3. A Tour of RAD-Comet2 Hardware
3.1. Label and Status Indicators
3.1.1. PHY Mode
The mode each PHY is displayed by the status LED within the corresponding membrane button.
Switching LED status between T1S ports
RAD-Comet2 has 2x T1S ports but only 1 set of status LEDs. The color of the LED indicates which T1S port’s status is displayed as listed below. Briefly pressing the “T1S MODE” button toggles between which port’s status is displayed by the LEDs.
PHY Mode |
Link Speed |
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AE1 |
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Cyan = Auto (Link Down) |
Slow Flash: Link Down Fast Flash: 100 Mbps Solid: 1 Gbps |
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Green = Master |
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Blue = Slave |
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AE2 |
AE3 |
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AE2/AE3 |
|
CSMA/CD Mode |
Cyan |
Magenta |
Always 10Mbps |
PLCA Coordinator |
Green |
White |
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PLCA Follower Node |
Blue |
Yellow |
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Changing between coordinator and follower node
The RAD-Comet can be toggled between coordinator and follower by holding “T1S MODE” for 3 seconds. The node ID of the follower is configured using neoVI Explorer.
3.1.2. Link Activity
Green |
Frame TX |
Blue |
Frame RX |
Red |
Error |
3.1.3. Signal Quality Index (SQI)
SQI is a 3-bit value reported by the PHY that correlates with the BER (Bit Error Ratio) of the link communication. The behavior of the SQI LED is shown below.
Red |
SQI = 0 |
BER > 10e-10 |
SQI = 1 |
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SQI = 2 |
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Yellow |
SQI = 3 |
BER < 10e-10 |
SQI = 4 |
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Green |
SQI = 5 |
|
SQI = 6 |
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SQI = 7 |
3.1.4. gPTP
This LED displays the gPTP configuration of AE1
Off |
Disabled |
Solid Blue |
Leader |
Blinking Blue |
Follower |
3.1.5. PLCA Status
The PLCA status is reported by the 10BASE-T1S PHY and displayed below the T1S Mode button according to the following table.
Green |
Beacon Present |
Red |
Collision |
Yellow |
Jabber Detected |
Magenta |
Unexpected Beacon |
Blue |
Empty Cycle |
Cyan |
RX in Transmit Opp |
Note:
The settings described in this section can also be modified using neoVI Explorer or Intrepid’s open source cross-platform device communication API. (explained later in this guide)
3.2. Bootloader Mode
You may see all the LEDs on the top label flashing synchronously. This means the device is in bootloader mode, which should only happen when flashing the device’s firmware. If this is observed unexpectedly or following a firmware update, please contact customer support for assistance.
3.3. TC10 - Automotive Ethernet Sleep/Wake-up
A requirement of every modern vehicle is for its subsystems to enter a power saving mode to minimize power when not in use, as well as the ability to quickly resume operation on demand.
TC10 optimizes vehicle architectures using Automotive Ethernet by eliminating the need for dedicated wake-up signals or power mode management using CAN (or possibly other networks). It is a realized by features built into the PHY and requires no involvement of higher layers (MAC and software stacks).
TC10 should not be confused with Energy Efficient Ethernet
EEE is a mode of lower current consumption when link is idle, or communication is asymmetric.
EEE has no concept of sleep/wake, only mode changes based on link activity.
EEE is not only incapable of a system level power mode strategy, but aspects of it can also be problematic to automotive use cases.
TC10 only applies to Automotive Ethernet
TC10 does not apply to any non-automotive Ethernet physical layers. (such as 100/1000BASE-T)
The commands for sleep and wake-up exchanged between PHYs are buried in previously unused bits of the OAM frame (Operations Administration and Maintenance). These OAM “symbols” are not directly accessible by upper layers. The power moding application of a device must use low-level PHY register reads and writes to invoke commands or determine the power mode state of the PHY. This register access for Intrepid products is provided in one of 3 ways.
Any of these software packages will provide MDIO PHY register access for Intrepid devices The interface varies by port on each device that supports TC10. The following table summarizes the ports on devices that support TC10. (Ports not listed in this table do not support TC10.)
MDIO over I2C |
MDIO over SPI |
MDIO (direct) |
non-TC10 Ports |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
SFP Devices |
xBASE-T1 |
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RAD-Moon2 |
100/1000BASE-T1 |
100/1000BASE-T |
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RAD-Moon3 |
MultiGBASE-T1 |
MultiGBASE-T |
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RAD-Comet2 |
AE01 (100/1000BASE-T1) |
ETH01, AE02, AE03 |
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RAD-Comet3 |
AE02-AE07 (T1S) |
AE01 (100/1000BASE-T1) |
ETH01 |
If you are having trouble finding or installing the software, please contact our customer support at icssupport@intrepidcs.com
Register Information
The register information and sequence of operations to use the TC10 features of a PHY are unique for each PHY. This information is distributed under NDA and must be obtained directly from the semiconductor manufacturer.
3.4. MACsec
MACsec (802.1AE) is a Layer 2 protocol that can ensure data integrity and authenticity, as well as data encyption. The OPEN Alliance TC17 has drafted the MACsec Automotive Profile to adapt the broad standards of 802.1AE to automotive applications.
The use and operation of MACsec is well beyond the scope of this guide, but many Intrepid products contain Automotive Ethernet PHYs with MACsec support. The MACsec configuration is sent to the PHY over MDIO using either of the following software packages.
The interface varies by port on each device that supports MACsec. The following table summarizes the interfaces used on each port on devices that support MACsec. (Ports not listed in this table do not support MACsec.)
MDIO over I2C |
MDIO over SPI |
MDIO (direct) |
non-MACsec Ports |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
SFP Devices |
xBASE-T1 |
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RAD-Moon2 |
100/1000BASE-T1 |
100/1000BASE-T |
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RAD-Moon3 |
MultiGBASE-T1 |
MultiGBASE-T |
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RAD-Comet2 |
AE1 (100/1000BASE-T1) |
ETH01, AE2, AE3 |
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RAD-Comet3 |
AE1 (100/1000BASE-T1) |
ETH01, AE2-AE7 |
If you are having trouble finding or installing the software, please contact our customer support at icssupport@intrepidcs.com
Register Information
The register information related to the MACsec features of a PHY are unique for each PHY. This information is distributed under NDA and must be obtained directly from the semiconductor manufacturer.
3.5. Connector Interfaces
3.5.1. Power/USB/1000BASE-T Interfaces
Barrel Jack (Left):
The device can be powered using a DC supply between 5.5-40V volts with a minimum power of 10 Watts. Using a power supply that does not meet these requirements may cause the device to malfunction or be permanently damaged.
USB Type C (Center):
This serves as a connection to a host computer for configuration, firmware updates, and PHY register access.
USB Power
RAD-Comet2 cannot be powered via USB
ETH 01 (Right)
The industry standard RJ-45 Ethernet jack is a 10/100/1000BASE-T port that can be used to connect to a host computer or be used as a network port for sending and receiving Ethernet traffic.
Link LED (Green): Indicates that a valid link has been established between your device and another 10/100/1000 Ethernet device.
Activity LED (Orange): Flashes when traffic passes in either direction over the attached Ethernet cable.
In normal operation you should see the Link LED always on, and the Activity LED flashing at a variable rate, with faster flashing meaning that more data is being transferred.
3.5.2. Ethernet Interfaces
AE01
The H-MTD connector on the left is a 100/1000BASE-T1 port with the following following pin assignments.
H-MTD Connector Pinout |
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Pin # |
Label |
Description |
1 |
TRD+ |
Data transmit and receive, positive |
2 |
TRD- |
Data transmit and receive, negative |
AE02 - AE03
The IX connector in the middle contains two 10BASE-T1S Ports with the following pin assignments. Note that each port has twisted pair designated “IN” and a twisted pair designated “OUT”. The redundant signals are tied together electrically inside the device and can be useful to minimize stub length by inserting the RAD-Comet2 into a mixing segment such that the connection a daisy-chain “IN” and “OUT” of the RAD-Comet2.
Pin |
Signal |
Cable Color |
1 |
AE_02_IN_P |
white/orange |
2 |
AE_02_IN_N |
orange |
3 |
GND |
– |
4 |
AE_02_OUT_P |
blue |
5 |
AE_02_OUT_N |
white/blue |
6 |
AE_03_IN_P |
white/green |
7 |
AE_03_IN_N |
green |
8 |
GND |
– |
9 |
AE_03_OUT_P |
white/brown |
10 |
AE_03_OUT_N |
brown |
3.5.3. DB-9 Connector
The DB-9 connector on the right holds two CAN FD channels, 1 LIN Channel, and can also be used to power the RAD-Comet2. Pin assignments are listed in the table below. See this section for detail on power supply requirements.
Pin |
Signal |
|---|---|
1 |
LIN (Must use isolated GND) |
2 |
CAN 1 L |
3 |
Isolated GND |
4 |
CAN 2 L |
5 |
GND |
6 |
Isolated GND |
7 |
CAN 1 H |
8 |
CAN 2 H |
9 |
VBATT |