Taking Full Advantage of the FlexRay Network for Motor Vehicles

The FlexRay networking standard for motor vehicles provides a foundation that will shape the control structure of automotive electronics for many years to come. FlexRay serves as the next step beyond CAN and LIN, enabling the reliable management of many more safety and comfort features. FlexRay suits X-by-Wire applications, for example.

This paper offers an overview of FlexRay's applications in motor vehicle networking and describes the network's protocol, including the frame format, topology, bus signals, and node status transitions. Also included is a comparison of FlexRay and CAN.

This backgrounder concludes with a profile of FlexRay chips and development support from Fujitsu Microelectronics America. Based on a license from Bosch, Fujitsu has introduced a FlexRay starter kit and FlexRay controller ASSP.