A number of global drivers, including increasingly stringent safety and emissions standards, and the call for autonomous driving with a connected powertrain, demand that we find new methodologies for vehicle development. In order to reach development targets, both in terms of timeline and product attributes, and to master the complexity of vehicle variants, a common approach includes extensive usage of advanced simulation methods from the early concept phase all the way to the integration and system tests.For efficient frontloading of expensive prototype-based validation and its replacement with simulation/model-based development a number of challenges needs to be addressed.Advanced applications in area of ADAS* and RDE* require collaboration of different teams (powertrain, exhaust aftertreatment, thermal management, control function development, power electronics, vehicle dynamics, sensor integration, traffic environment etc.) in order to balance out often conflicting product attributes such as emission vs. driving pleasure, autonomous driving vs. safety etc. For capturing development scenarios in a virtual world, multi-domain simulation models, consisting of sub-models of different level of detail, different performance (even faster than the real time), from different vendors, in different tools and different environments (virtual and real) are necessary.The development and validation environment must ensure easy, fast and accurate integration and co-simulation of the models, as well as seamless transition from the virtual to the real world, automatized testing and optimization, consistent data handling along the entire process, and still be open for new models and new testing and evaluation techniques.This work presents and discusses real life examples and application scenarios of a consistent model-based development approach for ADAS applications (Platooning, Predictive and Adaptive Cruise Control etc.) and RDE development and validation (in the office and on the engine testbed), which combines advanced modelling and simulation technologies with lab, testbed and on-road tests.
