ISO 21111-5:2020

Overview

ISO 21111-5:2020 - "Road vehicles - In-vehicle Ethernet - Part 5: Optical 1‑Gbit/s physical layer system requirements and test plans" defines system‑level physical‑layer requirements and structured test plans for 1‑Gbit/s optical in‑vehicle Ethernet. The document concentrates on interoperability and device‑level conformance for optical 1‑Gbit/s links (GEPOF/optical physical layer), specifying required test setups, test groups and pass/fail criteria that complement the base Ethernet specifications in ISO/IEC/IEEE 8802‑3.

Key topics and requirements

• Physical layer system requirements: System‑level behaviour expectations for 1‑Gbit/s optical links used inside road vehicles (link status, link‑up timing, channel quality, wake‑up/sleep behavior).
• Interoperability test plan: Structured into four test groups to verify system requirements:
  • Link status - accuracy of register content vs actual link state
  • Link‑up - time to reach reliable link from defined states
  • Channel quality - register accuracy for optical channel metrics
  • Wake‑up and sleep - transmission/reception of wake/sleep events
• Device‑level conformance test plan: Checks device OSI physical‑layer requirements relevant to device vendors. Organized by test‑set type:
  • High‑attenuation channel
  • Low‑attenuation channel
  • Optical IUT transmitter measurements
  • Wake‑up and synchronized link sleep
• Test set‑up requirements: Detailed interoperability and device test setups (multiple interoperability set‑ups and device‑level set‑ups), including channel characteristics, IUT (Implementation Under Test) conditions and stress tool requirements.
• Climatic and reliability tests: Tests that address communication reliability under temperature and environmental loads relevant to automotive applications.

Applications and who uses this standard

ISO 21111‑5:2020 is intended for:

• Automotive OEMs and system integrators designing in‑vehicle Ethernet networks that use 1‑Gbit/s optical physical media.
• Electronic control unit (ECU) and transceiver vendors performing device‑level conformance testing and ensuring interoperability across supplier components.
• Component and connector manufacturers validating optical channel and transmitter/receiver behaviour.
• Test laboratories and certification bodies implementing the interoperability and conformance test plans.
• Reliability and validation engineers assessing link‑up times, channel quality and wake/sleep functionality for in‑vehicle communications.

Practical benefits include improved cross‑vendor interoperability, consistent test methods for supplier qualification, and clear pass/fail criteria for optical 1‑Gbit/s automotive links.

Related standards

• ISO/IEC/IEEE 8802‑3 (Ethernet) - base Ethernet PHY/MAC requirements referenced by this document (including Amendment 9).
• Other parts of the ISO 21111 series (Parts 1–4, 6–8) - cover terminology, PHY interfaces, optical components, advanced PHY features and test harnesses for in‑vehicle Ethernet.

Keywords: ISO 21111‑5:2020, in‑vehicle Ethernet, 1‑Gbit/s optical, GEPOF, physical layer, interoperability test plan, device conformance, automotive Ethernet.