Graphical Design Tool for Vehicular Network Topology Visualization
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity of intra-vehicular communication networks makes it difficult to manage and update code for electronic control units (ECUs) across multiple networks, leading to errors and significant effort in propagating changes across various networks.
Innovation Solution
A graphical design tool is used to create and update standardized network description files, allowing developers to visually define network topologies, messages, and bit fields, automatically generating program code for ECUs across multiple communication networks like CAN, LIN, and Ethernet, ensuring consistent definitions and reducing errors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If manual code generation and management is used for multiple ECUs across complex vehicular networks, then flexibility and customization are maintained, but the complexity of managing and propagating code changes increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses templates to define network descriptions, messages, and bit fields once, which are then automatically copied and instantiated across multiple ECUs and networks. This template-based approach eliminates manual code generation for each ECU, reducing management complexity while maintaining the ability to propagate changes efficiently across the entire vehicular network system.
2Reliability
If standardized network description files are used to automate code generation, then code consistency and error reduction are improved, but the initial setup and standardization process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by defining standardized network descriptions, messages, and bit fields in template files before actual code generation. This upfront standardization establishes consistent structures that are automatically applied across all ECUs, ensuring code consistency while the automation tools handle the complexity of propagation, thereby reducing the burden of manual standardization setup.
3Ease of operation
If visual topology representation tools are implemented, then network understanding and message path tracking are improved, but the tool complexity and development effort increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces visual topology representation as an intermediary layer between the standardized network description files and the human operator. This visualization tool automatically generates graphical representations of network structures and message paths from the standardized definitions, improving network understanding and tracking without requiring complex manual configuration, as the visualization is derived automatically from the standardization templates.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, computer-readable media, and apparatuses are presented for computer-assisted visualization of network devices. One example involves receiving a plurality of standardized network description files describing a plurality of vehicular communication networks connecting a plurality of electronic control units (ECU) for a vehicle. Each of the plurality of standardized network description files may describe a vehicular communication network in the plurality of vehicular communication networks. Each vehicular communication network may comprise a subset of the plurality of ECUs and one or more network communications paths interconnecting the subset of ECUs. The example can further involve automatically generating, based on the standardized network description files, a visual topology representation of the plurality of vehicular communication networks connecting to the plurality of ECUs. The visual topology representation may include at least one ECU connected to at least two vehicular communication networks in the plurality of vehicular communication networks.