A simulator must include a high-fidelity environment and realistic sensor simulation to enable end-to-end testing of automated driving software. To enable this, the simulator needs precise, well-defined maps and quality assets as inputs.
To address this challenge, leading developer of mathematical computing software MathWorks and Europe’s well-funded automated driving technology supplier AImotive have begun collaborating to integrate RoadRunner into aiSim. This collaboration will allow users to easily create road and 3D networks for simulations into aiSim, the world’s first ISO 26262-certified automotive-grade simulation platform—said to be the most deterministic and robust solution on the market.
The result of the collaboration provides a user-friendly way to create various environments using RoadRunner’s intuitive map editor, ranging from dense urban scenes to compliance-specific test cases. The integration allows users to create and edit OpenDrive maps, import GIS (geographic information system) data, and place the built-in high-fidelity assets of aiSim mixed with RoadRunner’s extensive asset library. The created content can be readily imported to the ASIL-D certified simulator, exercising its advanced sensor simulation capabilities.
“Automated driving engineers use virtual testing to reduce the cost and risk of in-vehicle testing,” said Avinash Nehemiah, Principal Product Manager – Autonomous Systems, at MathWorks. “To achieve the most benefit from virtual testing, engineers need to simulate scenes that closely match the real world, which are time-consuming to create. With the connectivity between RoadRunner and aiSim engineers can easily author complex, simulation-ready scenes in RoadRunner for virtual testing in aiSim.”
“This new collaboration fits well and extends our existing integration with other MathWorks products like MATLAB and Simulink,” said Szabolcs Jánky, Product Manager of aiSim. “More importantly, we think this is a big step forward for our users having the benefit of an intuitive and well-designed content creation tool seamlessly integrated with a deterministic, flexible, and certified simulator engine.”
In September, MathWorks introduced Release 2020b of the MATLAB and Simulink product families. New capabilities in MATLAB simplify working with graphics and apps, and Simulink updates focus on expanded access and speed, including the launch of Simulink Online for access through web browsers. R2020b also introduces new products that build on artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, speed up autonomous systems development, and accelerate the creation of 3D scenes for automated driving simulation.
Two new products and a major update for autonomous systems are included in R2020b. Lidar Toolbox provides algorithms, functions, and apps for designing, analyzing, and testing LiDAR processing systems. UAV Toolbox enables tools and reference applications for designing, simulating, testing, and deploying UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) and drone applications. Updates to Sensor Fusion and Tracking Toolbox include the ability to track objects using the grid-based random finite set (RFS) tracker and the ability to create trajectories using earth-centered waypoints.
For the automotive industry, the RoadRunner scene builder automates the creation of road networks from HD Maps. AUTOSAR Blockset updates enable the use of schema version 4.4 for import and export of ARXML files and generation of AUTOSAR-compliant C code. It also offers Linux executables for adaptive models, helping to create an AUTOSAR adaptive executable to run as a standalone application. Vehicle Dynamics Blockset now includes the ability to implement 6DOF trailers and vehicles with three axles and Simulink 3D blocks that offer the ability to visualize tractors and trailers in the Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3D environment.
In December, Unreal Engine announced its 4.26 release, which brings new tools that extend the ability to create believable real-time environments and characters for games, film, and TV, visualization, and training and simulation; continued advancements to the virtual production toolset; higher-quality media output; and improved design review tools.
