Toyota selected Renesas as the key semiconductor supplier for its “Highway Teammate”, an autonomous-driving prototype car designed to merge, pass, change lanes, and perform other actions during highway driving, under supervision. Production vehicles are planned for sale by 2020. The R-Car SoC has been selected for Denso’s engine control unit (ECU), which will be used for Toyota’s upcoming autonomous-driving vehicles. The R-Car SoC will function as the electronic brain for the autonomous-driving system, providing highly accurate intelligence on the vehicle’s position within its environment and making real-time decisions on vehicle control and active safety maneuvers based on sensor data. The RH850 was also selected to control driving, steering, and braking functions based on the judgements made by the R-Car SoC.

Read the full article at safecarnews.com

This story seemed to have slipped under the radar due to timing. Imagine the largest carmaker not only showing an autonomous-driving car but already identifying suppliers from its pool of trusted companies, Denso and Renesas to deliver the product in 2020. Now that Denso owns 5% of Renesas maybe more reports will make the automotive headlines.