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Embedded systems continue to become more complex. As a result, more companies are utilizing model-based design (MBD) development methods and tools. The use of MBD methods and tools is helpful in increasing time to market and having instant feedback on the system design. One area that continues to mature is the testing and verification of the MBD systems. This paper introduces a hybrid approach to functional tests. The test system is composed of simulation software and real-time hardware. It is not always necessary to test a system in a real-time environment, but it is recommended if the goal is to deploy the system to a situation that requires real-time response. Vehicle drive cycles and powertrain control are utilized in this research as the example test case for this paper. In order to test the algorithms on a real-time system, it is necessary to understand the target controller's computing limitations and adjust the algorithms to meet these limitations.

The Wavelet Transform (WT) has been developed two decades ago, and has since then been put to use in an increasingly wide array of applications. The WT provides a time-scale analysis of a signal. Compared to the widely-popular Fourier Transform (FT), originally developed two hundred years ago, the WT provides the time-evolution of the signal at different scales. The Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) is a computationally efficient implementation of the WT, in which the time-scale analysis is performed on a dyadic scale. The DWT is very suitable for knock detection systems, since it can provide the history of the knock signal at discrete scales within a crank angle window. It allows for the extraction of a multitude of features from the time-scale plane. Moreover, the DWT is suitable for real-time knock detection implementations on engine control units.

This paper describes a fuzzy logic (FL) approach to the design, implementation, and tuning of an expert knowledge-based TCS for a four-wheel drive vehicle. Military and commercial mutual interests in TCS technology are highlighted as the underlying motivation for this government, industry, academia cooperative program. Coordinated parallel efforts to model the TCS equipped vehicle and to perform basic on-vehicle TCS experiments provided additional information to augment the knowledge obtained from a study of commercial TCSs and the tire traction literature. The general traction control problem is discussed along with the hardware considerations for a TCS. The design and integration of the resulting FL-based TCS are described along with a representative sample of the test results documenting the system's performance.