IPG Automotive has entered into a new phase in its collaboration with Synopsys, extending their joint virtualisation technologies to include the latest Systems-on-Chip (SoC) and domain controllers. This collaboration enables automotive manufacturers to accelerate software-defined vehicle (SDV) development through high-fidelity digital twins and advanced virtual testing.
As SDVs grow in complexity, traditional validation methods such as Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) setups and physical prototypes are costly and slow. IPG Automotive and Synopsys say they have addressed these challenges with a fully virtualised workflow that allows rapid, accurate integration and testing of vehicle behaviour, electronics, and software long before hardware is available to test.
Synopsys and IPG Automotive have developed an expanded multi-ECU prototype with multi-fidelity, multi-ECU electronics simulation, integrating CarMaker from IPG Automotive and Synopsys’ virtualisation technologies via SIL Kit.
The aim of the prototype is to accelerate the development of SoC-based electronics and system software, enable rapid, reliable SDV validation, and establish a continuous test strategy that together help improve software quality, reduce development and post-sale warranty costs, and enable faster time-to-market.
Steffen Schmidt, president & CEO of IPG Automotive, said of the collaboration: “The future of vehicle development is software-driven, and virtualisation unlocks that future today. The collaboration delivers a complete digital twin environment to reduce time-to-market and ensure top quality for next-generation mobility.”
“The automotive industry is rapidly shifting to software-defined vehicles, and virtualisation is a critical enabler for OEMs to make this transformation,” added Tom De Schutter, senior vice president of product management at Synopsys.
“By combining Synopsys’ virtualisation solutions that enable electronics digital twins with IPG Automotive’s vehicle and environment simulation capabilities, we are empowering OEMs to validate software earlier in the vehicle development cycle to reduce integration risk, enable a more reliable start of production, and accelerate time-to-market.”
IPG Automotive and Synopsys will continue working with SoC vendors to validate next-generation architectures.
