Ansgar Meroth

An Adaptive Software and Systems Architecture for Driver Assistance Systems based on Service Orientation

State of the art automotive software systems presume a static configuration of electronic control units and software components. Assuming that future Driver Assistance Systems (DAS) will deploy dynamically changing software configurations, the authors propose an approach towards an adaptive software and systems architecture for DAS. The paper focuses on systems, which assist the driver while backing up truck and trailer combinations. These systems are characterized by a high degree of distribution as well as a high level of heterogeneity and changeability even at runtime. In order to meet these demands, the authors suggest the usage of service orientation combined with software agents. The functional units of these systems are encapsulated in services which are dynamically orchestrated by the agents whenever the system changes. This paper describes the ideas of this approach using a real world example. It also names and classifies the scenarios of re-configuration. The article concludes with a lookout on the future work within this project.

SODA: Service-Oriented Architecture for Runtime Adaptive Driver Assistance Systems

Unlike state-of-the-art Driver Assistance Systems(DAS) upcoming technologies may not base on a static software and system architecture. This is especially true for DAS for truck and trailer combinations were the components needed are distributed over both parts of the articulated vehicle. As a truck might be connected to different trailers changes are very common. In order to handle these changes at runtime the usage of Service oriented Architecture (SOA) is a promising approach. Using this principle the functionalities are encapsulated into Services which are Re-Orchestrated whenever the system architecture changes. Since the Services in such a system run on small embedded units and are connected through specialized network systems existing SOA frameworks cannot be used here. This paper introduces SODA, a tailored SOA middleware and development process to design runtime adaptive DAS for truck and trailer combinations using Services.

Model-driven development of SOA-based driver assistance systems

This paper describes an approach towards model-driven development of SOA-based Driver Assistance Systems. In the field of assistance systems for truck and trailer combinations Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) is a promising approach to handle the heterogeneity and the high degree of distribution of these systems. Through connecting or disconnecting trailers the system is very likely to change at runtime which sets up the demand of runtime adaption. This paper illustrates a process model to use SoaML for modeling the components and architectures of these systems. Based on these models, model-driven runtime adaption can be carried out.

A language for advanced protocol analysis in automotive networks

The increased use and interconnection of electronic components in automobiles has made communication behavior in automotive networks drastically more complex. Both communication designs at application level and complex communication scenarios are often under-specified or out of scope of existing analysis techniques. We extend traditional protocol analyzers in order to capture communication at the level of abstraction that reflects application design and show that the same technique can be used to specify, monitor and test complex scenarios. We present CFR (channel filter rule) models, a novel approach for the specification of analyzers and a domain-specific language that implements this approach. From CFR models, we can fully generate powerful analyzers that extract design intentions, abstract protocol layers and even complex scenarios from low level communication data. We show that three basic concepts (channels, filters and rules) are sufficient to build such powerful analyzers and identify possible areas of application.

Functional Safety and Development Process Capability for Intelligent Transportation Systems

Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) require the extension of the systems engineering approach to a higher system level. Up to now, vehicles could be considered as closed systems while in future they have to be seen as components of an open system with ad hoc interfaces. Since ITS influence the series development and production of single vehicles, standards and procedures of process quality, systems engineering and functional safety apply for this higher level as well. The paper discusses the impact of those standards to the design of ITS and the role of model-based software and service oriented architectures (SOA) as means for process quality and functional safety assurance. It emphasizes on the mutual synergies between process capability standards, functional safety, model-based development and design for variability. Finally, it shows an approach for the design of ad hoc and distributed systems proposed by the authors.

A CAN-based communication model for Service-oriented Driver Assistance Systems

This paper describes a communication model for Service-oriented Driver Assistance Systems (DAS) basing on the Controller Area Network (CAN). In the field of DAS for truck and trailer combinations Service-orientation is a promising approach. One major demand to be able to deploy such systems in an automotive environment is the ability to allow service communication through CAN. This paper describes a CAN-based addressing scheme as well as a runtime adaption mechanism for Service-based DAS. The performance of the model is evaluated through experiments, showing that the approach is stable and showing good performance.

Re-configuration in SOA-based adaptive driver assistance systems

Unlike state-of-the-art Driver Assistance Systems (DAS) upcoming technologies may not base on a static software and system architecture. This is especially true for DAS for truck and trailer combinations were the components needed are distributed over both parts of the articulated vehicle. As a truck might be connected to different trailers changes are very common. In order to handle these changes at runtime the usage of Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) is a promising approach. Hereby the functionalities are encapsulated into Services which are re-composed whenever the system architecture changes. As the Services in such a system run on small embedded units traditional approaches to process the re-composition as known for example from the Web Services domain cannot be adopted directly. This paper discusses the different composition approaches published in recent years and suggests an algorithm suited for this class of systems.

A Washout and a Tilt Coordination Algorithm for a Hexapod Platform

In this paper the modeling and simulation of a six degree of freedom hexapod platform simulator is presented. The simulator is used for vehicle driving simulations. Washout algorithms are used for the control of the platform. Components of the washout algorithms are low pass filters and high pass filters, as well as a tilt coordination algorithm. A test with realistic input acceleration data of a vehicle maneuver is performed to verify the model.

On the need and implementation of an open interface for the automotive domain

This paper describes a concept of open interfaces for the automotive domain. In recent years, several systems have been developed for connecting a car to the outside world by industry and academia. The paper will illustrate the need for an open interface to access the car by any mobile device. Furthermore, it discusses the requirements for those interfaces, security issues and commercialization aspects of the proposed system. In order to allow students to work on such interfaces a conceptual platform including the hardware and the software parts has been developed.

Optimization of the Development Process of Intelligent Transportation Systems Using Automotive SPICE and ISO 26262

Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) require the extension of the systems engineering approach to a higher abstraction level. Up to now, vehicles could be considered as closed systems while in future they have to be seen as components of an open system with ad hoc interfaces. Since ITS have reached the series development and production of single vehicles, standards of process quality and functional safety apply for this higher level as well. The paper discusses the impact of those standards to the design of ITS and the role of model-based software as a means for process quality and functional safety assurance. It emphasizes on the mutual synergies between process capability standards, functional safety, model-based development and design for variability.