Model-based real-time testing of fail-safe behavior for in-wheel motor propulsion systems

Fault case testing of control systems is something that is applied in the Hardware-In-the-Loop (HIL) testing of ECUs, using dedicated hardware to inject faults such as broken connections. In this paper we present our work on an anything-in-the-Loop (XIL) bench that uses simulation models of a vehicle and in-wheel motors, and one real motor to test how the propulsion control system handles different failure cases of the in-wheel motors and their inverters. The presented approach allows safe, efficient, repeatable, and cost-effective testing of in-wheel motor propulsion systems under realistic operating conditions, early in the development cycle. The presented test approach is scalable from a fully virtual towards a fully real environment.