Developing Production Software for Safety-Related E-Mobility Applications

• Transfer of models into high-quality and high-performance production code for safety-related applications
• Software development according to ISO 26262, ISO 25119, and IEC 61508 as well as derivative standards
• Early simulation and verification in MIL, SIL, and PIL modes
• High-performance, native AUTOSAR support
• Tool chain with dSPACE and partner tools (e.g., for additional analyses)

Task

Many applications in electric drives and electromobility are essential for safety, among them steering systems, braking systems, energy storage systems, and charging technologies. Malfunctions of these applications can have serious consequences, which can range from mere hardware damage during tests up to life-threatening situations for vehicle passengers. This means that the production software on the electronic control units (ECUs) has to be absolutely reliable. This use case gives you an overview of the tools you can use to translate functional models to production code efficiently and in compliance with safety standards.

Challenge

Efficiently generating production code for ECUs is a must. But what are the requirements for the processes and software development tools involved to make them suitable for safety-related applications? For example, it is highly important to perform tests at all crucial points during the transition from the functional model to the production code. This applies to the early design phases and to increasingly realistic code, which is adapted to the target processor in a last step. But there is so much more to consider. Tools have to reliably support teamwork, and there has to be centralized model variable management. It must be possible to compare and analyze model states at any time. The seamless integration of tools for system architecture and V-ECU generation, requirements management, analyses such as compliance with guidelines, or additional code coverage and run-time behavior checks must be ensured. Important: The code generator itself and the corresponding workflow must be suitable to meet the required safety standards. All of these aspects must be considered in the tool chain.

Solution

The dSPACE production code generator, TargetLink, and the TargetLink Ecosystem, with integrated dSPACE and third-party tools, form a powerful tool framework that can be adjusted to your development requirements for safety-related software. The industry-proven TargetLink software has been certified for the development of safety-relevant systems. TÜV SÜD confirmed TargetLink's suitability for software development in accordance with ISO 26262, ISO 25119, and IEC 61508 as well as derivative standards. The TÜV certification also includes a reference workflow for model-based software development of safety-relevant systems with TargetLink. But TargetLink provides even more benefits: Test mechanisms are tightly integrated into the tool at various points in the process. TargetLink provides a three-step verification process which shows you at the click of a button whether the specification (the model) and implementation (the generated code) are identical in terms of functionality. The three steps are the model-in-the-loop, the software-in-the-loop, and the processor-in-the-loop simulation options. TargetLink also offers further integrated verification features, such as run-time analysis for code profiling and code coverage analysis. You can also connect tools of the TargetLink Ecosystem to perform additional tasks. The file-based TargetLink Data Dictionary is a central data container holding the relevant information for model design, code generation, and implementation on an ECU, ensuring that all team members always work with the correct data. AUTOSAR support has been native to TargetLink for many years, resulting in powerful TargetLink features for the Classic and Adaptive Platforms. V-ECUs can be generated with the system architecture software dSPACE SystemDesk, and comprehensive SIL simulations with V-ECUs can be performed with dSPACE VEOS later on. These are just some examples. For a comprehensive description of how to develop safety-relevant software with TargetLink and the TargetLink Ecosystem, please contact us. We will gladly consult with you and make you fit for production code development for safety-relevant applications, be it in electromobility or other fields of application.