Simulation-guided approaches for verification of automotive powertrain control systems

Automotive embedded control systems are a vital aspect of modern automotive development, but the considerable complexity of these systems has made quality checking a challenging endeavor. Simulation-based checking approaches are attractive, as they often scale well with the complexity of the system design. This paper presents an overview of simulation-guided techniques that can be used to increase the confidence in the quality of an automotive powertrain control system design. We discuss the relationship between simulation-based approaches and the broader areas of verification and powertrain control design. Also, we discuss new software tools that use simulation-guided approaches to address various aspects of automotive powertrain control design verification. We conclude by considering ongoing challenges in developing new simulation-guided tools and applying them in a powertrain control development context.