Drive by Wire –

“What Will Be Its Impact

On Tomorrow’s Vehicles?”

Craig Stephens
Ford Motor Company
 Why Drive by Wire
Through the use of of electronics and software in
drive by wire systems we can offer our customers
new functions and improved attributes:
– Fuel economy
– Ride and handling
– Driveability
– Interaction with the environment and
vehicle surroundings

2
 Drive by Wire Considerations

• What value or enhancement does the system

provide to the customer?

• How does the customer interact with the system?

• How do we manage the added system complexity?

• These new systems must be safe and reliable

3
 What can we learn
from other Industries?
Unique Automotive Factors
• Operator training

• Service & after market modification

• Cycle time

• Production volumes

• Product use

5
 Complexity Considerations
• Safe operation must be ensured as the complexity of
the systems increases:
– Increased complexity creates new modes that have to be
assessed and managed with respect to safety, reliability and
availability
– Interactions between previously separate subsystems (e.g.
brakes & powertrain) create coupled modes which must be
managed
• Has consequences for design, release, manufacture
and service
• The management of the complexity will inevitably
rely heavily on software for design, analysis,and
implementation
• The increased complexity is often invisible
6
 Techniques & Tools

• Techniques that help bridge the gap between written

functional requirements and the end design

• Techniques to analyse behaviour in subsystems and

systems that exhibit modal and continuous behaviour

• Hardware and Software in the loop systems to enable system

analysis and testing

7
Standards & Best Practices

• Customer interface
• Architectures
• Operating systems and
communication protocols
• Process
• Tool interfaces
• Model standards

8
Conclusions