Lattice Extends Security and System Control to Automotive Applications

By Tiera Oliver

Associate Editor

Embedded Computing Design

September 17, 2020

News

MachXO3LF and MachXO3D FPGAs Support Extended Temperature Range for Automotive and other Ruggedized Applications

Lattice Semiconductor announced new versions of its MachXO3LF FPGAs for ideal deployment of robust automotive control applications and MachXO3D FPGAs for system security that support extended temperature operating ranges for automotive and other ruggedized applications.

MachXO3D FPGAs augment the system control capabilities of the Lattice MachXO FPGA architecture with security features, including hardware Root-of-Trust (RoT), platform firmware resilience (PFR), and secure dual-boot support. The MachXO3D and MachXO3LF devices target control, bridging, and I/O expansion applications that must operate reliably in rugged environments, including advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), infotainment, motor control, 5G communications infrastructure, industrial robots and automation systems, and defense systems.

The Lattice MachXO3D FPGA for secure control in automotive applications establishes a hardware Root-of-Trust to confirm that the device, and other devices that boot after the FPGA, are running authorized firmware.

As more sensors and electric motors are incorporated into cars, systems become exposed to risk of malicious hacks. OEMs must be able to immediately detect vulnerabilities and combat cyberattacks, and they need electronic systems capable of reliable and secure operation in rugged environments. MachXO3D family of FPGAs builds on the MachXO3LF family of devices by adding a hardware security engine to help protect, detect, and recover the device from unauthorized attempts to access its firmware.

MachXO3LF and MachXO3D FPGAs are supported by Lattice’s integrated design software suite, Lattice Diamond, a complete GUI-based FPGA design and verification environment with ideal design and implementation tools for low-power Lattice FPGAs. The latest version of Lattice Diamond, version 3.11.3, is now available.

Key features of the new MachXO3LF and MachXO3D FPGA family include:

  • Support for an extended operating range -40°C to +125°C (junction temperature)
  • Robust control – provides instant-on control hub that powers the platform up and power and simplifies deployment by:
  • Single 3.3V or 1.2V supply operation
  • Highest I/O-to-logic ratio
  • Enables deterministic I/O operation by eliminating power-up glitches with default pull-down and maintaining signal integrity with program slew rate, drive strength, and hysteresis

The MachXO3D FPGAs’ security features include:

  • On-chip flash memory – secures bitstream and user data against malicious attacks via OTP mode and password protection. MachXO3D has an immutable embedded security block to enable security compliant with NIST SP-800-193 Platform Firmware Resilience (PFR) guidelines for protecting, detecting, and recovering firmware from unauthorized access.
  • On-chip flash enables single-chip, instant-on, and dual-boot images for fail-safe programming and in-field updates
  • Flexible system with secure reprogramming - supports reliable in-system updates with:
  • Fail-safe reprogramming enabled by secure dual boot
  • Configuration engine that prevents unauthorized access to configuration memory
  • On-Chip flash that eliminates external memory and enables instant-on
  • Mixed voltage support on I/O that eliminates GTL buffers and level shifters
  • Per-pin programmability 

For more information, visit www.latticesemi.com.

Tiera Oliver, Associate Editor for Embedded Computing Design, is responsible for web content edits, product news, and constructing stories. She also assists with newsletter updates as well as contributing and editing content for ECD podcasts and the ECD YouTube channel. Before working at ECD, Tiera graduated from Northern Arizona University where she received her B.S. in journalism and political science and worked as a news reporter for the university’s student led newspaper, The Lumberjack.

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