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Customer Success | IHR

Automotive • Autonomous Systems • Cargo Transportation • Electronic Control Unit (ECU) • Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) • Test Automation

Accelerating Autonomous Truck Development with Speedgoat and Model-Based Design

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The Hercílio Randon Institute (IHR), supported by Randoncorp group, is a leading center for applied research and technological development in smart mobility in Brazil. Since its foundation, the institute has developed strong expertise in innovative solutions for commercial vehicles, with a particular focus on autonomous and electrified technologies. A major milestone in this journey is AT4T - Autonomous Technology for Transportation, a groundbreaking autonomous platform designed for the cargo transportation sector.

IHR designs and validates high-performance sensors for embedded systems—including LiDAR, cameras, radar, and GNSS modules—combined with sophisticated algorithms for perception, control, and decision making. The implemented systems include key features such as obstacle detection, lateral and longitudinal control, lane recognition, traffic perception, and intelligent decision-making. All of this is processed by robust onboard computing architectures tailored to real-world, heavy-duty logistics environments.

The AT4T platform is a tangible outcome of this know-how, delivering autonomous driving capabilities in controlled logistics scenarios such as yards and closed-loop routes. With this achievement, IHR reinforces its commitment to transforming the future of mobility through technology and positions itself at the forefront of autonomous systems for commercial transportation.

IHR

"Speedgoat real-time tests played a fundamental role in the development of the autonomous platform, AT4T. This approach helps us make faster engineering decisions, reduce rework, and increase overall system reliability."

Maicon Molon, Science and Technology Manager of IHR

Challenge | Testing and Validating Multiple ECUs Without Physical Prototypes

As part of its mission to lead innovation in sustainable mobility, IHR embarked on the development of AT4T with the goal of revolutionizing cargo transport in structured logistics environments. The project demanded a reliable and flexible framework to test and validate the complex behavior of multiple ECUs, sensor fusion algorithms, and safety-critical control strategies—long before physical prototypes were available.

Solution | High-Fidelity Digital Twin to Simulate Realistic Operational Scenarios

To meet this challenge, IHR adopted a Model-Based Design (MBD) approach using MATLAB® and Simulink®, combined with a Speedgoat real-time target machine for hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation. This setup enabled the creation of a high-fidelity digital twin of the AT4T platform, simulating its dynamic behavior, sensor inputs (LiDAR, radar, cameras), and CAN-based communication among embedded systems.

Within this virtual environment, control, perception, and decision-making algorithms could be developed, tested, and validated continuously. Engineers were able to assess real-time responses to a wide range of operational scenarios—such as pedestrian detection, obstacle avoidance, and autonomous maneuvering in depots and yards—all before any code was deployed to the real vehicle.

Result | Developing Control Strategies Faster While Strengthening Collaboration Across Teams

The implementation of Speedgoat’s HIL platform significantly reduced development time and enabled rigorous, automated regression testing as new features were added. Seamless integration with Simulink features facilitated efficient test case management, deterministic execution of real-time models, and comprehensive performance monitoring under stress conditions.

To further enhance system validation, IHR integrated the HIL environment with the test tracks at CTR - Centro Tecnológico Randon, using them as a foundation for both virtual and physical test cycles. A digital twin of the CTR test area was created to precisely replicate its topography, road conditions, and typical logistics scenarios. This allowed the engineering team to conduct highly realistic simulations with HIL, closely aligned with the physical conditions vehicles would face on the track.

The synergy between virtual validation and real-world testing led to a substantial reduction in development time. Control strategies and safety mechanisms could be iteratively refined in simulation and then validated with high confidence on the CTR test tracks. This integrated approach accelerated fault detection, improved system robustness, and ensured compliance with performance and safety standards across a variety of logistics use cases. It also strengthened collaboration among software engineers, validation specialists, and field operators throughout the development lifecycle.

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