Cloud-Edge-Management Integration

OTA HIL Testing Solutions

Through OTA (Over-the-Air), vehicles can receive and update ECU software/firmware directly without having to go to the factory, which ensures continuous optimization of functions, quick fixes of problems, and support for future business model expansion.

OTA Testing Scope

Core Modules Involved in OTA

TBOX (Telematics Box)
Core node of the vehicle-to-everything network, responsible for secure communication and data transmission between vehicles and the cloud.
IVI (In-Vehicle Infotainment)
In-vehicle infotainment systems often require real-time updates for UI, features, and applications.
Domain Controller 
Responsible for centralized control across different domains including body, chassis, powertrain, and intelligent driving, with frequent update requirements and broad impact scope.
Upgradeable ECUs
For example, BMS, ADAS, powertrain ECUs, etc., can be enhanced via OTA software updates to ensure performance and safety.

Component-Level OTA Testing

TOSUN leverages its proprietary TTS chassis platform to integrate high-precision analog boards, digital I/O boards, and multi-protocol communication boards, thereby constructing a highly realistic virtual vehicle environment.

Leveraging the TSMaster software platform, virtual ECU node modeling and bus timing synchronization can be achieved, covering full-loop testing including UDS/DoIP protocol flashing, power transient interruption simulation, security mechanism testing, and fault injection.

The test bench is equipped with a programmable power supply and bus analyzer to precisely quantify critical parameters during ECU upgrades, supporting automated testing for both single and multiple ECUs. It generates standardized reports to fulfill end-to-end validation requirements from individual ECUs to system integration.

Testing function

In the component-level OTA functional test bench, the hardware-in-the-loop system precisely simulates the vehicle's electronic and electrical environment to perform closed-loop verification of the entire OTA process. This includes single ECU OTA upgrades, continuous multi-ECU upgrades, high-voltage and low-voltage ECU interactive upgrades, and interactive upgrade testing between different ECUs. The ECU-side software upgrade functional testing meets relevant standard requirements, including:

ECU compatibility checks, secure access authentication, and diagnostic session control during the pre-programming phase, while simultaneously monitoring diagnostic interaction commands between the OTA Master and ECUs.
Blocked data transmission and integrity verification during the programming phase, with real-time monitoring of bus load rates.
Post-programming phase version readback and software reset operations read bus interaction signals, OTA Master status, and internal ECU version information, respectively.

The testing process can also simulate typical fault scenarios to validate resume-from-breakpoint and rollback mechanisms. Concurrently, TSMaster automated scripts verify HMI interaction timing and synchronization during multi-ECU coordinated upgrades.

OTA performance testing will evaluate resource utilization and timeliness during the upgrade process, monitoring peak load on the central gateway or domain controller, CAN/CAN FD bus utilization, single ECU flashing time, and storage write speed during multi-ECU upgrades.

Transmission Performance: Test download speeds and stability of upgrade packages across different network standards, and verify the success rate of resume-from-breakpoint functionality in weak network environments.
Timing performance, precisely measuring the duration of each phase, including security authentication response, data block transmission intervals, and ECU reset activation time.
Resource utilization: Monitor bus load rate, CPU/memory usage, and Flash write speed
Concurrency capability, validated through virtual ECU clusters to assess resource contention management during parallel upgrades of multiple ECUs.
Data logging, bus signals, video signals, and OTA logs recorded simultaneously on the same timeline.

The testing process introduces interference factors such as network jitter and power fluctuations. TSMaster analyzes timestamp data in real time to ensure all metrics comply with OEM specifications, ultimately generating a detailed report containing performance baselines, bottleneck analysis, and optimization recommendations.

OTA fault testing will simulate extreme operating conditions in real-world environments, including repeated power-off/recovery tests, power fluctuation tests, communication failure tests, and weak/no network tests. A multidimensional test matrix will be established, encompassing tests such as network disconnection during downloads, power loss during flashing, and brake failure during flashing.

Power failure testing: Using a programmable power supply to generate voltage sags, momentary interruptions, and ripple interference to verify memory integrity after flashing interrupts.
Communication fault injection simulates CAN/CAN FD bus error frames, DoIP link interruptions, and network protocol anomalies to validate the robustness of ECU protocol stacks.
Storage anomaly testing, insufficient storage space and parity errors, verifying the reliability of the rollback mechanism
Security attack simulation, implementing man-in-the-middle attacks (certificate forgery), replay attacks (session hijacking), and malicious packet injection (version number tampering) to evaluate the effectiveness of HSM protection.

All tests precisely control fault timing through the HIL system, recording ECU fault codes, recovery times, and memory states. This ultimately generates a fault mode and effects analysis report covering key metrics such as fault completion rate and automatic recovery rate.

System-Level OTA Testing

The LabCar OTA testing system leverages a high-precision vehicle-level HIL platform to establish a complete closed-loop OTA validation environment prior to actual vehicle upgrades. It achieves precise synchronized management of the vehicle network through hybrid simulation of real and virtual ECUs, along with switching between real and simulated sensors.

The system precisely controls dynamic switching of critical states such as vehicle speed, gear selection, anti-theft protection, door locks, and pedals, while continuously monitoring functional responses. It comprehensively validates OTA upgrade conditions, environmental monitoring, and functional comparisons.

Supports automated script execution and generates detailed test reports, providing OEMs with reliable pre-production validation data.

Testing function

OTA HIL and LabCar test benches employ a hybrid design integrating virtual ECU models, sensor models, and actuator models. These are combined with the LabCar test bench's physical ECUs, wiring harnesses, actuators, and sensors to form a closed-loop testing environment. This enables comprehensive end-to-end OTA validation:

Pre-upgrade condition verification: Continuously monitor and control vehicle status parameters (including anti-theft authentication status, door lock status, gear position, electronic parking brake, and critical signals like vehicle speed). Proactively inject fault scenarios that fail upgrade conditions (e.g., vehicle speed > 0 km/h, gear not in Park position) to validate system condition judgment logic.
Upgrade Process Validation: Test OTA system fault handling strategies through dynamic simulation of driving condition transitions and manufacturing bus communication anomalies.
Post-upgrade verification: Conduct comparative analysis of vehicle functionality and configuration settings before and after the upgrade. Continuously monitor HMI interaction timing sequences and version read functions.

The test system achieves fully automated test execution through the TSMaster platform, generating test reports that include state transition logs, fault recovery times, and regulatory compliance data. This ensures test data traceability and adherence to regulatory and OEM standards.

Vehicle-Level OTA Testing

After analyzing vehicle functional principles, TOSUN Intelligent developed lightweight OTA testing equipment for actual vehicles to validate the status of OTA mass upgrades in production vehicles.

This device integrates analog and digital signal boards within a TTS cabinet and utilizes CAN bus communication for port control. It enables automated remote vehicle functions such as unlocking/locking, door operation, and vehicle power cycling. By closely replicating real-vehicle conditions, it facilitates functional testing for OTA features including scheduled and immediate upgrades.

Testing function

During real-vehicle OTA testing, the OTA real-vehicle test cabinet enables comprehensive monitoring and diagnostics of the entire vehicle's status signals, specifically including:

Electrical System Status Monitoring, covering high-voltage system operational status, low-voltage power network, and vehicle power modes (IGN ON/OFF switching).
ECU Function Status Diagnosis: Real-time reading of controller operational states via UDS protocol (e.g., Bootloader mode flags, application software checksum)
Human-machine interaction verification, synchronously capturing HMI interface refresh rates and dashboard alarm information
Network communication analysis, monitoring CAN FD/Ethernet bus load, OTA Master internal task scheduling status, and diagnostic session timing with target ECUs.

All monitoring data is recorded with timestamps and integrated into an automated testing platform to generate standardized validation reports, providing quantitative evidence for the reliability of OTA systems.

Deploy OTA upgrade tasks to multiple vehicles via the OEM cloud platform. Multiple OTA test cabinets simultaneously monitor vehicle status and upload OTA upgrade pass rates and test reports. Multi-vehicle OTA testing is a comprehensive evaluation solution that builds a scaled testing cluster to perform concurrent validation and stress testing on vehicle OTA systems. Its core testing components include:

Multi-vehicle collaborative upgrade verification: Parallel flashing of vehicles with different models, configurations, and ECU versions under cloud-based task scheduling to test gateway routing strategies and resource allocation mechanisms.
Global monitoring and analysis: Utilizing OTA vehicle test cabinets to track and collect real-time upgrade progress and ECU status changes across all vehicles, while analyzing and identifying systemic risks.

Identify potential mass failures in production environments ahead of time, optimize upgrade strategies, and validate the scalability of cloud-to-vehicle systems to ensure OTA services meet upgrade success rate requirements during actual deployment.

OTA System Architecture

TOSUN provides multi-level OTA HIL test equipment:

The solution covers the entire lifecycle from component flashing to vehicle validation, forming a closed-loop V-model development process that complies with regulatory and OEM technical requirements.

Software Architecture
Based on the TSMaster platform, it provides full-stack testing capabilities from bottom hardware control to cloud collaboration, and builds a three-layer OTA development and testing platform with user interaction layer, system application layer, and virtual hardware simulation layer.

Integrated TSMaster Development Platform

Core functions including integrated bus code generation (CAN/CAN FD/LIN/Ethernet), real-time monitoring, simulation modeling, diagnostics calibration, and more.
Supports pre-installed protocol stack for bootloader flashing, covering standards such as UDS/DoIP.
Open Python/C secondary development interfaces to meet customized testing requirements.

Cloud-Based Collaborative Management

Utilize HTTPS/MQTT secure channels to integrate the customer OTA service platform with the test management platform, achieving:

Vehicle Model/Component Version Management
Smart Distribution of Update Packages (Supports A/B Testing)
Task Queue Priority Scheduling

Intelligent Hardware Control System

Centralized management via USB, ADB, and other communication protocols enables direct invocation of core APIs for low-cost, high-efficiency vehicle network validation and testing:

Programmable Power Supply (Simulates 12V/24V System Voltage Fluctuations)
Signal Jamming Equipment (Simulating Strong/Weak/No Network Environments)
Robotic Arm (Automatically Triggering Physical Buttons/Knobs)

OTA Test Criteria

OTA updates for intelligent connected vehicles must comply with three major standards: UNECE R156, ISO 24089, and GB 44496. Among these, GB 44496—China's first mandatory national standard for OTA—explicitly requires:

End-to-end encryption and digital signature verification
Security Permission Isolation and Power-Off Recovery Mechanism
User Information Notification and Security Safeguards During the Upgrade Process

The three standards jointly emphasize safety protection, traceability and compliance testing, pushing car companies to shift from mere "function realization" to "safety compliance".

R156/VTA Certification: Impact on EU Market Access
GB 44496: Essential Requirements for the Market Launch of Intelligent Connected Vehicles in China

OTA Project Process

End-to-end protection ensures complete data transmission, guaranteeing zero loss throughout the entire OTA upgrade process.
Choose TOSUN, test with peace of mind

System Solution Design

System Logic Analysis

System Equipment Development

Test Case Development

Test Execution

Explore TOSUN OTA Testing Solutions

Contact our OTA professional team to learn more about automotive testing solutions, Tongxing Intelligence will be happy to provide you with customized solutions, and is always available to answer any technical questions you may have!