Measurement, ECU Calibration, and Diagnostics

ETAS provides measurement, calibration, and diagnostic (MCD) development tools to automakers (OEMs) and suppliers worldwide. ETAS hardware and software products form an integral part of the development process, assisting engineers in everything from developing application software for electronic control units (ECUs) to the integration of automotive electronic systems in the vehicle.

Engineers use INCA and ETAS ECU and bus interfaces along with measurement modules to calibrate, validate, and diagnose automotive electronic systems and to acquire reliable data from those systems and the vehicle environment.

INCA offers connectivity to all relevant bus systems. It provides for calibrating and diagnosing multiple ECUs while monitoring bus communication and acquiring measurement signals from the vehicle environment. INCA supports all standard ECU description formats as well as measurement, calibration, and diagnostic protocols.

Calibrating Automotive Electronics

Calibration, i.e., the finding of an optimized set of ECU-parameters for a new vehicle, has become a crucial element for the overall vehicle performance. It is an essential part of the development process of new engines and vehicles from the first prototypes until after SOP.

Frontloading

Every package of calibration work which can be frontloaded from the vehicle to earlier development phases reduces the need for expensive test vehicles, saves valuable engineering resources and helps to locate gaps in the design of vehicle functions at a point in time where the effort for correction is still low.

Model-based Calibration

To determine the optimal settings of the powertrain control units with regard to outcomes such as performance, fuel economy and emissions, the characteristics of the powertrain must be accurately measured. Due to the many degrees of freedom, a complete survey is extremely time consuming and often impractical. The use of model-based methods based on design of experiment (DOE) solves this problem.

On- and Offboard Diagnostics

The need for sophisticated ECU diagnostics onboard the vehicle is mainly driven by legislative standards for onboard monitoring of emission relevant systems such as OBD and EOBD regulations. Offboard in the service shop, correct and efficient identification of faulty components is essential.

Process Integration

The highly iterative calibration and validation tasks are performed in various phases of ECU software, system, and vehicle development. They involve calibration and test engineers as well as function developers, software engineers, diagnostic experts, and documentation teams.

Test Bench Applications

Automation of calibration and validation tasks may comprise single operations, e.g., ramping up parameter values, or full tests or calibration runs without any human interaction. In the vehicle, calibration procedures which are repeated many times, e.g., when adjusting gear shifts, are often automated.

Vehicle Testing

Laboratory testing of automotive systems is followed by in-vehicle tests. Standard drive cycles, e.g., stop-and-go in city traffic, are conducted as well as high-speed runs or tests under various road conditions.