DGE, Inc.’s HMIts puts FEV at the forefront of telematics and infotainment design and development

Automated system to be exhibited at SAE World Congress enables repeatable testing, helps to develop new features faster and at a lower cost

Auburn Hills, Mich., April 7, 2014 – FEV North America, Inc. a leading developer of advanced powertrain and vehicle system technologies will be showcasing the DGE, Inc. (DGE) Human Machine Interface test system in the FEV exhibit at the SAE World Congress, April 8 – 10, 2014 at Cobo Center in Detroit, Mich. DGE is a subsidiary of FEV North America, Inc. 

In three of the last four years, Rochester Hills, Michigan-based DGE, Inc. has been named by Inc 5000 as one of the top three fastest growing automotive electronic design centers in the USA. Its acquisition in May 2013, by FEV gives the joint organization capabilities unrivaled in the industry by enhancing FEV’s current electrical/electronic and vehicle systems expertise. 

“FEV North America has been developing a strong electronics engineering presence for over a decade and has been particularly successful in the areas of controller and algorithm development.  The addition of DGE brings a significant increase in our electronics expertise and provides strong capabilities in the infotainment and telematics space, which works together with our strengths at FEV.  DGE also brings a strong background with connected vehicles that nicely complements our capabilities at FEV.  The combination of the two companies has created tremendous potential for synergy that will represent value to our customers,” said Joachim Wolschendorf, president and CEO of DGE.

The DGE HMIts provides end-to-end testing from the device to the car and back.  The DGE system was developed internally, and allows each tool to be quickly reconfigured in order to characterize and identify defects as they arise. This is a major advantage as next-generation infotainment and telematics systems will integrate both vehicular and cloud-based devices.

Ideal applications for HMIts testing include:

• Voice recognition tree flows verification
• Voice recognition performances testing
• Screen flows / wireframes verification
• Regression testing
• Stress testing
• Performance and reliability testing
• System monitoring
• Closed loop, end-to-end testing in both Android and iOS platforms with mobile apps, Bluetooth and customer portals

Accomplishing these tasks requires a multi-phase approach that automates the task of validating user interfaces containing speech, video and touch. Because it can run simulated software, the HMIts does not require use of the actual device, and task automation means test inputs can be accurately repeated to a high confidence level. This capability also permits new features to be developed in a shorter time, and at a lower cost.  The HMIts reduces test time by 67% and typically has an ROI of less than 5 months.

The HMIts system operates via a non-proprietary interface and offers the significant benefit of conducting this type of testing in a controlled environment, ensuring consistent and objective results.