Reducing Time to Market Using Model-Based Design: Q&A with Toyota

"With Model-Based Design and SIL simulation we can verify control designs much earlier and proceed to in-vehicle testing with great confidence."

Challenge

Accelerate the development of complex engine control system software

Solution

Develop a comprehensive engine model and combine it with SIL+M testing to frontload the development process

Results

  • Comprehensive engine model developed
  • Designs verified early in development
  • Difficult-to-test conditions simulated

With more than 300,000 employees and 200 million vehicles produced, Toyota is among the largest automobile manufacturers in the world by production and the largest company in Japan by revenue and market capitalization.

What led you to look for a new way of working?

Given ever-tightening emissions regulations, developing controllers requires an understanding of plant dynamics from the earliest possible development phase. To achieve this understanding we needed an accurate engine model so that we could conduct early model-in-the-loop (MIL) and software-in-the-loop (SIL) testing on production vehicle programs.

Why Model-Based Design?

Model-Based Design and SIL simulation enable us to evaluate control designs much earlier in our design process. Toyota has used Simulink® to develop the executable specifications for powertrain control for more than a decade. Selecting Simscape™ for developing plant models was an easy decision because Simscape is tightly integrated with Simulink.

What results have you seen so far?

With Model-Based Design we have implemented a front-loaded development process that has shortened development cycles and minimized rework, making it possible for us to deliver products earlier than our competitors. Our plant modeling workflow is much faster, and our plant models represent the physical systems accurately and straightforwardly. The time we saved from debugging in vehicles far outweighs the time we invested in building the models.