With the freshly launched Mobilizer Series, HMS Networks has presented a state-of-the-art automotive gateway under its product brand Ixxat. Designed to meet the diverse and demanding requirements of automotive communication and testing, the Mobilizer combines unparalleled flexibility, robust hardware design, and user-friendly software tools to deliver a versatile, standalone solution. Equipped with the most high-performing communication standards such as CAN FD, Automotive Ethernet (100/1000-Base-T1), EtherCAT or FlexRay, the Ixxat Mobilizer caters for a wide range of applications such as data logging, gateway functionalities, rest bus simulation, firmware flashing or end-of-line testing. The new series has been developed especially for automotive test benches as well as end-of-line testing applications.
All Mobilizer models come with the Advanced Configuration Tool (ACT), a groundbreaking, intuitive drag-and-drop software. With it, users can configure the gateway behavior, data logging or rest bus simulation applications and visualization without programming skills. This not only simplifies the initial setup effort but also significantly reduces time to deployment. Supporting Automotive Ethernet, CAN/FD, LIN and FlexRay, the Mobilizer series consolidates multiple network protocols into one single device. This versatility eliminates the need for multiple devices, streamlining workflows and reducing operational costs. “Once you have configured and parameterized your application via the ACT software, you just send the configuration onto Mobilizer and it works properly without any additional software”, explains Markus Demaria, Product Manager Automotive Solutions at HMS Networks.
With up to eight CAN/FD channels, each supporting signal improvement capabilities (sic), the Mobilizer guarantees exceptional signal stability and allows simultaneous operation of multiple components. This allows fast and reliable connection of in-vehicle networks. On the other end, the 100/1000Base-T1 Automotive Ethernet interface offers speeds up to 1,000 Mbit/s and low-latency communication to connect to the surrounding automation level. With additional EtherCAT and Generic Ethernet interfaces, the Mobilizer bridges IVN data to automation environments, ensuring synchronized system communication and device monitoring.
Additionally, a plugin-based encryption system ensures robust data security without the need for repetitive programming. Users can encrypt data once, and the Mobilizer manages encryption consistently across all applications, ensuring seamless transitions between projects.
The Mobilizer simplifies the setup and operation of a standalone rest bus simulation with integrated support for MATLAB models. Configuring RBS is as easy as dragging and dropping within the ACT tool, eliminating manual parameter setup. “While other tools on the market usually require a time-consuming programming effort until rest bus simulation applications are running properly, the Mobilizer series only needs to be configured”, says Markus Demaria. “Instead of several hours of programming, setting up a simple rest bus simulation with the Mobilizer is done within minutes.”
Depending on the model, the Mobilizer supports up to six digital I/Os, two analog inputs, and four analog outputs, enabling the integration of multiple measurement devices in parallel. While primarily used as a desktop device by engineers, the Mobilizer is also suitable for DIN rail mounting in industrial environments such as test benches and control rooms.
Built for harsh conditions, the Mobilizer features a durable aluminum chassis with advanced cooling, supporting operation in temperatures from -40 °C to +70 °C. An integrated temperature monitoring system ensures reliable performance, even under heavy computational loads. All models of the Mobilizer series incorporate an embedded processing platform with a quad-core i.MX 8M Plus processor, 1 GB of RAM, and 4 GB of flash memory. This makes it a powerful and flexible solution for modern automotive testing scenarios.