With the electrification and intelligence of vehicles, the rise of domestic new car makers and progress in import substitution, the term automotive grade appears ever more often. From an autonomous driving perspective no topic has been hotter in recent years than lidar, yet what exactly is automotive grade lidar, and what standard applies to it?

1. Automotive grade standards for lidar

The automotive grade standard for electronic components is the series issued by the AEC, originally created to promote the standardisation of automotive electronic devices. AEC standards have greatly improved the interchangeability of automotive electronic devices, reduced the cost of component selection, use and change for component makers and OEMs, and substantially improved the reliability of electronic components and vehicles.

Four conditions define automotive grade:

1. All electronic components used in the product are automotive grade (AEC-Q qualified).
2. The product meets automotive electronic design and development requirements.
3. The product meets the test requirements of large vehicle makers.
4. The product achieves volume original equipment fitment; low volume models, semi-OE and aftermarket fitment do not count.

2. Electronic components in lidar

The standards applied to electronic components in lidar products are as follows.

AEC-Q102 was written specifically for the lasers and photodetectors at the core of lidar, giving lidar a standard to work to. AEC-Q102 sets out the following provisions for laser components:

1. Section 1.4.5, notes for testing laser components.
2. Process change guideline for laser components.
3. Minimum parametric test requirements and failure criteria.
4. Table 3, qualification test methods.
5. The Table 3 requirements that apply only to laser components.

3. The AEC standards and their scope

AEC stands for Automotive Electronics Council. It was founded in 1994 by Chrysler, Ford and General Motors, and its membership now spans major vehicle makers, automotive electronics companies and semiconductor manufacturers worldwide. Components that comply with AEC specifications can be adopted by all three manufacturers at the same time, which encouraged part makers to exchange product characteristic data, drove standardisation of automotive parts and laid the foundation for the rapid growth of the automotive parts market. AEC-Q is the automotive reliability test standard issued by the AEC and an important passport for part makers entering automotive electronics and tier one supply chains.

4. How the AEC standards address device reliability

Achieving high reliability of electronic components over the whole model lifecycle and vehicle lifecycle involves several elements:

1. High quality of the device itself is the basis for long service life.
2. Consistency of quality between lots over a supply period of more than 15 years is what makes a long device lifecycle possible.
3. Managing change and requalification over that long lifecycle is an important means of maintaining consistency and reliability.
4. Standards and process systems such as IATF 16949, AEC-Q and PPAP play an indispensable supporting role in product design and manufacturing.

For lidar, beyond the core laser and detector needing AEC-Q102 certification, all electronic components must pass AEC-Q certification. Only then does lidar have a basis for in-vehicle application, for passing whole vehicle component testing and for meeting the reliability requirements of 15 years of demanding use, and only then can the safety of autonomous vehicles be assured.

5. AEC-Q102 test flow for core lidar components

6. AEC-Q102 test groups

Parameter testing: photoelectric performance, appearance, parameter verification, physical dimensions, thermal resistance and similar.

Environmental stress testing: stress tests performed according to military electronic device environmental standards and general automotive electronic environmental standards, such as high temperature operating, high temperature reverse bias, high temperature high humidity operating, high temperature high humidity reverse bias, temperature cycling, power temperature cycling, intermittent operational life, low temperature operating life, pulsed operation, vibration, shock, hermeticity, dew condensation, hydrogen sulphide and mixed gas.

Process quality assessment: process quality assessment of the component covering packaging, subsequent electronic assembly processes and use reliability, such as ESD, DPA, terminal strength, resistance to soldering heat, solderability, wire pull and shear, die push and whisker growth.

7. NTEK testing capability against AEC-Q102 requirements

About NTEK

NTEK Group was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Shenzhen. The group provides quality research and technical services covering R&D verification, inspection and testing, failure analysis, simulation and market access for intelligent connected vehicles, electronic communications and new energy.

NTEK has extensive experience in automotive-grade electronic certification and has helped more than 100 companies pass AEC-Q series certification. Driven by the need of vehicle makers to localise automotive-grade components and supported by the domestic semiconductor industry, NTEK provides comprehensive testing and certification services, applying AEC-Q automotive standards to control the safety and quality of automotive components, supporting the growth of domestic automotive-grade components and adding new momentum to the intelligent vehicle safety system.