Looped in
As modern electric vehicle systems grow more complex, the need for more efficient development and validation methodologies also grows
Against this backdrop, a new partnership between AVL Mobility Technologies and Ansible Motion signals a further shift toward integrated virtual engineering technologies for electrified powertrains, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and software-defined architectures.
The partnership brings together AVL’s Vehicle Simulation Model (VSM) software with Ansible Motion’s Driver-in-the-Loop (DiL) simulators, creating a unified toolchain for real-time vehicle development and evaluation. The significance of this collaboration lies in the ability to combine high-fidelity system modelling with human-in-the-loop validation at much earlier stages of the design cycle.
REALISTIC REAL-TIME MODELLING
AVL’s VSM is positioned as a comprehensive simulation platform capable of modelling components, subsystems and complete vehicle architectures in real time. Its core strength is the ability to evaluate vehicle dynamics and system interactions under realistic operating conditions, enabling engineers to assess performance trade-offs across multiple domains simultaneously. This includes chassis dynamics, powertrain behaviour and safety-critical systems.
When integrated with a DiL simulator, the virtual model is no longer limited to purely computational analysis. Instead, engineers and test drivers can interact directly with the simulated vehicle, enabling subjective and objective evaluation of design changes through immersive virtual test drives. This approach is particularly relevant for refining vehicle handling characteristics, calibrating ADAS functions, and assessing drivability in edge-case scenarios that would be costly or impractical to reproduce physically.
REDUCING PHYSICAL PROTOTYPES
The combined platform enables rapid iteration cycles that would traditionally require extensive prototype builds and track testing. As Gary Newton, AVL’s vice president of business development, explains, “By combining AVL VSM with Ansible Driver-in-the-Loop simulators, manufacturers can move critical decisions to the front of the development cycle, dramatically reducing physical prototypes and test iterations. This tool combination can have an enormous impact on timeline and budget. Imagine validating 70-plus track scenarios per day in multiple conditions, surfaces and drive events. The result isn’t incremental improvement—it’s months saved and millions preserved.
From an engineering workflow perspective, this represents a shift toward front-loaded development, where design validation occurs earlier and more frequently in a virtual environment. The ability to simulate dozens of scenarios per day – across varying road conditions, environmental factors, and vehicle configurations – offers a level of throughput that is unattainable with conventional testing methodologies.
SUBJECTIVE EVALUATION
While objective metrics such as acceleration, braking, and energy consumption can be modelled with high accuracy, driver perception remains a critical factor in vehicle development. According to Ansible Motion’s business development director Salman Safdar, “Through our continuing collaborative efforts with AVL, we’re developing new ways to conduct subjective and objective evaluations of qualified concepts much earlier in the vehicle design cycle. Connecting our simulators seamlessly with a feature-rich simulation environment like AVL VSM elevates the virtual vehicle development process for manufacturers seeking to shorten development times, realise cost savings, and reduce environmental impacts.”
To support adoption, AVL has implemented an Ansible Motion Theta Seat simulator at its technical centre in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This installation enables customers to directly experience the integrated simulation environment, bridging the gap between digital models and physical perception. Furthermore, the platform can be combined with AVL’s broader validation ecosystem, including Software-in-the-Loop (SiL), Hardware-in-the-Loop (HiL), and Virtual Test Bed (VTB) solutions.
