The Overview
A combined digital instrument cluster and connectivity reference platform developed by NXP Semiconductors brings a better user experience to riders of mass-market two-wheeled vehicles, including motorcycles, electric scooters, commuter bikes, and more.
The platform combines NXP’s i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU with the highly integrated AW611 single-chip Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth/Bluetooth Low Energy Audio connectivity solution and the KW45 secure wireless access MCU to deliver a highly cost-effective system. It enables high-performance graphics and rich connectivity use cases such as hands-free calling, wireless pairing for smartphone projection, Bluetooth audio, over-the-air (OTA) updates, cloud connectivity, fleet management, secure vehicle access, and vehicle location.
Who Needs It & Why?
Nearly 300 million two-wheeled electric vehicles (EVs) are on the road today globally. Staying safe on such conveyances calls for connected digital displays with rich graphics, providing critical information that enables drivers to compare navigation details to battery levels and health, as well as the location of charging points.
Two-wheeled EVs have a limited range compared with four-wheeled EVs, and these details are essential for safe transit. Telemetry in the field also provides OEMs with important information about usage and battery lifetimes.
NXP’s reference platform lets OEMs deliver these essential capabilities, while also allowing for a wide variety of different connectivity use cases designed to improve the user experience. This includes three-way Bluetooth pairing between the phone, scooter’s digital cluster, and headphones; rider and pillion (secondary seat behind the main seat) music sharing; or even location capabilities such as “find my bike” in a parking lot.
Under the Hood
The new cluster and connectivity reference platform leverages NXP’s high-performance i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU with AEC-Q100 Grade 3 qualification. The MCU’s high degree of integration helps reduce system costs, as it doesn't require costly external memory or power-management subsystems.
The platform comes with NXP Wi-Fi and Bluetooth device drivers pre-integrated into the MCUXpresso SDK along with display, GNSS, and more, making it easy for developers to create their own two-wheeler connected cluster. The dual-core i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU provides a wide range of interfaces for connecting peripherals, such as WLAN, Bluetooth, GPS, audio, displays, and camera sensors, plus a vector graphics accelerator.
For connectivity functions, the reference platform also features the AW611, a highly integrated dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth/Bluetooth Low Energy 5.2 single-chip solution with AEC-Q100 Grade 2 qualification. This high degree of integration enables efficient coexistence between internal radios, as well as with external radios, while helping to reduce system costs.
The platform also includes the KW45 BLE wireless MCU to deliver secure vehicle access and vehicle location services. KW45’s three-core architecture integrates a 96-MHz Arm Cortex-M33 application core, a dedicated Cortex-M3 radio core, and an isolated EdgeLock secure enclave. It also integrates a Bluetooth Low Energy 5.3-compliant radio that supports up to 24 simultaneous secure connections.