IAAPS and Ansible Motion partner to enhance automotive development solutions

IAAPS Ltd and leading Driver-in-the-Loop simulation provider Ansible Motion have entered a technical cooperation agreement to leverage the strengths of both organisations to deliver advanced simulation and testing capabilities to the automotive industry.

The partnership will lead to the development of a suite of accurate automotive tools necessary to evaluate and validate complex mechanical components in virtual domains and enable vehicle manufacturers and suppliers to achieve higher levels of virtual validation across chassis, powertrain and braking, supporting shorter time-to-market, lower costs and lower carbon emission targets.

IAAPS is a leader in vehicle propulsion research and the cooperation will see it become Ansible Motion’s first UK service partner. As part of this collaboration, Ansible Motion has installed a Theta Seat Driver-in-the-Loop (DIL) simulator at the IAAPS facility. This simulator will be integrated with IAAPS’ mechanical Hardware-in-the-Loop (mHIL) powertrain dynamometer, marking a significant advancement categorised as “mHIL + DIL integration”. This enhances IAAPS’ ability to conduct high-fidelity, real-world vehicle research and development in a laboratory setting.

The technical complexity of modern vehicle powertrains, combined with an industry-wide imperative to reduce time to market and shift towards more sustainable development processes, means that vehicle design, testing and validation are increasingly virtual. Therefore, new and innovative simulation and laboratory-based solutions are essential. The partnership with Ansible Motion supports these industry needs, allowing IAAPS to provide cutting edge solutions for the future of automotive development and enabling industry partners to confidently assess complex systems virtually.

The initial focus of this cooperation will be on the integration of specific DIL and mHIL systems with IAAPS' existing experimental facilities. As well as using the DIL simulator to advance its own test protocols, IAAPS will offer access to the simulator for Tier One suppliers, smaller OEMs, academic institutions and motorsport teams. As a second reference location alongside Ansible Motion’s R&D facility in Hethel, IAAPS will ensure more customers can benefit from ad hoc access to its DIL simulation technology.

Professor Rob Oliver, Managing Director of IAAPS, commented: “This partnership with Ansible Motion represents a significant advancement in our capabilities. By integrating its state-of-the-art DIL technology with our extensive R&D infrastructure, we are set to provide new capabilities for our partners, accelerating the introduction of new technologies to the market.”

Dan Clark, Managing Director of Ansible Motion, stated: “The increasing complexity and significant rise in interfaces between vehicle architectures and components require new validation tools and techniques that support the cost and time targets all OEMs need to remain competitive while finding ways to differentiate and still delight the end user. Our partnership will also unlock more sustainable ways to validate mechanical hardware that traditionally would have required expensive track time and significant resource consumption.”

Initial projects driven by this new partnership are already underway. The first seeks to develop validation methods in the virtual world for mHIL applications through trusted DIL simulation that will not only reduce development time and cost but also allow engineers to explore, risk-free in a controlled environment, consumer acceptance of innovative technologies. Examples include the validation of Brake-by-Wire (BbW), adaptive suspension, Steer-by-Wire (SbW) and cockpit architectures for User Experience (UX) such as infotainment and driver assistance (ADAS).