The ECU Interface Manager is an easy-to-use tool for quickly integrating bypass hooks for internal and external bypassing directly into the ECU software. Thus, special software versions from the ECU supplier are no longer needed.
At a Glance
Application Areas
Service-based bypassing with the dSPACE RTI Bypass Blockset is an established model-based approach for developing new controller strategies for electronic control units (ECUs). Once the bypass service and bypass hooks are integrated in the ECU code, control engineers can flexibly choose the hooks for triggering their new control strategy and select the ECU variables to be read and written by their new functions. Service-based bypassing also provides mechanisms to ensure data consistency and safe operation.
The integration of bypass hooks in the ECU software typically requires iterative discussions between the automobile manufacturer (OEM) and the ECU supplier. Often multiple software versions have to be provided in the course of a bypass project, which might result in project delays and increased costs.
This is where the ECU Interface Manager comes into play. It allows control engineers to implement bypass hooks directly in the ECU HEX code themselves without requiring the ECU supplier to deliver a special ECU software version.
Key Benefits
The ECU Interface Manager is an easy-to-use tool for quickly integrating bypass services and hooks directly into the ECU software. You can individually prepare the ECU HEX and A2L files for controller strategy development by means of the RTI Bypass Blockset and internal or external bypassing via the DCI-GSIs. This does not require ECU source code modifications by the ECU supplier or access to the ECU build environment. Bypass projects can be implemented quickly and development costs are minimized.
The ECU Interface Manager graphically visualizes the positions of function calls, read/write accesses to ECU variables and conditional branches in the ECU program flow. This lets you insert bypass hooks at appropriate positions in the ECU code without needing to know ECU software details. To minimize the influence of internal bypass functions on the ECU’s run-time behavior, you can deactivate the execution of original ECU functions by means of a dedicated control logic. You can even delete entire ECU functions and reuse their memory for new control functions that you are developing. All this can also be done automatically through an M-API from within MATLAB/Simulink.
The ECU Interface Manager is based on a configuration file which lets ECU suppliers configure what ECU software details to display. The configuration file can be encrypted so that ECU suppliers keep full control of the information provided to the end user.
