Auto V9 has been embedded with a safety island to provide real-time protection for system operations, facilitating ASIL-B requirements. Finally, the chipset also has an NPU for a digital concierge service to intelligently manage a safe and personalized driving environment, processing visual and aural data for face, speech or gesture recognition.
