Real-Time Simulation and Testing

Hi there, my name is Christoph, and I am with Speedgoat.

In this video, I want to introduce the real-time simulation and testing solution from MathWorks and Speedgoat. I will highlight the main components of our solution and explain how you can best use it to accelerate the innovation and testing of your embedded controllers. I will finally show you the workflow and some key features of our solution. Our solution is going to simplify your workflow. So, together with MathWorks, we have put together a true plug-and-play real-time solution that allows you to develop and test your embedded controllers, right from your MATLAB and Simulink.

Our solution is composed of two main components, which are expressly designed to work with one another:

The first one is Simulink Real-Time, the MathWorks solution for real-time test and simulation. This includes several host capabilities that allow you to easily create, control, and monitor your real-time applications from within MATLAB and Simulink. As well as a real-time operating system.

The second component by Speedgoat is a powerful and scalable real-time target computer equipped with I/O. On there runs the Simulink real-time operating system, together with the real-time application created from your Simulink model.

Our joint solution is specifically suited to support you on two real-time simulation and testing use cases:

Rapid Control Prototyping and Hardware-in-the-Loop Simulation. Rapid Control Prototyping allows you to swiftly test and iterate your control designs early in the development cycle. It allows you to speed-up software development, expose design flaws earlier, and shorten time to market of your embedded controllers. But you need powerful and flexible hardware to be able to directly run your Simulink designs and connect with your physical plant. Embedded controllers typically are not flexible enough because you cannot easily add or modify I/O interfaces or quickly deploy new designs. Also, you cannot easily monitor, log, or fine-tune data during real-time execution.

The second key use case is Hardware-in-the-Loop simulation or HIL for short. HIL simulators allow you to test and validate your embedded controller versus a simulated plant running in real-time. This is a great way for you to reduce costs and safely test your embedded controller in a reproducible and automated way in scenarios that would otherwise be hard to mimic in real-life.

Regardless, if you are trying to build a HIL simulator to test your embedded controller or rapidly prototype controls, vision, or signal processing algorithms, you can adapt your desktop model for real-time simulation and testing with just a few steps.

You start by extending your Simulink model with IO and Protocol driver blocks from Simulink Real-Time and the Speedgoat library. At a simple click of a button, Simulink Real-Time automatically builds a real-time application from your model, downloads, and runs it on the Speedgoat target computer. Finally, you can use the host capabilities offered by Simulink Real-Time to control, instrument, and monitor your real-time application. For instance, you can easily monitor and log signals, fine-tune parameters during run-time, or even instrument your real-time application with MATLAB & Simulink user interface components.

By adopting Simulink Real-Time and Speedgoat systems, you benefit from an incomparable integration, not only with MATLAB and Simulink but to a manifold of MathWorks products enabling you to fully adopt and implement Model-Based Design. For instance, you can use Simulink Test to automate testing in real-time or use HDL Coder to rapidly target Speedgoat FPGAs.

Perhaps, you would like to swiftly develop motor controls with Motor Control Blockset or employ Aerospace Blockset for building complex and real-time capable aircraft models. To build automated driving functions with real-time virtual vehicles, you may want to use MathWorks automotive products or model high-fidelity power electronics to consider Simscape Electrical. You may even go for Audio Toolbox to build applications such as noise canceling.

We have perfected the relation between real-time hardware by Speedgoat and model-based design tools by MathWorks. So, you can easily bring new ideas to life, focus on driving innovation, and effectively test your embedded controllers.

Thanks for watching!

And for more information and learning content, I invite you to check out our website speedgoat.com.