The 1394 Trade Association announced that it has completed a new set of specifications that support FireWire’s faster speeds, longer distances and new applications. Updates and additions to the Base Test Suite, 1394-Automotive, and VersaPHY General Purpose Input/Output standards were completed during the second quarter.
Hard Polymer Cladding Fiber and All Glass Fiber Components for 1394-Automotive Networking Applications
The Trade Association has completed the 1394 Automotive Glass Fiber Specification, a supplement to the original 1394 Automotive (IDB-1394) automotive networking standard. The specification addresses the addition of hard polymer cladded fiber cables and all glass fiber cables for embedded vehicle networks.
The additions enhance the 1394 Automotive standard, which was developed by automakers and global electronics leaders to meet the demand for multimedia applications and driver awareness systems in vehicle passenger compartments. The new class of unique HPCF and GOF automotive connectors and cables contained in the additions to the standard are defined for implementation within vehicles. The connector interface is usable from S200 to S800 dependent on the fiber and optical transceiver capabilities.
See Also: FireWire group aiming for in-vehicle multimedia networks
“The new HPCF and glass fiber specification resulted from the hard work and cooperation of many companies around the world,” said Max Bassler, 1394 Trade Association chairman. “We would like to acknowledge the work done by representatives from some of our Trade Association leaders including Yazaki, Sumitomo, JAE, Fujitsu, Mitsubishi Cable, TE Connectivity, and others.”
Updated Base Test Suite
The Trade Association also announced updates to its Base Test Suite, which is the document that details the guidelines for achieving compliance for FireWire-equipped components or products. The test suite and its associated process ensures that components and products are 100 percent compliant. The additions are entitled “Base 1394 Test Suite with Extension for 1394b and IEEE-1394-2008,” and include all required tests for 800 Megabits/second FireWire products to ensure compliance. Passing the 1394 TA compliance suite is required before 1394 products can apply to Microsoft for the Windows Hardware Quality Labs logo. For more details, visit http://www.1394ta.org/developers/ComplianceOverview.html
Additions to VersaPHY GPIO Standard
There is also an addition to VersaPHY, which is a compatible extension to the IEEE 1394 standard that is designed to enable lower cost implementations by allowing communication between nodes without IEEE-1394 link or transaction layer overhead. The revised specification supplements VersaPHY additions to IEEE-1394 with the details needed to develop hardware and software applications designed for monitoring and controlling a broad range of GPIO devices. The intent of VersaPHY profiles is that a wide range of profiles can provide highly optimized interfaces. This GPIO profile is more generic and suited to a wide range of on/off signaling requirements.
For more information about VersaPHY, please visit www.quantumparametrics.com/files/VersaPHY_Overview_032508_0.pdf or www.1394ta.org/developers/Seminars/1394_VersaPHY.pdf#search=%22versaPHY%20%22
“The dedicated efforts of our working groups are continuing to add value to the IEEE1394 standard as FireWire moves to faster speeds of 1.6 Gigabit/second and 3.2 Gigabit/second and to distances in excess of 10 meters,” said Bassler.
More Info: www.1394ta.org
