AUTOSAR Backgrounder
The design of automotive applications has changed dramatically. In the last years, electric and electronic (E/E) systems have enriched mechanical and hydraulic components with a myriad of new software dominated features. Both complexity and heterogeneity of resulting architectures make their design a cost intensive and time consuming challenge that demands for new solutions.
AUTOSAR (AUTomotive Open System ARchitecture) is a worldwide design and development partnership of automotive manufacturers, suppliers, semiconductor companies and tool vendors. AUTOSAR standard is proposing a software architecture based on standardized interfaces, which facilitate the exchange and update of software and hardware, improving cost-efficiency while maintaining high quality. The technical goal is to achieve Modularity, Scalability, Transferability and Re-usability of functions. Standardization of functional interfaces across manufacturers and suppliers and standardization of the interfaces between the different SW-Layers is seen as a basis for achieving these technical goals.
The AUTOSAR basic concepts are as follows:
Software
Components (SW-C) with well-defined interfaces encapsulate an application which
runs on the AUTOSAR infrastructure. For the interfaces as well as other aspects
needed for the integration of the AUTOSAR Software Components, AUTOSAR provides
a standard description format, i.e. the Software Component Description.
The
Virtual Functional Bus (VFB) is the sum of all communication mechanisms and
essential interfaces to the basic software provided by AUTOSAR on an abstract,
i.e. technology independent, level. From the viewpoint of the AUTOSAR Software
Component, the Runtime Environment (RTE) implements the VFB functionality on
a specific ECU.
The
Basic Software provides the infrastructural functionality on an ECU.
System
and ECU Descriptions are used to integrate AUTOSAR Software Components into
a network of ECUs.
The AUTOSAR standard provides the description formats for complete automotive systems including resources and configuration for the individual ECUs. It defines the methodology and tool support needed to bring the various description elements together in order to build tangible systems of ECUs. It also enables both system-wide and process optimization. including the configuration and generation of the AUTOSAR Run-Time Environment (RTE) and the Basic Software (BSW) for each ECU.
Based on AUTOSAR proposed standard methodology and step-by-step process, tools which realize the tasks needed at each phase with a maximum intelligence and automation possibilities become essential.
