Making Rear-View Automotive Cameras Easier to Design In

Making Rear-View Automotive Cameras Easier to Design In

Recently the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed mandating rear-view camera systems in nearly all new vehicles sold in the United States.

“There is no more tragic accident than for a parent or caregiver to back out of a garage or driveway and kill or injure an undetected child playing behind the vehicle,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in an official statement. “The changes we are proposing today will help drivers see into those blind zones directly behind vehicles to make sure it is safe to back up.”

Essentially, the proposed NHTSA mandate increases the required field of view for all vehicles up to 10,000 pounds. Drivers must be able to see directly behind the vehicle when it is in reverse. To meet the proposed requirement automobile makers must install rear-view cameras (or a similar technology) and displays in 10 percent of their new production vehicles by September 2012, 40 percent of vehicles produced by September 2013, and all new cars, pickups, minivans, buses, and trucks by September 2014.

Semiconductors Make this Feature Possible

Advanced digital and analog semiconductors are at the heart of rear view automotive camera systems. The CMOS image sensors, processors, etc. make this life-saving solution a possibility. But there have still been some limitations.

Designing in these systems—like many automotive electronics systems—can be a challenge for several reasons, including wide operating temperature ranges, the complexity of transferring video, range finding, and other overlay data around the vehicle, and the broad range of lighting environments.

Intersil Releases Serializer/Deserializer for Rear View Cameras

Just in time to responded to the NHTSA proposal, Intersil has released the ISL76321 serializer/deserializer for rear view video applications. The ISL76321 should simplify system designs and lower the cost of building rear view camera systems for cars.

The ISL76321 allows engineers to send video data, control information, even range finding data from ultra-sonic sensors, and power over single-shielded twisted pair cabling.

According to the NTHSA, rear view camera systems could save some 292 lives and prevent more than 18,000 injuries annually. Basic improvements in semiconductor design could make stopping those accidents easier.

Armando Roggio