Case Study: Our Testing Capabilities
Our clients have a range of requirements with various segments of the V Cycle, but today we’re taking a look at a few of our recent projects that revolve around the Project Testing and Integration side of the V Cycle.
In the world of electric automotive, hardware can only get you so far. So when we were approached by a startup looking to create the Electrical Control Unit (ECU) for their hydrogen-powered HGV our team knew exactly how to support them.
The concept of a hydrogen-powered vehicle is by no means new, but the technological developments across the EV space have meant that the potential to get the most out of the fuel is closer than ever. Undoubtably, hardware, mechanics and design are all key to achieving both fuel-efficient and safe commercial vehicles. However, it is software that, not only supports the user experience with assisted driving, tighter, more efficient controls, but also help the overall capabilities of the vehicle.
Our software team was tasked with developing and performing the early tests of the ECU which would control almost every aspect of the vehicle.
This was not the only aspect of the vehicle that the FutureMotiv team had the opportunity to work on. But when it comes to the testing of the vehicle, we created a hardware in the loop (HIL) model that would allow us to test the software we developed without needing a LABCAR to be built.
This setup might look simple, and functionally it serves a simple purpose in the most effective way, however, this small rig allows our software team to test every programming request sent from the Vehicle Control Unit (VCU) to the Power Distribution Modules (PDM). These PDMs operate to activate, deactivate or control various processes around the vehicle.
Take the headlights, for example. Instead of a vehicle having a fuse box that you might find on an older vehicle, which would need a physical relay to activate and deactivate the light, the VCU sends a digital signal to the PDM which then controls the light.
This rig is plugged into a real-time machine which generates analogue and digital signals based on the hardware information from the supplier. This allows the team to see how the control software responds to processes without the need to actually install it within any hardware.
Of course, this is one of the earliest levels of software testing, but it allows us to make sure that all the inputs and outputs of each request are as they should be. Creating a rig like this allows us to have full control over the environment so we can make sure that systems are communicating correctly before they even see a vehicle.
Once this testing phase is completed, the supplier can begin installing the software within a labcar or prototype vehicle.
Testing software is only a small part of everything we’re capable of here at FutureMotiv. Working with an entirely different company on an entirely separate project, we recently performed a lithium-ion battery test – The Nail Penetration Test.
This test might seem crude, but it is one of the keyways of testing the safety of a battery pack in the event of a fault. As you can see from the video above, a battery cell is penetrated with a nail so that it goes into thermal runaway. This could happen for several reasons, for example…
- Internal short circuit in a cell
- Overtemperature
- Overvoltage
- External impact such as during a crash
A well-designed battery pack will contain this failure to a single cell and prevent harmful gases and flames from being emitted. Having this test capability in-house allows FutureMotiv to quickly evaluate the safety of battery pack designs, and to continuously evolve strategies to improve battery safety.
The nail penetration test is a great way to get real insight into the design of a battery and how the design impacts its safety. With electric vehicles, it’s important to make sure you can get the best possible range and charging capabilities out of your batteries, but considering the safety of drivers and passengers is vital to moving to a zero-carbon transportation world.
We support OEMs and Startups across the V-cycle – not just through our software and high voltage battery teams, but in every aspect of vehicle development and testing. Here at FutureMotiv, our teams have supported a massive range of automotive projects across the V-cycle.
If you have a project that needs support from industry experts, whether its design, development or testing, get in touch with us.
