Software Architecture & Development Tools

In autotech.agil, we are conducting research into an advanced and service-oriented software architecture and middleware that is specially designed for future mobility systems. The service-oriented software architecture (Automotive Service-oriented Software Architecture = ASOA) developed in UNICARagil modularizes software in the vehicle into independent services and is being expanded in autotech.agil to also achieve compatibility with AUTOSAR and ROS. This facilitates integration into existing systems and ensures interoperability between different manufacturers and technologies.

A key feature of this architecture is the ability to perform modular updates at runtime, so that software components can be updated or replaced during operation. This high degree of flexibility means that systems can be continuously improved and quickly adapted to new requirements. The architecture also supports optimized system integration on different hardware platforms, ranging from embedded systems in vehicles to high-performance data centers.

Technologies such as Automotive Ethernet and SOME/IP enable the integration of IT standards into the vehicle architecture and address challenges in terms of real-time capability and security. The Universal Automotive Bus (UAB) developed in autotech.agil is an interface that is specifically tailored to the real-time requirements of the automotive industry.

To support the development of these complex systems, special tools are provided that cover the entire development process from modeling in a specially developed architecture tool to harmonized simulations during the verification process. Standardized and continuous workflows facilitate collaboration between different development teams and ensure that the resulting systems meet the high safety and performance requirements of automated and connected mobility.

The introduction of ASOA also gives rise to new requirements for vehicle diagnostics in the event of a fault. Previous diagnostic concepts focused on faults in the electrical components and their cabling with the control unit. However, the assumption that the control unit software is error-free and does not need to be diagnosed no longer applies in a software-centric architecture. In autotech.agil, new diagnostic strategies are therefore being developed and made available via the ASAM SOVD standard.

Overall, our architecture enables agile and efficient development of future mobility systems that are highly flexible, secure and compatible with existing standards.