GUI-FACILITATED SIMULATION AND VERIFICATION FOR VEHICLE ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONIC ARCHITECTURE DESIGN
Disclosed herein are computer aided design (CAD) techniques to implement a unified data schema and graphical user interface (GUI) to link ECU/devices, in-vehicle communications, and vehicle harness information together with respect to architectural relation, performance relation, and cost relation, and to facilitate a designer's understanding and manipulation of this information. The domain-specific information from each domain is converted to objects in this unified data schema and stored in a unified database that is accessible to every domain, so that the impact of the current state in the device domain can be accessed and analyzed by a designer from any domain. This approach enables design data sharing and real-time collaboration between different electrical/electronic (E/E) design domains, thereby facilitating the realization of design data collaboration, design change management, and product lifetime management (PLM) and product data management (PDM) implementation.
1 . A method comprising:
providing a database comprising information representative of an electrical/electronic (E/E) architecture of a vehicle, the information including information regarding relationships and connections between components of the E/E architecture of the vehicle and including performance parameters for aspects of the E/E architecture;
receiving, via a graphical user interface (GUI), user input indicating simulation parameters for at least a portion of the E/E architecture of the vehicle;
simulating an operation of the portion of the E/E architecture based on the simulation parameters, the relationships and connections between components of the E/E architecture, and the performance parameters for aspects of the E/E architecture; and
displaying, via the GUI, simulation results generated from simulating the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein displaying simulation results comprises displaying a graphical representation of the simulation results over a simulation duration identified by the simulation parameters.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein:
simulating the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprises simulating an operation of an electronic control unit (ECU) of the E/E architecture, the ECU being associated with one or more functions of the architecture;
the performance parameters comprise a processing requirement for each of the one or more functions and a periodicity of each of the one or more requirements; and
the simulation results comprise a graphical representation of a loading of the ECU over a duration represented by the simulation parameters.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein:
simulating the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprises simulating an operation of a network bus of the E/E architecture, the network bus being designated for the transmission of one or more signals via one or more frames;
the performance parameters comprise a signal delay for each of the one or more frames and a periodicity of each of the one or more frames; and the simulation results comprise a graphical representation of a loading of the network bus over a duration represented by the simulation parameters.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein:
simulating the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprises a simulating a propagation of a signal via a signal routing path of the E/E architecture;
the performance parameters comprise a signal delay for each component the signal routing path; and
the simulation results comprise a display of a calculated propagation delay of the signal from a sending component of the signal routing path to a destination component of the signal routing path.
6 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
displaying, via the GUI, an expected propagation delay of the signal via the signal routing path.
7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
comparing the simulation results with expected results for the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture.
8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
modifying, via the GUI, one or more aspects of the E/E architecture to generate a modified E/E architecture in response to determining that the simulation results are inconsistent with the expected results;
simulating an operation of a portion of the modified E/E architecture based on the simulation parameters, relationships and connections between components of the modified E/E architecture, and performance parameters for aspects of the modified E/E architecture; and
displaying, via the GUI, simulation results generated from simulating the operation of the portion of the modified E/E architecture.
9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, via the GUI, user input indicating selection of a signal of the E/E architecture of the vehicle; and
displaying, via the GUI, a topology schematic of a signal routing path of the signal via components of the E/E architecture in response to the user input, the topology schematic comprising a sending component of the signal and at least one or more destination components of the signal.
10 . A method comprising:
providing a database comprising information representative of an electrical/electronic (E/E) architecture of a vehicle, the information including information regarding relationships and connections between components of the E/E architecture of the vehicle;
receiving, via a graphical user interface (GUI), first user input indicating selection of a signal of the E/E architecture of the vehicle; and
displaying, via the GUI, a topology schematic of a signal routing path of the signal via components of the E/E architecture in response to the first user input, the topology schematic comprising a sending component of the signal and at least one or more destination components of the signal.
11 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising:
receiving, via the GUI, second user input indicating selection of a component of the E/E architecture represented in the topology schematic;
displaying, via the GUI, an expected signal propagation delay of the signal to the component via the signal routing path in response to the second user input.
12 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
simulating an operation of the E/E architecture to determine an actual signal propagation delay of the signal to the component via the signal routing path in response to the second user input; and
displaying, via the GUI, the actual signal propagation delay of the signal in response to the second user input.
13 . A system comprising:
one or more processors;
a storage device configured to store a database comprising information representative of an electrical/electronic (E/E) architecture of a vehicle, the information including information regarding relationships and connections between components of the E/E architecture of the vehicle and including performance parameters for aspects of the E/E architecture; and
a computer readable memory configured to store executable instructions, the executable instructions comprising:
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to provide a graphical user interface (GUI);
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to receive, via the GUI, user input indicating simulation parameters for at least a portion of the E/E architecture of the vehicle;
instructions to manipulate the one or more processor to simulate an operation of the portion of the E/E architecture based on the simulation parameters, the relationships and connections between components of the E/E architecture, and the performance parameters for aspects of the E/E architecture; and
instructions to manipulate the one or more processor to display, via the GUI, simulation results generated from simulating the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture.
14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to display the simulation results comprises instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to display a graphical representation of the simulation results over a simulation duration identified by the simulation parameters.
15 . The system of claim 13 , wherein:
the instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprise instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate an operation of an electronic control unit (ECU) of the E/E architecture, the ECU being associated with one or more functions of the architecture;
the performance parameters comprise a processing requirement for each of the one or more functions and a periodicity of each of the one or more requirements; and
the simulation results comprise a graphical representation of a loading of the ECU over a duration represented by the simulation parameters.
16 . The system of claim 13 , wherein:
the instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprise instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate an operation of a network bus of the E/E architecture, the network bus being designated for the transmission of one or more signals via one or more frames;
the performance parameters comprise a signal delay for each of the one or more frames and a periodicity of each of the one or more frames; and
the simulation results comprise a graphical representation of a loading of the network bus over a duration represented by the simulation parameters.
17 . The system of claim 13 , wherein:
the instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate the operation of the portion of the E/E architecture comprise instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate a propagation of a signal via a signal routing path of the E/E architecture;
the performance parameters comprise a signal delay for each component the signal routing path; and
the simulation results comprise a display of a calculated propagation delay of the signal from a sending component of the signal routing path to a destination component of the signal routing path.
18 . The system of claim 17 , wherein the executable instructions further comprise:
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to display, via the GUI, an expected propagation delay of the signal via the signal routing path.
19 . The system of claim 13 , the executable instructions further comprising:
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to receive, via the GUI, user input representing a modification to one or more aspects of the E/E architecture to generate a modified E/E architecture in response to the simulation results being inconsistent with the expected results;
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to simulate an operation of the modified E/E architecture based on the simulation parameters, relationships and connections between components of the modified E/E architecture, and performance parameters for aspects of the modified E/E architecture; and
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to display, via the GUI, simulation results generated from simulating the operation of the portion of the modified E/E architecture.
20 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the executable instructions further comprise:
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to receive, via the GUI, user input indicating selection of a signal of the E/E architecture of the vehicle; and
instructions to manipulate the one or more processors to display, via the GUI, a topology schematic of a signal routing path of the signal via components of the E/E architecture in response to the user input, the topology schematic comprising a sending component of the signal and at least one or more destination components of the signal.