This may be the era of technology-laden software defined vehicles, but a lingering practice by some automakers of not effectively using software in product development could be costing the industry billions in production delays.
The issue, is using software up to a point, then relying on costly physical models which take longer to adjust or update. In the trade that’s known as software-in-the-loop, or SIL, and hardware-in-the-loop, or HIL.
Indeed, caused, in part by delayed software integration, delayed launches could translate into losses of 2% to 7% of the industry’s total value, or $30 billion to $50 billion a year in North America, according to a PwC report.
“It takes seven years to get a car from initial design to market, whereas, in theory, a company in Shenzhen could launch a new smartphone in the span of a couple quarters, and it’s only getting faster,” observed in an interview. “Of all the different categories of product, hardware or automotive, is by far among like the very slowest when it comes to development cycles and engineering is a big part of that.”
A solution in the cloud
But companies such as Sweden-based Remotive Labs, have developed systems allowing companies to “shift-left” on an SIL model, bringing software into the design and engineering of new products much earlier into the processes before creating physical prototypes.
Its system is called RemotiveTopology, a cloud-based system where the different entities working on a product can collaborate for a longer time, conducting virtual tests and making adjustments before hardware enters the loop.
“Engineers spin up a virtual car on day one and run end‑to‑end tests continuously as every new line of code lands, catching problems before they snowball,” said Per Sigurdson, RemotiveLabs co-founder and CEO, in an interview. “When physical hardware arrives, those exact same tests slide over to hardware test-rigs with no rework—just added real‑world assurance. The result is fewer surprises, faster schedules, and dramatically lower launch risk.”
“We say you need to stop much earlier when you start prototyping, and you don’t really know what’s going on–that’s really left-shifting, where you can start validating and verifying entire platforms before you have any productive code,” added Aleksandar Filipov, co- founder and CTO at RemotiveLabs.
Ahsan Qamar, an expert in system design, integration and testing who is familiar with Remotive’s system, agrees it has the ability to speed production and reduce costs, saying, “By executing behavioral models and source code alongside real-world constraints like electrical and network topologies, their platform allows engineers to catch integration issues and bottlenecks before hardware investment, using consistent test suites from concept to final product. This end-to-end validation loop drastically cuts costs and speeds up innovation.”
Volvo Cars has used Remotive’s cloud-based platform for several years and has seen increased efficiencies.
“RemotiveTopology allows our teams, regardless of their location within our company, to work as if they were sitting side by side, sharing a real-time understanding of the system under development,” said Johannes Foufas, lead architect, Sw Factory, Volvo Car Corporation,” in a statement.
“We are investing in virtual test environments, leveraging RemotiveLabs as a key framework for simulating complex hardware setups. This approach enables faster iteration, higher confidence in software quality, and ultimately, a more agile development process,” added Patrik Andersson, tech lead at complete software integration and release, in emailed remarks.
Harman’s SIL solution
Bringing software in the loop much quicker, is also the focus of technologies from Harman Automotive Services.
As explained by Steve Surhigh, outbound product manager, during a recent demonstration at Harman’s facility in suburban Detroit, Ready Cquence Loop provides a single-entry platform with virtual test benches and other features to speed development and reduce the use of hardware.
“In essence, what we do is in the cloud, we create a digital twin of all the software running vehicle,” said Surhigh. “It allows two things, two main advantages. One is software development can begin sooner in the process, because a developer does not have to have a sample piece of hardware to begin development on. The second area is it increases the velocity of how quickly that developer can develop and validate because they can spin up as many of these virtual targets as they want.”
Ready Upgrade is described as a “cockpit domain controller” that accelerates vehicle software updates, enabling automakers to refresh hardware every two-years and software every three to 12 months.
A tough, but necessary transition
Convincing legacy companies with entrenched cultures that prefer to live in their own walled gardens to swing over to a more open process can be a tough ask.
But Autotech’s Ivy Nguyen says moving faster and more efficiently to develop new products is the key to holding off much quicker foreign competition.
“To stay ahead now requires speed and requires agility,” declared Nguyen. “You need to be able to turn it on a dime. You can’t take seven years to offer something new, to compete with the new challengers.”