De-Coupled, Multi-Speed System Evolution

Coming back to our goal of establishing a shift-left approach in combination with multi-speed development, we have now looked at the evolution along the V-Model. In this context, it is important to understand that testing evolves independently north and south of the Vehicle Hardware Abstraction Layer (VHAL). North of the VHAL, algorithms and software are developed and validated without direct dependency on the underlying hardware, enabling rapid prototyping and iterative testing. Applications here are agnostic to whether they interact with lightweight simulations, virtual ECUs, or physical test hardware, supporting agile, continuous improvement.

South of the VHAL, the test environments progress in complexity – starting with basic models, moving to high-fidelity simulations, virtual ECUs, and ultimately hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) and physical systems. This layered approach ensures embedded systems, often safety-critical (ASIL), are rigorously validated under realistic conditions. By decoupling development speeds, engineers can iterate quickly on software north of the VHAL while gradually increasing hardware realism south of the VHAL. This multi-speed strategy accelerates testing cycles and supports robust, end-to-end validation across the V-Model.

The multi-speed, shift-left approach combined with the VHAL separation offers several key benefits:

1. Accelerated Development: Algorithms north of the VHAL iterate quickly, decoupled from hardware readiness.

2. Scalable Testing: Enables testing progression from lightweight virtual prototypes to realistic hardware environments.

3. Cost Efficiency: Reduces dependency on physical prototypes early in development.

4. Enhanced Flexibility: Software remains agnostic to test environments, fostering reusability across simulations and hardware.

5. Improved Validation: Gradual complexity south of the VHAL ensures robust, safety-critical validation without stalling software development.

These benefits are enabled by the de-coupled, multi-speed system evolution approach.