NXP has announced a dual-band concurrent Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radio for automotive use that includes security.

NXP-Wi-Fi-6E-Bluetooth.
Called AW693, it is a dual Wi-Fi 6/6E and and Bluetooth 5.3 device supporting four modes:

CDW 2×2 Wi-Fi 6/6E 5GHz + 1×1 Wi-Fi 6 2.4GHz
CDW 1×1 Wi-Fi 6/6E 5GHz + 1×1 Wi-Fi 6 2.4GHz
2×2 Wi-Fi 6 2.4GHz
2×2 Wi-Fi 6/6E 5GHz
All Wi-Fi is 802.11ax. CDW=concurrent dual Wi-Fi

Depending on mode, up to 40MHz channels are supported for 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and, for 5GHz, 1,024 QAM and up to 80MHz channels.

2.4 and 5GHz transmit power amplifiers (PAs, +13dBm for Bluetooth) and receive low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) are integrated alongside Tx-Rx switches, and three or two antennas are supported, as is a separate external front-end with PA and LNA.

“The AW693 implements advanced real-time Wi-Fi and Bluetooth arbitration hardware in conjunction with software algorithms to optimise coexistence performance,” according to the company. And it has “features including MU-MIMO, OFDMA and target wake time”.

For independent real-time protocol processing, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth subsystems get their own dedicated CPUs and memories. Interfaces to external host processors include PCIe for Wi-Fi and UART for Bluetooth.

On-board security hardware includes crypto accelerated secure boot, key management, firmware authentication, life cycle management and anti-rollback protection.

“Targeting telematics and in-vehicle infotainment, the AW693 supports connectivity across multiple automotive platforms when combined with NXP’s i.MX 8 and 9 series of applications processors.,” said NXP. “This not only enables secure delivery of the over-the-air software updates necessary to deliver new features and safety enhancements to software-defined vehicles, it also facilitates secure connections between various systems and mobile devices inside the car.”

Operation is from 1.8 and 3.3V, and over -40 to 105°C. Packaging is HVQFN148 or WLCSP, and the device is AEC-Q100 Grade 2 compliant.