当ECU出错时，它是谁的故障？

Electronic Control Units (ECUs) are ever-present in today's automotive and aerospace industries. They are increasingly being used in safety-critical applications that demand the highest reliability in environments where undesirable behavior cannot be tolerated - the failure of an ECU to act in an appropriate manner under emergency conditions could pose a threat to life and/or property. Ensuring these demands are unconditionally met requires significant investment in test procedures and documentation.

An ECU relies on information from a set of sensors and controls to decide what to do with the device it is managing. These sensors are themselves often working in extremely hostile environments (e.g. car or jet engines) and predictably failures can occur in the sensors or their interconnections. The ECU has to respond appropriately to these component failures as well as to genuine system faults. A jet engine needs to shut down if it catches on fi re, but should not shut down if it is clear there is a sensor fault.

Another example of an ECU operating in a hostile environment is the automotive Powertrain Control Modules (PCMs). The PCM is one of the most complex controllers in the modern vehicle and therefore requires rigorous testing of its functionality. The consequences of PCM failure have greater significance in X-by-Wire applications (a collective term for the addition of electronic systems into a vehicle to enhance and replace tasks that were previously accomplished via mechanical and hydraulic systems such as braking or steering), placing increased importance upon these test methods.

In addition to these fault insertion switch and sensor simulation products, we also offer a comprehensive range of supporting products: