Automotive News - June 29, 2020 - 18

18 * JUNE 29, 2020

ADAS IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT

Simulated tests bypass virus roadblock

Alexa St. John
astjohn@crain.com

Work on automated
tech goes on when
real drives can't

"If we want to actually
push the boundaries of
what we're doing, there's
honestly no path that
doesn't go through
virtual testing."

s COVID-19-induced shutdowns threatened develRyan Jones, Continental
opment of automated
cle or even with lab-based harddriving technology, auto
ware-type activities, simply because
companies and suppliers
of the scope of trying to validate vewere forced to adapt to
hicles that are geared towards more
keep the wheel spinning.
Level 3 to Level 5 automation," addMany autonomous veed Allen, who is also director of adhicle developers - invanced driver-assistance and autoncluding Waymo, Aurora
omous driving engineering and
Innovation, Ford partbusiness development at software
ner Argo AI and General
company dSpace Inc.
Motors' Cruise - temTo Gioutsos, simulated testing for
porarily halted in-person test driving
driver-assist features involves creatof their vehicles, which typically reing digital twins of the vehicle, the
quires two safety drivers to sit in
environment in which the virtual veclose proximity.
hicle will operate and the appropriBut some companies, such as Most companies were already using virtual tests. Here, Siemens tests engine control units using simulated data.
ate sensing technologies.
chipmaker Nvidia, saw these pauses
"That's really critical in making sure
as an opportunity to pivot to more self-driving technology startup AuGerman supplier Continental digitally
we're virtually doing the same thing
virtual testing. Nvidia has been using rora, said this month in a NHTSA were-created one of its test loops in
that you would do if you were to drive
a cloud-based simulation platform binar on development of automated
the Frankfurt area.
on a test track or drive around,"
to test virtual autonomous vehicles systems that he invests heavily in
Gioutsos said. "What you can do virsimulation.
in virtual environments.
tually is imagine any kind of corrupt
"We do an awful lot of our
Karl Iagnemma, CEO of
situation you can think of, and then
work in simulation bethe Hyundai-Aptiv autonyou can virtually design it, and now
cause it's a way we can amomous driving joint venyou can go and test against that."
plify - dramatically ampliture, said in a Shift podcast
The virtual approach provides defy - what we see in the
interview posted this
velopers with a safer and less expenphysical world," Urmson
month that having an essive alternative to road testing and
said. "We get the groundtablished simulation procan allow for quick adjustments to
ing from the real world,
cess has been beneficial to
simulated environments and driving
what's actually out there,
development during these Iagnemma: No
scenarios.
but we get the amplificapast few months.
grinding to halt
"There really is no magic answer
tion in a controlled way in vanced driver-assistance systems portfolio development for auton"When COVID hit and
features, such as automatic emer- omous at Siemens Digital Industries for all the different possibilities of
when we were forced to really pause simulation."
things you can encounter," Allen
Even before COVID-19, most com- gency braking, lane-keeping or lane- Software.
on-road testing, the good news is we
"The interest has increased, and it's said. "The nice thing about virtualdidn't grind to a halt," Iagnemma panies already used virtual testing departure, blind-spot monitoring
for Levels 4 and 5 autonomous tech- and forward-collision warning sys- a noticeable amount, but because ization, though, is the technology for
said. "Far from it."
Similarly, Chris Urmson, CEO of nology development - and for ad- tems, said Tony Gioutsos, director of everyone was already doing virtual, virtualization is considerably less exit wasn't like it went from 0 to 100," pensive than trying to put 10,000
he said.
cars out there."
Continental had such systems for
virtual testing in place before COVID- COVID impact
19, said Ryan Jones, supervisor of
Though most developers of drivcamera sensorics and comprehensive er-assist systems have been able to
environmental modeling for
use these virtual testing
the supplier.
processes to stay produc"If we want to actually push
tive the past few months,
the boundaries of what we're
they have still faced some
doing, there's honestly no
adjustments.
path that doesn't go through
Pre-COVID, the real world
virtual testing," Jones said. "I
provided ample opportunidon't think COVID has really
ties to collect data, Contiaffected that at all - if anynental's Jones said. COVIDthing, it's simply added an as- Gioutsos: Test
induced shutdowns made
terisk to it."
the use of virtual scenarios
out scenarios.
more necessary, as traffic,
pedestrians and other scenarios were
Virtual testing
Organizations across the globe harder to come by for data collection.
"Those use cases, thankfully, could
have established informal guidelines
for companies testing advanced be simulated," Jones said.
Others did not yet have in place the
driver-assistance systems to suggest
how such features should be as- necessary bandwidth and digital infrastructure for virtual testing. As
sessed in simulation.
For instance, NHTSA has provided employees worked to develop cruframeworks for virtual automated cial technology from home, COVID
driving system testing scenarios, proved to be a learning opportunity,
while the European New Car Assess- Gioutsos said.
He said that, as employees work rement Program has acknowledged
virtual testing as a way to boost the motely, auto companies are realizing
they need more cloud computing,
robustness of these systems.
"The idea of simulation for testing which is accessible from anywhere,
has dramatically increased over the than high-performance clusters,
last five to 10 years in different com- which are best accessed from the
panies, as opposed to doing things workplace.
"The simulation today I would
in-vehicle," said Jace Allen, chair of
SAE International's on-road auto- characterize as reasonably mature,
but there's still some work to do," Iagmated driving simulation task force.
"The reason [the industry was] nemma said. "There's still no substipushing this originally was because tute, ultimately, for getting your softof the need to do far more testing ware on the road and seeing what
than you could ever do in a real vehi- happens in the real world." a

Automotive News - June 29, 2020

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