Automotive electronics are specially-designed electronics intended for use in automobiles. Automotive electronics can be subjected to, and are therefore rated at, more extreme temperature ranges than commercial (i.e. normal) electronics.
Most electrical devices are manufactured in several temperature grades with each manufacturer defining its own temperature ratings. Therefore, designers and engineers must pay close attention to the actual specifications on product datasheets. The list below is an example of temperature ratings/grades. Note that the automotive grade is second only to the military grade (in terms of extreme temperature ratings):
• Commercial: 0°C to 85°C
• Industrial: -40°C to 100°C
• Automotive: -40°C to 125°C
• Military: -55°C to 125°C
Now you may ask, why not just use the military grade in all applications? And there’s one simple answer: cost. You can be assured that as the temperature rating of device increases, so does its cost — sometimes significantly.
However, aside from a special temperature rating, devices that carry the term “automotive electronics” are those devices that have either been designed for or have been adapted for use in automobile applications. Categories of this include carputers, telematics, and infotainment systems.
A carputer (a combination of the words car and computer) is really nothing more than a customized PC designed to operate in a car with one or more of the following added features:
• Compact size
• Low-power requirement
• Customized components
• Video-capable (DVD)
• Music-capable (MP3)
• Bluetooth-capable
• USB-capable
• WiFi-capable
• GPS navigation
The first use of a computer in a car was for engine control. It was called the ECU computer, or the Engine Control Unit. The year was 1968 when the first ECU appeared in a Volkswagen to perform one specific function: EFI (electronic fuel injection). See Figure 1 below.