Rapid Prototyping Automotive ECUs with CompactRIO (cRIO) and PXI

Carroll G. DasePresident, Drivven, Inc.

cRIO and PXI ECU Prototyping Platforms

• CompactRIO (cRIO)– Compact, rugged features– 200 – 400 MHz CPUs– Up to 512 Mb Flash / 128 Mb RAM– 1M or 3M gate FPGA

• PXI– Multi GHz CPUs– Multi Gb memories, large hard drives– Many I/O card types, including FPGA

Why a cRIO / PXI ECU?

• Full-authority engine, vehicle and test cell control within single system• Perform R&D or component testing with OEM engines• Rapidly prototype control and DAQ systems for concept engines• Using OEM ECUs for R&D or testing requires expensive / lengthy

original design team support and coordination

Why a cRIO / PXI ECU?

• Develop experimental algorithms which OEM ECUs cannot execute• LabVIEW graphical programming environment is easy to use• Assemble unique combinations of I/O not possible with OEM ECUs• Sophisticated data acquisition synchronized with control within single

hardware / software platform

How is a cRIO / PXI ECU Possible?

• National Instruments’ Open hardware/software architecture for cRIO I/O modules

How is a cRIO / PXI ECU Possible?

• Drivven’s expertise with developing research and production engine control systems

How is a cRIO / PXI ECU Possible?

• Drivven’s line of cRIO modules designed specifically for direct automotive sensor and actuator interface – available commercially-off-the-shelf

Drivven Automotive cRIO Modules

• ADCombo Module Kit:– 21-Ch. automotive-style analog inputs, 12-bit, 4 kS/s per channel– 2-Ch. VR sensor inputs, 200mV – 150V– 2-Ch. Hall-effect sensor inputs

• VR/Hall Module Kit– 6-Ch. VR or Hall-effect sensor inputs– Individually software selectable as VR or Hall

Drivven Automotive cRIO Modules

• Port Fuel Injector Driver Module Kit– 4-Ch. Low/high impedance port fuel injector drivers– 4-Ch. General purpose solenoid drivers (0-100% duty cycle)– Short/open circuit diagnostics and protection

• Spark Driver Module Kit– 8-Ch. Inductive ignition coil drivers– Short circuit and thermal protection

Drivven Automotive cRIO Modules

• GDI / Common Rail Diesel Injector Driver Module Kit– Internal boost power supply up to 150 V– 3-Ch., configurable peak (30 A) / hold (12 A) injector drivers – Short/open circuit diagnostics and thermal protection

• Electronic Throttle Driver Module Kit– 2-Ch., Electronic throttle drivers– Short circuit and thermal protection

Drivven Automotive cRIO Modules

• O2 Sensor Module Kit– 2-Ch. wide-band Bosch LSU-4.2 oxygen sensor controllers– 4-Ch. narrow-band Oxygen sensor inputs– Sensor diagnostics and short circuit protection– Add custom calibration for specialized fuels

• Low Side Driver Module Kit– 8-Ch. General purpose solenoid drivers (0-100% duty cycle)– Short/open circuit diagnostics and protection– Software option for 0-2A solenoid current control

Drivven EPT VIs

• Engine Position Tracking (EPT) VIs– Track angular position of crankshaft to sub-degree resolution– Supports most common trigger patterns in the industry

• N-M (example: 60-2)• Plus 1 (example: 6+1)• Encoder (example 360 count optical encoder)• Chrysler 36-4

– Use to internally simulate crank/cam patterns for easy bench testing during application development

– Drivven can quickly develop EPT for custom patterns

Using Drivven Products

• Common interface between EPT VIs and engine-synchronous output module kits

• Module FPGA and RT software handles precise timing of fuel/spark outputs so that researchers only program in terms of engineering units (msec, crank-angle degrees, frequency, duty cycle, etc.)

Using Drivven Products

• Growing engine control application template base– Open source LabVIEW applications– Open source engine control algorithms– Develop custom engine control application in days, not

months• Turn-key solutions, so powertrain engineers can focus on their research without getting side-tracked by efforts to get an engine under control

Drivven Online

Drivven Online

Where to Start?

• Determine control / DAQ requirements and select:– CompactRIO?– PXI?

• Gather engine I/O requirements– Crank/cam sensors, pressure sensors, thermistors,

switches, potentiometers, battery-level voltages, O2, etc.– Fuel injectors, ignition coils, pressure regulator, EGR valve,

throttle, wastegate, etc.

Where to Start?

• Does baseline calibration data exist for this engine? If not…– OEM ECU mapping is possible with Drivven / NI products– Collect and analyze data (Drivven has examples)– Format data for control use (Drivven has example)

• Wiring harness – OEM or custom?– Spare OEM ECUs are handy for harness connection points– Wiring and connector decisions play big role in project success

• CompactRIO installation example

Examples

Examples

• Yamaha YZFR6 Wiring Example

Examples

• John Deere lean, split-engine control strategy

Examples

• Turbo-charged motorcycle development for Formula SAE

Building the Control Application

• This is where the Powerpoint portion of the presentation ends and the application exploration begins

• From here, there will be only place holder slides describing the topics of discussion

• We will browse the application VIs and discuss the steps involved with building an application from scratch

Building the Control Application

• Project Explorer• Create cRIO target and

FPGA target• Add generic cRIO modules• Add FPGA I/O• Add blank top level FPGA

and RT VIs

Building the Control Application

• Drivven product directories

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW FPGA VI– Single Cycle Loop

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW FPGA VI– Cluster interfaces

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW RT VI– Top level layout

• Outer Flat Sequence Structure• Calibration loading/saving• Timed Loop• Inner Flat Sequence Structure• Use of local variables• Hierarchical design

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW RT VI– Reading Inputs– Making engineering units from

FPGA data

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW RT VI– Performing engine calculations– Open source algorithms from

Drivven

Building the Control Application

• LabVIEW RT VI– Writing Outputs– Converting engineering units to

FPGA data

Building the Control Application

• Calibration Display– Drivven’s CalVIEW

Building the Control Application

• Run engine control demo

Q & A

Contact Drivven for Full Authority ECU Prototyping

Drivven, Inc.San Antonio, Texaswww.drivven.cominfo@drivven.com+1 970.212.3366