KDPOF, a leading supplier for automotive gigabit connectivity over POF (Plastic Optical Fiber), is now providing their optical connectivity technology for Integrated Smart Antenna (ISA) Modules. An ISA (Integrated Smart Antenna) consists of several antennas for signal reception, an Antenna Hub, and an Ethernet connection to the consumers of the antenna signals such as a radio device. This is a much simpler configuration as compared to connecting each antenna to its end destination with a seperate cable. The Antenna Hub routes all signals from each antenna to an Ethernet network connected to all receptors of the signals. Gigabit Ethernet over POF (GEPOF) is ideally suited for the Ethernet connection due to its natural EMC-free property.
When using a conventional system, if the roof of the automotive vehicle is not metallic, or has openings, an immense amount of energy is radiated by the coaxial cable that is coupled back into the Integrated Smart Antenna (ISA). Replacing the coaxial cable with POF completely solves this issue. KDPOF will present their GEPOF technology at IEEE-SA Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day on October 31 to November 2, 2017 in San Jose, California, United States.
The EMC problem-free link also allows simple re-positioning of the antenna module. Another advantage of optical connectivity for Smart Antenna Modules is the easy integration with current 100 Mbps designs thanks to the host bus of the GEPOF transceiver being “Ethernet compliant” (SGMII/RGMII). Furthermore, the data link will aggregate various packets such as LTE-A, Wifi, V2x, etc. Last but certainly not least, with the current 100 Mbps BroadReach or 150 Mbps MOST not being sufficient, a 1 Gbps Ethernet link is needed. Going one Gigabit and beyond, GEPOF is futureproof.
KDPOF just announced the sampling of the first automotive grade Gigabit Ethernet POF transceiver KD1053. The KD1053 complies with the new IEEE standard amendment Std 802.3bv for Gigabit Ethernet over POF. It fully meets the requirements of carmakers by providing high connectivity with a flexible digital host interface, low latency, low jitter, and low linking time.
