The OPEN Alliance is a non-profit, special interest group (SIG) of mainly automotive industry and technology providers collaborating to encourage wide scale adoption of Ethernet-based communication as the standard in automotive networking applications.
The member companies of the OPEN Alliance take advantage of the scalability and flexibility of Ethernet to allow for cost-effective communication networks in vehicles with reduced complexity. An Ethernet-based communication network is also a key infrastructure element for future customer functions like autonomous driving and the connected car.
History
Traditional automotive networks such as CAN, LIN, FlexRay, MOST were unable to meet the higher data rate requirements of emerging automotive applications such as advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), Infotainment or fast update of various ECUs in vehicles. This led BMW to investigate new standard based networking technologies such as Ethernet in 2004. Standard 100BASE-TX Fast Ethernet met automotive requirements for higher bandwidth and also provided flexibility in networking topology but it had limitations in meeting the automotive EMC requirements.
In collaboration with Broadcom, BMW customized the BroadR-Reach Ethernet technology to meet automotive EMC requirements over a single unshielded twisted pair cable. In comparison to 100BASE-TX, which requires two twisted pair cables, this had the additional advantage of reducing the cable weight and system costs further.
OPEN Alliance was born as a result of this collaboration to create an ecosystem of vendors and partners to promote and adopt BroadR-Reach Ethernet technology for automotive in-vehicle networks and to encourage the development of new, automotive suitable Ethernet PHY solutions. In 2016, BroadR-Reach technology was standardized and published as IEEE802.3bw–2015 100BASE-T1 specification.
The name “OPEN” originally stood for One Pair EtherNet, and indeed both the 100BASE-T1 and the 1000BASE-T1 technologies deploy one twisted pair cables only. However, today, the OPEN Alliance supports and enables the deployment of automotive Ethernet-based communication independent of the cabling used.
Goals and objectives
The objective of the OPEN Alliance SIG is to facilitate the adoption of Ethernet-based communication for in-vehicle networks: Enable the deployment of the existing IEEE 100BASE-T1, 1000BASE-T1 and 1000BASE-RH physical layer specifications with complementing specifications for conformance and interoperability. Complete the ecosystem further with requirement and test specifications for harnesses, switches, ECUs, and additional functionalities. Encourage and support the development of new physical layer solutions in a standards setting organization. Continuously identify and address gaps related to the implementation of Ethernet-based communication in automotive.
Members
Founding members of the OPEN Alliance SIG are BMW, Broadcom and NXP Semiconductors. In November 2011 the companies C&S, UNH-IOL, Harman, Hyundai, Freescale and Jaguar Landrover joined the OPEN Alliance SIG. Continental, TÜV Nord, Valeo and JAE Europe joined in December.
Since that time membership has surged to more than 300 members (as of March 22, 2016).
Membership allows companies to influence the specifications and early access to the standard specifications.
There are two types of members, Promoters and Adopters: Promoter can participate and contribute to the OPEN Alliance technical committees. Promoters also have the right and the duty to participate in Steering Committee meetings that deal with the organizational and strategic matters of the OPEN Alliance. Adopters can also participate and contribute to the OPEN Alliance technical committees just like the Promoters. Once members have contributed as an Adopter, they may apply to become a Promoter member. A complete list of members can be found at http://www.opensig.org
Structure of OPEN Alliance
Steering Committee
This committee defines the overall strategy and roadmap, manages day-to-day non-technical operations and admission of members, public relations and contractual issues. It includes BMW, Broadcom Limited, Continental, Daimler AG, General Motors Co, HARMAN, Hyundai Motor Company, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), NXP, Realtek Semiconductor Corp, Renault SA, Renesas, Robert Bosch GmbH, Toyota, Volkswagen Group, Volvo Cars.
The key roles which are rotated are Chair, Secretary, Communications Manager, and Webstorage Administrator.