The Mobilizer, FRC-EP and CANnector product families are the hardware foundation for numerous automotive applications, but their full performance can only be realized in combination with smart configuration software, the Advanced Configuration Tool (ACT). Ixxat developed it with the goal of helping users implement their applications with maximum flexibility and ease of use.

ACT functions overview

Data Logging

Vehicle data must be recorded for testing and analysis purposes – the evaluation takes place offline at a later time. The very high volumes of data require intelligent mechanisms for limiting data. These include selective logging of individual signals or messages using filters, an event-triggered "start/stop" feature and the automatic overwriting of old, unnecessary data. The data logging feature also has an energy-saving standby mode that can be quickly ended using the "Wake On" function when the product is in use.

Diagnosis

Various diagnostic protocols are supported. Diagnostic data or update functions can be sent to control units using the optionally available D-PDU API or via DoIP.

Gateway

The gateway is the main application of every configuration being executed on the Mobilizer, FRC-EP or CANnector series. It is not only providing the data transfer from one CAN bus to another, it also allows to connect logical bus systems – like user code, data logger, Matlab/Simulink, etc. – to the overall data exchange. With this strategy it is possible to route every frame, PDU or signal individually from source to destination. This can be operated directly or for example via customized user code to manipulate the data on the fly.

Residual bus simulation (RBS)

The Residual Bus Simulation – or Rest Bus Simulation (RBS) – is used to simulate ECUs or parts of a vehicle. Normally you need to code it manually by means of a scripting language – but not with solutions from Ixxat. Our RBS ist generated automatically by means of a vehicle description database you have defined with the integrated vehicle editor. All you need to do is to select the ECUs you want to simulate.

Visualization

The signal visualization is added as a virtual bus to the gateway configuration. It enables easy display and stimulation of all mapped signals via the integrated web server. Any device (PC, smartphone, tablet) can be used as a display device. The only basic requirement is an HTML5-capable web browser. HMS provides a generic HTML page for this. This can be adapted by the user to suit their own requirements. The visualization device is connected via USB, Ethernet or WLAN.

Matlab/Simulink models

For some users, developing C code is too complex, or there are already ready-made models from other projects. These models can be integrated using a separate API. In the same way as the user code, a Matlab/Simulink model can access the mapped signals and messages. This makes it possible to integrate more complex functional models.

Usercode

In addition to the possibilities of the standard gateway solution, the intelligent gateways of the Mobilizer, FRC-EP and CANnector series offer the possibility of integrating your own functions. For this purpose, the user code bus is added as a virtual bus to the gateway configuration. Signals and messages that are mapped to and from all bus systems using drag & drop serve as input/output for your own code. The user code application is written in standard C and can map specific algorithms. This makes controlling digital outputs or implementing a complex trigger module for the logger easy and convenient.

 

IxAdmin

The IxAdmin is the administration tool for the connected embedded platform. With the IxAdmin tool, created configurations can be loaded on the device, updates can be performed, runtime licenses can be managed and basic settings can be made. The IxAdmin can be connected to the device via USB, Ethernet or Wi-Fi.

Vehicle Editor

The basis for most solutions in the automotive sector are bus descriptions in CANdB, FIBEX or AUTOSAR-XML format. The bus descriptions contain a great deal of information, but often not all required information. Using the Vehicle Editor, everything that belongs to a certain vehicle, an integration level or a test configuration can be easily combined. This data can then easily be accessed during further configuration.