Efficient test methods for the system test of highly networked safety systems

Safety systems in the automotive field were developed separately for a long time. Nowadays active and passive safety systems are networked, exchange information and rely on each other. This leads to an increasing complexity of the communication channels and numerous control unit functions and variants. Therefore the development and test process is getting more and more complex and unmanageable. Also testing always means a compromise of duration, quality and costs. Despite those challenges a high error detection and therefore reliability shall be reached. Due to those changes especially the system test where different components interact for the first time and many functions that rely on collaboration of different elements can be tested for the first time in the development cycle is a big challenge. Here arises the potential to improve contemporary test methods and strategies and to examine new ones and to involve them in existing processes. This paper describes one possible approach for a combination of test methods leading to an efficient test strategy for the system test of the airbag control unit.