A Tesla Model 3 consumes $1,500 worth of semiconductors. Chips may become the weak spot of China's auto industry

UBS’s recent fourth and fifth reports are very interesting and closely related to automotive electronics.

Main arguments and content:

Note: Different analysis reports have different estimates for the cost of chips used in an average bicycle, as shown below, generally around 350-400.

Note: I need to mention my opinion here. This cost analysis of UBS and many of the analysis conclusions are mainly based on the cost analysis process of Mr. Monroe. The core chip cost analysis model is a cost analysis model made after the component list. I have participated in this work before in cost engineering. The actual estimate needs to consider the batch and the bargaining process with the chip. For our reference, a 30% fluctuation on the Internet is relatively normal.

I will re-investigate several core components such as BMS, CMU, ADAS, etc. based on its data.

2) Tesla adopts a centralized architecture

This involves a lot of redivision of functional allocation, in the areas of powertrain coordination (charging control, battery management, 12V management, charger and inverter) + body (HVAC control + left and right body related parts) + ADAS. The demand for ADAS has directly pushed OEMs to take back a lot of software definitions from Tier 1 and hand them over to their own software engineering departments and third-party software service companies. Based on the needs of the powertrain and ADAS domains, it is necessary to directly redivide the original 12V communication and distribution architecture. The role of EE has become more subtle. It used to be a bridge, and now it needs to continue to be a bridge. It also needs to go extra miles to meet the needs of the evolution of the two domains, especially the requirements for power and communication networking.

3) Electronicization of vehicle body and power distribution

Divide the seats, doors, windows and HVAC into two parts, left and right, and redistribute the functions through this.

Here, the control of LIN bus is fully utilized, and some separation is made between direct control and communication control. In fact, the vehicle manufacturer has already handed over this part to Tier 1. In the process of simplification, the design was taken back. The direct control uses 16 Mosfet (with 7 Mosfet Drivers) and 6 high-side switches.

The coding and logic of these two parts may also be done by myself, at least a large part of them are defined, the core is to cooperate with the interaction of the central control

Once I get this board, I will disassemble it carefully and do a detailed analysis. I am also looking for two interested engineers to participate in the analysis of this board.      

Summary: Chips will become the weak spot of China's automobile industry in the future. Do you believe it?

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.