Corning Announces Collaboration with KD Ahead of IEEE Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day

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Corning Announces Collaboration with KD Ahead of IEEE Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day

Corning Announces Collaboration with KD Ahead of IEEE Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day

CORNING, N.Y. | Corning Incorporated | October 03, 2024

Corning's automotive glass optical-fiber assemblies together with KD's multi-gigabit optical transceivers will meet growing in-vehicle connectivity demands.

What: IEEE SA's 2024 Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day

When: October 16-17, 2024

Where: Corning Booth C18, KD Booth C1 - Fort Pontchartrain Detroit, a Wyndham Hotel, 2 Washington Boulevard, Detroit, MI, 48226

How: contact us at [email protected] to reserve time for a live demonstration

Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW), one of the world's leading innovators in materials science and optical physics, today announced a multiyear collaboration with Madrid-based KD, a leading supplier of optical transceivers for the automotive industry. Through this collaboration, the companies will bring Corning's automotive glass optical-fiber assemblies together with KD's multi-gigabit glass optical transceivers to meet growing demand for robust connectivity in software-defined vehicles. Corning and KD will showcase their automotive optical connectivity solutions at the upcoming 2024 Ethernet & IP @ Automotive Technology Day in Detroit, MI.

Automakers are now building software-defined vehicles with powerful computing, sensing, and information display components that enable advanced driver-assistance and safety features. Many vehicles now require network data rates in the multi-gigabit range, a step up from the traditional megabit range. With the recent publication of the IEEE 802.3cz standard, manufacturers are designing OM3 optical-fiber solutions up to 50 gigabits per second (Gbps) for a wide variety of vehicles.

Building on five decades of automotive and optical-connectivity innovation, Corning has developed optical cable, optical connectors, and cable assemblies that are robust, reliable, and specialized for the automotive market. Compared to copper solutions, Corning's automotive-grade glass optical solutions:

• Provide up to 20 times more bandwidth than what is offered today, enabling 200 Gbps data rates.
  
  
• Are more than 70% lighter - with greater flexibility and tighter bend.
  
  
• Are naturally immune to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and better handle system compatibility challenges associated with high data rates.

With extensive experience in optical solutions for automotive, KD has developed KD7251, a first-to-market, multi-gigabit glass fiber-optic transceiver that is compliant with IEEE 802.3cz. This new transceiver, together with Corning's glass optical solutions, creates a complete glass optical solution for vehicle makers.

"Corning's expertise in optics and materials alongside KD's innovative transceiver allows us to help customers solve real and exciting challenges at a time when the rate of automotive industry innovation is tremendous," says Douglas Harshbarger, Director, Automotive Futures, Corning Incorporated. "We can enable in-vehicle network solutions with cabling that supports more data and avoids EMI problems, while being lighter and having lower carbon footprint."

The KD7251 transceiver transmits and receives optical communications in a single component. This complete system compactly integrates into vehicle systems to support enhanced performance across sensors, cameras, and other high-data areas of the vehicle. In addition to ethernet interfaces, this transceiver includes advanced interfaces for high-resolution sensors, like cameras, lidars, and radars (MIPI's CSI-2 over D-PHY) as well as for link aggregation. It also supports PCIe interface to facilitate high-speed backbone links.

"Manufacturers are demanding solutions to handle ever-growing data rates without the challenges seen in copper, like limited link length and the need to change cable and connectors with each data rate increase," said Carlos Pardo, KD CEO and co-founder. "With the new 802.3cz standard, only glass fiber optics offer a future-proof path to enable the software-defined vehicles of tomorrow."

About Corning Incorporated
Corning (www.corning.com) is one of the world's leading innovators in materials science, with a 170-year track record of life-changing inventions. Corning applies its unparalleled expertise in glass science, ceramic science, and optical physics along with its deep manufacturing and engineering capabilities to develop category-defining products that transform industries and enhance people's lives. Corning succeeds through sustained investment in RD&E, a unique combination of material and process innovation, and deep, trust-based relationships with customers who are global leaders in their industries. Corning's capabilities are versatile and synergistic, which allows the company to evolve to meet changing market needs, while also helping our customers capture new opportunities in dynamic industries. Today, Corning's markets include optical communications, mobile consumer electronics, display, automotive, solar, semiconductors, and life sciences.