Verification of Robot Controller for Evaluating Impacts of Faults in Electro-mechanical Systems

The aim of the presentation is to introduce a new platform under development for testing fault-tolerance methodologies based on FPGAs which applies the technique of functional verification. Functional verification is a modern approach to verifying that digital system complies with its specification. Verification environment for functional verification of robot controller which searches path for the robot through maze is presented in this presentation. This verification environment is designed according to the UVM (Universal Verification Methodology) principles. As an interesting feature of the verification environment we see the use of mechanical part (robot in a maze) simulation.

In several areas, such as aerospace and space applications or automotive safety-critical applications, fault tolerant electro-mechanical (EM) systems are highly desirable. In these systems, the mechanical part is controlled by its electronic controller. Currently, a trend is to add even more electronics into EM systems. The presentation describes the use of the verification environment for evaluating impacts of faults in electro-mechanical systems. It will serve as a tool for automating fault tolerance evaluation of electro-mechanical systems and together with the fault injector will form the basis of the verification platform in the future. The experimental results gained from the verification process are also presented in the presentation.