automotive-positioning chips. Last,
integrated power management
circuitry further reduces the
automotive BOM for telematics.
GIVE 'EM AN INCH…
"Today's consumers want rich,
connected experiences, and that
extends to in-vehicle access to all
their content, the cloud and the
surrounding environment," says
Kanwalinder Singh, senior vice
president of business development
for Qualcomm Technologies
( qualcomm.com ). "What started
with traditional telematics services,
now supports always-on connec-
tions between mobile broadband
networks, in-car infotainment
systems, and brought-in mobile
devices. With smartphone con-
nectivity setting the pace for
advanced features, consumers
expect the same experience from
all other connected devices,
including their car."
Faster data communications is
the hallmark of two new LTE
modems added to Qualcomm
Snapdragon Automotive Solutions.
The Snapdragon X12 LTE modem
(9x40), which is built
using 20-nm technology
and is aimed to help auto
manufacturers develop next-
generation telematics, features
greater coverage at Category
10 speeds (up to 450 Mbps in the
downlink; 100 Mbps, uplink). The
Snapdragon X5 LTE modem (9x28),
which is targeted at broadening the
use of LTE in all vehicles, supports
Category 4 data transmission
speeds (up to 150 Mbps, downlink;
50 Mbps, uplink).
Both modems have on-chip support
for all major cellular standards
(including LTE, DC-HSPA, EVDO,
CDMA 1x, GSM and TD-SCDMA),
the major RF bands and band
combinations, GNSS for all the
major constellations for automotive
navigation (including GPS, Beidou,
Glonass, and Galileo), and the
two basic forms of duplexing
(frequency and time division
duplex, FDD and TDD). Both
chipsets also include an integrated
1-GHz Cortex A7 multicore
processor with Linux and built-in
software for satisfying key global
regulatory mandates (e.g., EU
AD&P; > December 2015 > FEATURE > Telematics Starts With Chips > Lawrence S. Gould
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