THE INDUSTRY SUPPORTS THE EVENT
Industry testimonials
They said about the congress:
"The place to be" - VALEO
"A good mixture between semiconductor suppliers, tiers 1 and OEM" - PSA
"An excellent balance between technical and business approach" - RENAULT
"A Great platform to interact with well positioned industry executive" - DAIMLER
"One of the strength of the congress is to gather tiers1 and OEM to discuss subject that are impacting all of them"- VECTOR
"All you want to know about electronics applied to automotive industry" - IAV France
"Good meeting - good networking" -FREESCALE
Concerning participants, the French industry was strongly represented through French car manufacturers (Renault, PSA Peugeot Citroën) and suppliers (Valeo), showing that IAEC was now a major event, in too. These VIPs attended to the traditional Gala Dinner, sponsored by ESG, and held in “Automobile Club” building, in one of the most prestigious locations of Paris , Place de la Concorde. The networking is a big part of the event.
Introduced by BMW, the first day has been concluded by Rémi Bastien, from Renault, who came back on the main hot topics of the moment, and gave the vision of the French brand, both on low cost and on the development of electronics.
The congress was ending the day after, with a training on real time systems (Osek/VDX and AUTOSAR) and sourcing in low cost countries.
2007 EDITION SYNTHESIS
International Automotive Electronics Congress raises level and participation for 2007
Once again, IAEC kept its promises for its 4th edition.
Now steadily scheduled in the calendar, and relying on an international attendance, this event is considered by the participants and the partners* as a major congress in the field of automotive electronics. The technical level (relevance of the topics, quality of the presentations, profile of the speakers) can be compared to other significant events, as those held in . For this 2007 edition, IAEC achieved to gather OEMs (BMW, Daimler, Fiat, Ford, Renault, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Volkswagen), tier 1 suppliers (Bosch, Delphi, Johnson Controls, Siemens VDO), electronics competitors (Etas, Infineon, Freescale, Mentor Graphics, Vector), as well as Europe representatives (Enterprise and Industry DG of the EC, Ertico). In the exhibition area, 19 companies – including dSpace, Fujitsu, Melexis, Telelogic, Toshiba, or new comers such as Elektrobit – joined the list and showed their know how.
By choosing “low cost” and “CO² reduction” as the major guidelines for the first day, the steering committee met the expectations of the attendees.
About greenhouse emissions reduction, there is no doubt that electronics can help car manufacturers to achieve the goal fixed by the European Commission in 2012. BMW has mentioned its “Efficient Dynamics” initiative, effective on the whole car range, and that gives spectacular results with several models going under the limit of 140g/km of CO², as soon as next year. Head of Automotive Industry, at the Enterprise and Industry DG of the EC, Reinhard Schulte-Braucks, gave the roadmap for the future regulation. He made a very appreciated presentation, before joining a panel with other speakers from Bosch, Ertico, Navteq and the European Federation Transport & Environment (T&E). With “stop & start” systems, by downsizing engines and by linking the GPS with the other sensors of the car, it’s possible to reduce both fuel consumption and CO² emissions. Ideas do not miss. But, the regulation will enforce car industry to do better and quicker than expected.
The other highlight of the day was the “low cost” approach. As people talk more and more about the 2500 $ car, and even the 1750 $ car, it was interesting to see how the electronics community could match the automotive industry requirements. This topic has been treated by Frost & Sullivan, PSA Peugeot Citroën and ESG, before being discussed during a panel session. Moderated by Ian Riches, from Strategy Analytics, this round table has associated ESG, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Freescale and Mentor Graphics. If ABS, ESP and climate control will be for sure fitted as equipments on low cost cars, the question is to know how can AUTOSAR help to design a lower price level electronics. If the standardisation allows to re-use components, and if AUTOSAR introduces a new process, it’s no so clear to get some added value, as well as cheaper hardwares and softwares. The business model is not defined, neither. But, the car manufacturer can make the difference with innovative and time to market solutions, to get ahead from other competitors. “A Logan contains as much electronics as a mid-car of the middle of the 90’s”, said Denis Griot, VP EMEA for Freescale. The discussion is not over.
A second day focused on technical issues
The second day of the congress was much more focused on workshops, with four topics treated simultaneously : E/E Architecture ; Driving Assistance and Infotainment ; Standardisation around AUTOSAR ; and Powertrain and Drivetrain management.
The discussions have been deeper, with more technical presentations. It’s hard to find a link between the EWB (Electronics Wedge Brake) from Siemens VDO, the regenerative braking at Ford, the integration of consumer devices in car at Audi, BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen, and the BMW experience of AUTOSAR. Nevertheless, it appears that the key is the choice of the good electronics architecture. All the players want to have the right tools, to design in a more efficient way and to validate as soon as possible to detect possible troubles. Other key message : if FlexRay is now available, the CAN bus is still alive and will live again for several years.
But, it was time for most of the participants to leave and to set date for the next IAEC : a congress that is evolving from year to year, and that wants to grow without losing the spirit that makes this event so unique.
