Problem
Due to the complexity within the design of the subsystems the development of a vehicle is mostly organized in a distributed fashion. This means components are designed at different locations and at certain points in time virtual prototypes are assembled in order to evaluate complete vehicle characteristics like crash or aerodynamics. This approach prevents fast and flexible component testing because the latest version of the overall system is only available at certain points in time. Hence new process architectures (continuous instead of phase oriented) could provide a substantial benefit – but have not been investigated yet.
Goal
The goal of this project is the development of a simulation method which enables the objective evaluation of new process architectures. For the validation empiric data from the development process of an automotive company will be used.
Approach
The precise modeling of complex development processes requires the combination of multiple methods. While deterministic processes can be simulated by using discrete event techniques the accurate prediction of stochastic processes can only be achieved by applying methods which allow deep modeling like agent-based simulation for example.