General Motors has decided to use custom-tailored 32-bit MPC5500 microcontrollers from Freescale Semiconductor in future GM Powertrain engine control systems worldwide.
The agreement represents “a new level of cooperation between an auto manufacturer and a semiconductor company,” according to Dennis Bogden, GM’s director of powertrain electronics engineering. He notes that standardizing control module components can reduce costs, shorten development time and simplify design of future engine control modules.
Alex Pepe, vice president and general manager of Freescale’s 32-bit Embedded Controller Division, says Freescale technology has been included in GM electronic control systems since 1979, when an MCU was used in a closed-loop carburetor controller.
