Verified functions form the basis of product reliability. Product developers work together with suppliers on numerous tasks in coordinated work-packages. This provides reliable results if this network can cope with the consequences of changes.
Products fulfil functions. Many of them can be fulfilled by a cascade of sub-functions. Changes (of which there are many during product development) make the checking of the consequences on affected sub-functions a necessity. The tasks in the network of developers need to be permanently adapted to current events. This can quickly become messy over the course of a project.
This problem is exacerbated by a high level of innovation since in these neither the quantitative goals for the functions are known nor can the test procedures from product predecessors be reused.
The determination of a goal is required in the form of a requirement analysis since it is delivered by the network of product functions. Functions can only be meaningfully dealt with as a combination of hardware and software. Hence the verification program must be constructed using this structure, by means of functional groups. This concept enables hardware, software, and configuration to be considered together.
An overview of the diverse activities is crucial for making informed decisions during the implementation of tasks. Comprehensive documentation of the results needs to be created for technical and legal releases.
Functional groups are defined based on the requirement analysis. As a “hardware-software-parameter unit”, they form the technical-organisational structure for the verification program. This includes simulations, hardware, and software tests, supplemented by the measurement of samples and the determination of characteristic maps describing system behaviour.
Changes in a project’s progress result in a new branch in the planned task tree that tracks each measure and its results. This information is then used to report the project progress and to release functional groups.
Uptime PROVE distributes tasks and responsibility.
Collaboration is necessary but risky if sub-tasks interact. This is exactly the case with mechatronic products. Uptime PROVE documents these dependencies and their effects in the functional groups. This guarantees solid results through collaborative method diversity and robustness against risks due to change.
Uptime PROVE as a joint source of information.
The methods for simulation, test and measurement, the results from tasks and measurements, the events and progress in a project: All this is stored by all participants in a joint software – in Uptime PROVE. The information stored is available for analysis at any time. Standard reports for milestones, releases, and certifications are automatically created. This relieves the burden on experts and keeps the process transparent.
Uptime PROVE keeps the development process on the right track.
Ver often, the development of a product does not go according to plan, particularly during the early stages of development. Downtimes and other unexpected events are the order of the day. They result in practically permanent changes to the task plan. Uptime PROVE tracks these changes and the problem-solving process. The continuous reports describing the progress of functional validation provide orientation for project steering
