Engineering moves you to the future
Software Development
Driving innovation through software excellence
Automotive software must be maintainable, updateable, and diagnosable – and grounded on a powerful, reliable, and well-structured E/E system, which is no longer a rolling island but part of a larger and connected ecosystem. We are always at the cutting edge when it comes to development and implementation of the state-of-the-art technologies. Our commitment to staying at the forefront of technology enables us to continuously enhance automotive software solutions, ensuring they remain adaptable to future advancements and empowering vehicles with optimal performance and functionality.
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AUTOSAR Classic and Adaptive platforms
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V-Model as well as agile developments
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ASPICE compliance
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Functional Safety ISO 26262
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Cyber Security ISO 21434
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Continuous integration
The increasing use of software in electronic controls often forces Tier 1 suppliers to extend their software development capacity with the Tier 2 suppliers. MEAtec supports both by providing required highly skilled workforce plus proven turnkey engineering solutions to its customers to accelerate the time to market.
Software Development Through Modular Architecture
The condition of a vehicle today depends on its hardware technology. This is why a vehicle is in its best condition when it leaves the factory. Due to the rapid pace of technological advancements in the automotive industry, hardware technology can quickly become outdated, leading to compatibility issues and expensive hardware upgrades. By separating hardware and software, the current limitations imposed by hardware dependencies on software will be eliminated. This approach allows for the continuous development and enhancement of vehicles even after they have been manufactured, as updates, upgrades, and improvements can be seamlessly implemented to improve vehicle features and performance and ensuring that they remain capable of delivering relevant and advanced functionality throughout their lifetime. However, the increasing share of software, especially in electronic controls, pushes automotive manufacturers and suppliers to seek ways to improve their software.
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One solution to this challenge is the use of modular software architecture. AUTOSAR (AUTomotive Open System Architecture) is a global partnership of leading companies in the automotive and software industries to develop and build a standardized software framework and open E/E system architecture for smart mobility. It also supports software reuse, which significantly reduces development time and cost. Layered software architecture separates software into different levels of abstraction. The lower layers provide basic services such as communication and memory management, while the upper layers provide complex functions and services such as diagnostics and security features. This design approach provides enhanced flexibility in development, as software components can be designed and validated independently before being incorporated into the overall system.
Being Future Ready - A Journey to Software Defined Vehicle
The automotive industry has wholeheartedly embraced the profound digital transformation that has swept across the globe in recent years, recognizing the immense potential of merging data management with vehicle operation. Whereas in the past, the customer's automobile experience was primarily shaped by hardware, the advent of software-defined vehicles (SDVs) has elevated the role of software in controlling and operating vehicles. Notably, connectivity, automation, electrification, and personalization, which represent the dominant trends in the automotive industry, are increasingly implemented and realized through software solutions.
The software employed in SDVs is designed to meet stringent safety and regulatory standards, ensuring their utmost reliability and safety across a diverse range of driving conditions. It enables seamless communication with the vehicle's environment, facilitating real-time data collection during operations, which can then be transmitted to the cloud. Leveraging this data, features and services can be continually enhanced and seamlessly updated in the vehicle through over-the-air updates. This empowers the vehicle to rapidly detect and respond to potential hazards, effectively preventing accidents, while simultaneously optimizing driving routes and minimizing fuel consumption. The result is enhanced efficiency and reduced costs, ultimately delivering an exceptional driving experience.
Moreover, SDVs continue to benefit from software upgrades and improvements even after they leave the factory. By separating hardware and software components, manufacturers enable ongoing upgrades and enhancements of the vehicle. This ensures that SDVs remain up-to-date and continually adapt and learn, thereby providing peak performance throughout their entire lifecycle. This feature significantly enhances the desirability of SDVs, as owners can relish the latest advancements and technologies without the need to invest in a new vehicle. The ability to seamlessly update software empowers SDV owners to stay at the forefront of innovation and enjoy the cutting-edge capabilities and features of their vehicles, making them an enticing choice for those seeking a future-proof and technologically advanced driving experience.
From Traditional Programming to Model Driven Software Design
Over the past two decades, the car industry's value chain has undergone significant changes with a focus on improving mechanics, quality requirements, and logistics. However, most potential in these areas has already been exploited. Electronics is now the main differentiation factor in the industry, as the shift from hardware to software development takes place. Innovations in this area will mainly come from embedded systems and software. Although software development faces challenges like shortened development times and growing complexity, car producers and suppliers are transitioning from hand-coded to model-based development to overcome these obstacles.
Model-driven software development in the automotive industry refers to a methodology where software is developed based on models rather than directly writing code. This approach involves creating models that represent the behavior of the software, and then using tools to generate the code from those models. The use of models can make it easier to understand the software's behavior and its interaction with other systems, and can also help to reduce errors and increase efficiency. Moreover it allows for the reuse of software components across different vehicle systems. For example, a software component developed for the engine control unit can be reused in the transmission control unit, reducing development time and costs.
Process Driven Development - Automotive SPICE®
To ensure that software development is conducted in an organized and structured manner, the process-driven development approach is often utilized in the automotive industry. This approach involves defining and implementing a set of processes that guide the development process, guaranteeing that the software is developed to meet the specific requirements of the automotive industry. The process-driven development approach typically involves several critical phases and by adhering to this process, software developers can ensure that the software they create is dependable, efficient, and secure. ASPICE (Automotive Software Process Improvement Capability Determination) is an industry-standard guideline for evaluating software development processes.
ASPICE is a standard that defines the necessary requirements for software development in the automotive industry, with the objective of ensuring that software is developed in a structured and consistent manner. It is employed to assess an organization's software development processes' capabilities and provides guidance on how to improve them. The framework is structured around a set of processes that encompass the entire software development life cycle, including requirements management, software design, coding, testing, and maintenance.
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