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Combining real and virtual testing for automated driving

TÜV SÜD is working intensively on the development of test methods for automated vehicles. At the Automotive Testing Expo Korea 2018, Dr Houssem Abdellatif, Head of Automated Driving and Driver Assistance Systems at the German expert organisation TÜV SÜD, will present methods of verifying the operational safety of these vehicles. He believes computer simulation needs to play a significant role in this verification.

“As far as technology is concerned, automated driving has made significant progress. However, regulations and specifications are lagging behind and there is still significant need for action in this area”, says Dr Abdellatif. In the opinion of the TÜV SÜD expert, this particularly concerns the methods applied to vehicle homologation. Conventional methods are no longer suitable for this purpose. After all, the complex electronic systems of automated vehicles would require around 50 million individual tests. The solution is a scenario-based method in which computer simulations are validated by real tests carried out on test tracks.

TÜV SÜD's proposal envisages the use of computer simulation to combine various scenarios by blending different layers. Different types of roads, for example, are linked with a number of traffic and infrastructure situations as well as possible temporary changes caused by weather or construction sites. The virtual car in the computer is then required to cope with the resulting array of scenarios. Subsequently, individual results are verified with the help of real cars on a test track. If the results obtained in the real-life test match those obtained in the virtual test, the system can be assumed to function correctly.

TÜV SÜD is one of the principal sponsors of Automotive Testing Expo Korea 2018 and is represented at the trade fair with a global team of experts. The trade fair will take place between 13 and 15 March at Korea's capital of Seoul. On 14 March at 14:45 local time, Dr Houssem Abdellatif will present a talk on “Scenario-based testing for approval of highly automated driving systems”.

Caption: Dr Houssem Abdellatif and TÜV SÜD's highly automated driving team (HAD) develop test methods for automated vehicles.

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Press-contact: Vincenzo Lucà