Virtual Testbeds with Meta-data Propagation

Testing of embedded software today is via Hardware in the Loop (HiL) testbeds. Virtual HiL testbeds provide simulated testing environments that resemble important components of systems under test and enable continuous testing of embedded software components. Creation of virtual testbeds requires coupling of specialized simulators. Existing simulator couplings focus on functional data, which are inputs and outputs of software components under test. In this paper, we discuss the additional propagation of meta data as enabler for additional evaluation scenarios that cover for example timing failures, error propagation, and unwanted feature interaction. With traditional simulator coupling, those effects are difficult to evaluate. We discuss the integration of meta data into testbeds, the development of virtual prototypes with simulator coupling, as well as challenges related to meta data propagation and simulator coupling. We highlight our solution for supporting meta data in virtual HiL testbeds, and evaluate its applicability in context of two realistic application examples.