Bosch
GlobalFoundries' Fab 1 production facility in Dresden, Germany. Credit: Fensterblick / Wikimedia Commons.

German engineering company Bosch has partnered with US-based semiconductor manufacturing firm GlobalFoundries (GF) to develop automotive radar technology to improve driver-assistance features in vehicles.

The collaboration will develop a mmWave automotive radar system-on-chip (SoC) using GF’s 22FDX RF solution for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) applications.

ADAS applications improve road safety by triggering collision warnings and initiating emergency braking during potential hazards. The technology also helps drivers with parking and keeps vehicles in the correct lane.

The first 22FDX-based radar SoCs are expected to be delivered later this year. The 22FDX chips are manufactured at GF’s Fab 1 facility in Dresden, Germany.

The new chips are expected to operate at a higher frequency, which would allow objects to be detected from further away compared to the lower-frequency radar chips installed in many current vehicles.

As part of the collaboration, Bosch will also use GF’s automotive solutions for mmWave testing and packaging development to improve design efficiency and time to market.

GF Automotive, Industrial and Multi-Market senior vice-president and general manager Mike Hogan said: “We are proud to partner with Bosch to develop a new generation of automotive radars to help make vehicles smarter and roads safer than they are today.

“Bosch’s leadership, as an innovator and provider of top-quality OEM solutions for the auto industry, is unquestionable. At GF, we have embraced excellence in automotive semiconductors as a core strategy, and our 22FDX is unbeatable as a high-performance, low-power solution. In addition, GF is the only foundry with in-house mmWave test capability.”

Bosch Integrated Circuit senior vice-president Oliver Wolst said: “Dependable radar and ADAS systems are of paramount importance to drivers and automakers around the world. We chose to partner with GlobalFoundries for their proven leadership in RF and mmWave technology, which is reinforced by their deep expertise in the automotive market.

“We carefully scrutinised the range of available semiconductor solutions, and GF’s 22FDX RF solution proved to be today’s most attractive and most appropriate platform for our next generation of highly efficient and safe automotive radars.”

Last month, Bosch partnered with Microsoft to develop a software platform for vehicles.