Automotive Engineering - March 2021 - 16

TECHNOLOGY REPORT

SOFTWARE

ZF builds 'middleware' to address vehicle software escalation
" The concept of middleware is not
new, " said Hartmann. But for increasingly software-dependent vehicles, he
explained, having middleware will better deal with today's and future E/E
architectures and help to " future-proof "
them for years to come. " We have to
start this transformation right now, "
added Walliser.

Middleware's role as software " mediator " is detailed in this schematic.
Acknowledging the emergence of the
" software-defined " vehicle, ZF announced that it is in the process of developing a " middleware " platform designed to facilitate communication between a typical new vehicle's ballooning
number of software-controlled components and systems. Company engineers
and executives said the first vehicles
leveraging the new middleware will be
on the road in 2024, but the platform is
being created because the industry has
to grasp " what the car will look like in
the 2030s, " said Dirk Walliser, senior VP
- corporate R&D, Innovation &
Technology for ZF Friedrichshafen AG.
Coinciding with the undertaking to
create its middleware platform, ZF also
announced it is establishing a Global
Software Center to, according to a release, prepare for " new challenges in
the triad of software, functions and
smart systems " and to proactively pursue " numerous development processes. " Opening in 2021, the Global
Software Center will be headed by Nico
Hartmann, VP, Software Solutions &
Global Software Center.
" Middleware is the mediator, " said
Hartmann, between key vehicle systems
16 March 2021

Dirk Walliser, senior
VP - Corporate
R&D, Innovation &
Technology for ZF
Friedrichshafen AG.

and functions that often are created by
a list of disparate suppliers and typically
are controlled by software discrete from
most other aspects of vehicle operations. The company cited as one need
for middleware: contemporary vehicles
can have as many as 100 electronic
control units (ECUs) and each typically
has its own software. Meanwhile, electrical/electronic (E/E) architecture development trends are moving toward a
centralization strategy in which the system consists of just a few domain control units (DCUs). According to ZF,
these kinds of systems will work better
with middleware designed to collate
their communications and integrate
system functions.

The company's executives said ZF's
new middleware - with its " open " hardware and software protocols - can accelerate and enhance development processes between ZF, automakers and
other suppliers. One prime benefit is
the potential for perpetually updateable
software and even hardware functions
that will bring " an end to static lifecycles " for vehicles and their functions,
said Walliser. The company also said
that the presence of middleware will
reduce software development times
and allow all parties in the supply chain
to concentrate on their software or
hardware's specific functional goals.
The ZF executives speaking with the
media declined to speculate about development-time reduction, but did say
they believe an optimized middleware
environment can allow one software
developer to handle the work of what
previously might require up to eight
individuals. And although that metric
seems to imply an intrinsic potential for
cost reduction, Walliser emphatically
stated, " Middleware is not a cost-cutter
- it's an enabler. "
In a separate interview with SAE's
Automotive Engineering, Hartmann said
a vital aspect of middleware includes its
ability to be the intermediary with a
vehicle's overarching software operating system, or OS - a relatively recent
innovation for automakers and commercial-vehicle OEMs.
OEMs such as Volkswagen and
Daimler have developed distinct OSs,
Hartmann said, and the trend is expected to gain momentum with others in
the industry.
Bill Visnic

AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING

BOTH IMAGES: ZF

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Automotive Engineering - March 2021

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