TTP communication bus test system and bus test method
By designing a TTP communication bus test system, the problems of insufficient scalability and test scenario coverage of existing systems were solved. The system enables flexible configuration and dynamic loading of the TTP bus, improves test accuracy, meets the high bandwidth, low latency and fault tolerance requirements of distributed systems, and ensures the communication security of avionics systems.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-12-30
- Publication Date
- 2026-04-14
AI Technical Summary
Existing TTP bus testing systems lack scalability and test scenario coverage in avionics systems, making it difficult to meet the high bandwidth, low latency, and fault tolerance requirements of distributed systems. Furthermore, the testing methods tend to be black-box testing, which cannot fully verify the key functions of TTP bus communication.
A TTP communication bus test system was designed, including a host computer, slave computers, a test control module, a communication data display module, a bus performance evaluation module, a message sending and receiving module, and a data reporting module. It connects multiple slave computers via Ethernet, supports horizontal expansion, integrates a TTP communication interface module to achieve flexible configuration and dynamic loading, and provides graphical interface and command line result presentation in conjunction with real-time and reliability performance testing.
It enables flexible configuration and dynamic loading of the TTP bus, improves test accuracy, enhances the coverage and flexibility of the test system, and can comprehensively verify the effectiveness of the TTP bus network, the dynamic reconstruction process and time synchronization, ensuring the real-time performance and reliability of communication.
Smart Images
Figure CN121864660A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application belongs to the field of bus testing, and specifically relates to a TTP communication bus testing system and bus testing method. Background Technology
[0002] In avionics systems, the real-time performance and reliability of data communication are directly related to flight safety. Traditional avionics buses such as ARINC429 and MIL-STD-1553B employ event-triggered mechanisms, which are insufficient to meet the high bandwidth, low latency, and fault tolerance requirements of next-generation aircraft for distributed systems. Therefore, a communication architecture based on Time-Triggered Protocol (TTP) has emerged, and its deterministic communication mechanism has been applied to critical avionics systems such as flight control networks of numerous large aircraft.
[0003] Currently, domestic communication testing systems are mainly built by purchasing mature off-the-shelf products from TTTech, using TTP emulation cards as monitoring nodes, and TTP Tools to monitor data nodes. The testing methods for TTP bus-related airborne equipment tend to be black-box testing, which is insufficient to meet the trend of future localization. TTP bus communication testing faces the following technical challenges in aviation applications:
[0004] 1) Insufficient scalability of the testing environment: The communication network may contain dozens of TTP nodes, forming a multi-layered network topology. Existing testing platforms are usually based on a single-machine architecture and cannot be flexibly expanded into a collaborative environment that supports large-scale distributed testing;
[0005] 2) Insufficient coverage of test scenarios: Traditional testing methods are based on products and fully verify the functions and performance of products from the perspective of use. However, they have limitations when dealing with the unique functions of TTP bus communication, including the effective verification of TTP bus network planning, the effective verification of the dynamic reconstruction process of TTP network architecture, the verification of the time synchronization of TTP bus communication nodes, and the verification of network transmission performance. Summary of the Invention
[0006] To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides a TTP communication bus testing system and bus testing method, which can further address communication networks with higher complexity, more nodes, and faster communication speeds, thereby safeguarding communication security and reliability.
[0007] The first aspect of this application provides a TTP communication bus testing system, which mainly includes a host computer, a slave computer, a test control module, a communication data display module, a bus performance evaluation module, a message sending and receiving module, and a data reporting module.
[0008] The test control module, communication data display module, and bus performance evaluation module are integrated into the host computer;
[0009] The message sending and receiving module and the data reporting module are integrated into the lower-level machine;
[0010] The host computer is connected via Ethernet and can simultaneously configure multiple slave computers. Each slave computer has the same embedded program and integrates a TTP communication interface module to act as a TTP communication node to communicate with other slave computers or products under test in a network. The number of slave computers can be horizontally expanded.
[0011] Preferably, the test control module is used to initialize the TTP bus test interfaces of multiple lower-level machines and send configuration files to the TTP communication interface modules of the lower-level machines. The configuration files include TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration.
[0012] Preferably, the bus performance evaluation module includes a real-time performance testing submodule and a reliability performance testing submodule;
[0013] The real-time performance testing submodule is used to record the timestamp of sending messages and the timestamp of receiving messages, calculate the time difference and compare it with a preset time threshold;
[0014] The reliability performance testing submodule is used to perform multiple sending and receiving operations on the same test message, count the number of successful operations to calculate the success rate, and compare it with a preset threshold.
[0015] Preferably, the message transceiver module is used to receive communication message data packets from the host computer, update the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module, and send it; the data reporting module is used to read the register address of the message buffer of the message transceiver module, obtain the received message, and report it to the host computer.
[0016] Preferably, the communication data display module parses and displays messages reported from the lower-level machine based on the interface control file in order to monitor the data transmission and reception process.
[0017] Preferably, the test control module completes the test task by calling test cases and records and analyzes the test results; the bus performance evaluation module and the communication data display module present the test results and evaluation results to the user through a graphical interface or command line.
[0018] The second aspect of this application provides a TTP bus testing method based on the above system, including the following steps:
[0019] Step S1: Determine the required number of TTP communication nodes according to the planned network topology, connect the lower-level machine and the product, initialize the TTP bus test interface of multiple lower-level machines through the test control module of the upper-level machine, and send the configuration file to the lower-level machine.
[0020] Step S2: The host computer sends a data packet containing a communication message, and the slave computer updates the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module before sending it.
[0021] Step S3: The lower-level machine reads the register address of its own message buffer to obtain the received message and reports it to the upper-level machine;
[0022] Step S4: Analyze the real-time performance of message sending through the bus performance evaluation module, and perform multiple sending and receiving tests and error handling tests.
[0023] Step S5: The communication data display module parses and displays the reported messages based on the interface control file, and monitors the data transmission and reception process.
[0024] Preferably, the configuration file in step S1 includes TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration, wherein the TTP network configuration is a MEDL table.
[0025] Preferably, in step S2, the data packet of the communication message is a JSON format data packet.
[0026] Preferably, the error handling test in step S4 includes: simulating error conditions through the test control module to check whether the error handling mechanism of the TTP communication interface module is working properly and can report error information in a timely manner.
[0027] This application enables flexible configuration of the TTP bus, allowing dynamic loading of configurations for multiple TTP nodes, reducing the testing cycle and improving testing accuracy. Attached Figure Description
[0028] Figure 1 This is a system architecture diagram of a preferred embodiment of the TTP communication bus test system of this application.
[0029] Figure 2 This is the initialization flowchart of the TTP communication bus test method of this application. Detailed Implementation
[0030] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of this application. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and intended to explain this application, and should not be construed as limiting this application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application. The embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0031] The first aspect of this application provides a TTP communication bus testing system, such as... Figure 1 As shown, it mainly includes:
[0032] It includes a host computer, a slave computer, a test control module, a communication data display module, a bus performance evaluation module, a message sending and receiving module, and a data reporting module;
[0033] The test control module, communication data display module, and bus performance evaluation module are integrated into the host computer;
[0034] The message sending and receiving module and the data reporting module are integrated into the lower-level machine;
[0035] The host computer is connected via Ethernet and can simultaneously configure multiple slave computers. Each slave computer has the same embedded program and integrates a TTP communication interface module to act as a TTP communication node to communicate with other slave computers or products under test in a network. The number of slave computers can be horizontally expanded.
[0036] This system architecture aims to address the insufficient scalability of existing testing platforms. The host computer is responsible for overall test control, data monitoring, and performance evaluation, while the slave computers act as flexibly expandable TTP communication nodes, performing specific message sending and receiving tasks. Through Ethernet connections, the host computer can plan a multi-node TTP data transmission and reception network and configure multiple slave computers simultaneously. Each slave computer has the same embedded program and integrates a TTP communication interface module, allowing it to function as an independent TTP communication node and network with other slave computers or the airborne products under test. This design enables the system to flexibly expand to support collaborative environments for large-scale distributed testing, addressing the needs of communication networks with more nodes and higher communication speeds. The horizontal scalability of the slave computers directly improves the coverage and flexibility of the testing system.
[0037] In some optional implementations, the test control module is used to initialize the TTP bus test interfaces of multiple lower-level machines and send configuration files to the TTP communication interface modules of the lower-level machines. The configuration files include TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration.
[0038] In this embodiment, the test control module is the starting point and core control unit of the test process. At the start of the test, the number of TTP communication nodes required by the test system is determined according to the planned network topology. Subsequently, the test control module initializes the TTP bus test interfaces of the connected lower-level machines. A key initialization step is sending configuration files to the TTP communication interface modules of the lower-level machines. These configuration files are the foundation of TTP bus communication and specifically include TTP network configuration (such as MEDL tables), TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration. Centralized configuration ensures the consistency of parameters across all nodes in the network, laying the foundation for subsequent deterministic communication testing.
[0039] In some alternative implementations, the bus performance evaluation module includes a real-time performance testing submodule and a reliability performance testing submodule;
[0040] The real-time performance testing submodule is used to record the timestamp of sending messages and the timestamp of receiving messages, calculate the time difference and compare it with a preset time threshold;
[0041] The reliability performance testing submodule is used to perform multiple sending and receiving operations on the same test message, count the number of successful operations to calculate the success rate, and compare it with a preset threshold.
[0042] In this embodiment, the bus performance evaluation module is responsible for quantitatively evaluating the key performance indicators of the TTP bus. This module includes two core sub-modules: a real-time performance testing sub-module and a reliability performance testing sub-module. In real-time performance testing, the system accurately records the timestamps of sending test messages and receiving messages on the board, calculates the time difference between the two, and compares this time difference with a preset time threshold representing the real-time requirements of communication to verify whether the communication latency meets system requirements. In reliability performance testing, the system performs multiple send and receive operations on the same test message, calculates the communication success rate by counting the number of successful send and receive operations, and compares this success rate with a preset reliability threshold to evaluate the stability and reliability of bus communication.
[0043] In some optional implementations, the message transceiver module is used to receive communication message data packets from the host computer, update the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module, and send it; the data reporting module is used to read the register address of the message buffer of the message transceiver module, obtain the received message, and report it to the host computer.
[0044] In this embodiment, the message transceiver module and the data reporting module collaborate to complete the specific message interaction process. During operation, the message transceiver module receives communication message data packets (e.g., JSON format) from the host computer's test control module, updates the message content to a specific register address in the TTP communication interface module, and finally sends the message to the TTP bus. On the receiving end, the data reporting module is responsible for reading the register address of its own TTP message transceiver module's message buffer, retrieving messages sent from other nodes on the bus from that address, and reporting the received messages to the host computer for monitoring, display, and performance analysis.
[0045] In some optional implementations, the communication data display module parses and displays messages reported from the lower-level machine based on the interface control file in order to monitor the data transmission and reception process.
[0046] In this embodiment, the communication data display module provides users with an intuitive interface for monitoring the testing process. This module parses messages transmitted from the lower-level data reporting module based on the ICD (Interface Control File). The ICD file defines the format and meaning of the messages, enabling the module to parse raw, difficult-to-read binary or hexadecimal data into meaningful engineering values or status information, and display them visually (e.g., through a graphical interface or command-line output). This allows users to monitor the data transmission and reception process on the TTP bus in real time and observe whether the communication status is normal.
[0047] In some optional implementations, the test control module completes the test task by calling test cases and records and analyzes the test results; the bus performance evaluation module and the communication data display module present the test results and evaluation results to the user through a graphical interface or command line.
[0048] In this embodiment, the system provides an automated human-computer interaction method. The test control module completes various test tasks by calling corresponding, pre-designed test cases and automatically records and analyzes the test results, improving testing efficiency. The module supports manual editing of test steps based on the airborne equipment, increasing testing flexibility. Simultaneously, the bus performance evaluation module displays evaluation results (such as real-time time difference, communication success rate, etc.) in a graphical interface or command line, and the communication data display module also uses a graphical interface library or command line output method to present test results to the user in an intuitive way, facilitating quick understanding and decision-making.
[0049] The second aspect of this application provides a TTP bus testing method based on the above system, including the following steps:
[0050] Step S1: Determine the required number of TTP communication nodes according to the planned network topology, connect the lower-level machine and the product, initialize the TTP bus test interface of multiple lower-level machines through the test control module of the upper-level machine, and send the configuration file to the lower-level machine.
[0051] Step S2: The host computer sends a data packet containing a communication message, and the slave computer updates the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module before sending it.
[0052] Step S3: The lower-level machine reads the register address of its own message buffer to obtain the received message and reports it to the upper-level machine;
[0053] Step S4: Analyze the real-time performance of message sending through the bus performance evaluation module, and perform multiple sending and receiving tests and error handling tests.
[0054] Step S5: The communication data display module parses and displays the reported messages based on the interface control file, and monitors the data transmission and reception process.
[0055] In this embodiment, step S1 is the initialization phase, completing system setup and parameter configuration. Steps S2 and S3 are the core loop of message interaction, simulating the data transmission and reception process on the TTP bus. Step S4 is the performance evaluation and robustness testing phase, which includes not only routine real-time and reliability testing, but also error handling testing. For example, various error conditions (such as message format errors) are simulated during the test to check whether the error handling mechanism of the TTP communication interface module can work properly and report error information in a timely manner. Step S5 is continuous throughout, realizing the monitoring of the entire communication process. This method can comprehensively verify the effectiveness of the TTP bus network planning, the dynamic reconfiguration process, and time synchronization.
[0056] In some alternative implementations, the configuration file in step S1 includes TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration, wherein the TTP network configuration is a MEDL table.
[0057] In this embodiment, the issued configuration file is the cornerstone of TTP bus communication. The TTP network configuration is specifically represented by the MEDL (Message Description List), which defines key parameters such as bus scheduling timing and message cycle. The TTP protocol configuration and TTP communication configuration cover protocol stack parameters and communication interface parameters. These configurations collectively ensure the determinism and reliability of TTP bus communication, and are prerequisites for successful testing. Figure 2 As shown, each of the above configuration files is initialized sequentially during the TTP communication bus test to ensure accurate loading of each configuration file.
[0058] In some alternative implementations, the data packets of the communication messages are JSON format data packets.
[0059] In this embodiment, using JSON format data packets offers advantages such as clear structure, ease of parsing, and extensibility. The host computer's test control module encapsulates communication messages into JSON data packets and sends them to the slave computer. The slave computer's message sending and receiving module parses the data packet and then updates the specific message content into the registers of the TTP communication interface module. This design standardizes the system interface, facilitating development and maintenance.
[0060] In some optional implementations, the error handling test in step S4 includes: simulating error conditions through the test control module to check whether the error handling mechanism of the TTP communication interface module is working properly and can report error information in a timely manner.
[0061] This embodiment is a crucial step in verifying the robustness of TTP bus communication. During testing, the test control module actively simulates various abnormal or erroneous situations, such as generating message format errors or injecting erroneous frames. The system then checks whether the error detection, isolation, and recovery mechanisms of the TTP communication interface module function as expected and whether they can report error information to the host computer in a timely and accurate manner for recording and display. This helps to evaluate the behavior of airborne equipment in non-ideal communication environments and is of great significance for ensuring aviation safety.
[0062] In a specific example, the test control module completes various test tasks by calling corresponding test cases and records and analyzes the test results. The module supports manual editing of test steps based on the onboard equipment. The test control module and message transceiver module can input message register addresses and message content via a graphical interface or command line. The message register addresses range from 0x1000 to 0x10ff, with a total of 256 valid message buffers. The system clock (i.e., the APB interface clock) frequency is 80MHz, with a single clock cycle of 12.5ns. During single-message transmission, a total of 6 preparation write cycles, 60 message write cycles, and 136 write status cycles are required, totaling 202 clock cycles, or 2.525us, meaning a maximum transmission capacity of 396,039 messages per second. The bus performance evaluation module displays the evaluation results in a graphical interface or command line, while the communication data display module uses a graphical interface library or command line output to present the test results intuitively.
[0063] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.
Claims
1. A TTP communication bus testing system, characterized in that, It includes a host computer, a slave computer, a test control module, a communication data display module, a bus performance evaluation module, a message sending and receiving module, and a data reporting module; The test control module, communication data display module, and bus performance evaluation module are integrated into the host computer; The message sending and receiving module and the data reporting module are integrated into the lower-level machine; The host computer is connected via Ethernet and can simultaneously configure multiple slave computers. Each slave computer has the same embedded program and integrates a TTP communication interface module to act as a TTP communication node to communicate with other slave computers or products under test in a network. The number of slave computers can be horizontally expanded.
2. The TTP communication bus testing system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The test control module is used to initialize the TTP bus test interfaces of multiple lower-level machines and send configuration files to the TTP communication interface modules of the lower-level machines. The configuration files include TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration and TTP communication configuration.
3. The TTP communication bus testing system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bus performance evaluation module includes a real-time performance testing submodule and a reliability performance testing submodule; The real-time performance testing submodule is used to record the timestamp of sending messages and the timestamp of receiving messages, calculate the time difference and compare it with a preset time threshold; The reliability performance testing submodule is used to perform multiple sending and receiving operations on the same test message, count the number of successful operations to calculate the success rate, and compare it with a preset threshold.
4. The TTP communication bus testing system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The message transceiver module is used to receive communication message data packets from the host computer, update the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module, and send it; the data reporting module is used to read the register address of the message buffer area of the message transceiver module, obtain the received message, and report it to the host computer.
5. The TTP communication bus testing system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The communication data display module parses and displays messages reported from the lower-level machine based on the interface control file in order to monitor the data transmission and reception process.
6. The TTP communication bus testing system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The test control module completes test tasks by calling test cases and records and analyzes the test results; the bus performance evaluation module and the communication data display module present the test results and evaluation results to the user through a graphical interface or command line.
7. A TTP bus testing method based on the system of claim 1, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step S1: Determine the required number of TTP communication nodes according to the planned network topology, connect the lower-level machine and the product, initialize the TTP bus test interface of multiple lower-level machines through the test control module of the upper-level machine, and send the configuration file to the lower-level machine. Step S2: The host computer sends a data packet containing a communication message, and the slave computer updates the message content to the register address of the TTP communication interface module before sending it. Step S3: The lower-level machine reads the register address of its own message buffer to obtain the received message and reports it to the upper-level machine; Step S4: Analyze the real-time performance of message sending through the bus performance evaluation module, and perform multiple sending and receiving tests and error handling tests. Step S5: The communication data display module parses and displays the reported messages based on the interface control file, and monitors the data transmission and reception process.
8. The TTP bus testing method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The configuration file in step S1 includes TTP network configuration, TTP protocol configuration, and TTP communication configuration, wherein the TTP network configuration is a MEDL table.
9. The TTP bus testing method according to claim 7, characterized in that, In step S2, the data packet of the communication message is a JSON format data packet.
10. The TTP bus testing method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The error handling test in step S4 includes: simulating error conditions through the test control module to check whether the error handling mechanism of the TTP communication interface module is working properly and can report error information in a timely manner.