ANSYS and BMW have announced plans to create the first holistic simulation toolchain for developing autonomous vehicle (AV) technologies. The simulation tool chain will enable highly automated and autonomous driving (AD) with the first vehicle launch expected in just two years. BMW Group is leveraging ANSYS' engineering simulation solutions to speed up the development of a safety-focused solution for the validation of AD systems.
The multi-year agreement drives the development of BMW Group's Level 3 offering and Level 4-5 technology, delivering high/full automation for the highly anticipated BMW iNEXT, expected to launch in 2021. The new automated simulation toolchain will make efficient use of BMW´s large amount of sensor data through intelligent data analytics and the creation of scenarios according to statistical relevance and AD system sensitivity. The scenarios will include usual driving situations and corner cases to ensure maximum test coverage. Based on these scenarios, the toolchain will perform rigorous safety assessments of the AD systems in a high-performance virtual environment. ANSYS and BMW will support its adaptability and openness regarding relevant interfaces and validation approaches to accommodate and foster safety initiatives.
ANSYS will assume exclusive rights to the simulation toolchain technology for commercialisation to a wider market.
'BMW Group is a leader within the automotive industry and is revolutionising the automotive landscape through their development of cutting-edge autonomous vehicle technologies that will drastically transform transportation as we know it. This partnership is a true game-changer, positioning BMW and ANSYS as key drivers for turning this future vision into a near-term reality,' said Eric Bantegnie, vice president and general manager at ANSYS. 'ANSYS simulation brings a complete virtual testing environment for AV systems to this partnership, designed to usher in a new era of fully autonomous vehicles and help address critical safety validation requirements for autonomous driving.'
