Synopsys, Inc. has completed the acquisition of PikeTec GmbH. Accordingly, PikeTec is one of the leaders in solutions for testing and verifying automotive software for control unit systems.

The emergence of software-defined vehicles (SDVs) is accelerating the rapid growth of electronic content in vehicles. Particularly, those that manage its operations, functionality, and features primarily or entirely through software.

Moreover, SDV systems have become complex. These systems, comprised of software, sensors, computing, and mechatronic functionality, are compounding the required test and verification effort. Furthermore, they are rapidly becoming the biggest challenge for automobile manufacturers and their suppliers in getting an SDV to market.

“As the automotive industry evolves towards software-defined vehicles, so does the need for more efficient and effective software testing methods,” said Jens Lüdemann, CEO at PikeTec. In addition, Lüdemann said, “Joining Synopsys reflects our commitment to enable automotive OEMs with the most comprehensive virtualization and testing solutions that help them scale to deliver high-quality software.”

Comprehensive Automation Tools

PikeTec test automation tools enable intuitive and flexible testing across all phases of development and simulation environments. Particularly, these test tools are from Model-in-the-Loop (MiL) to Vehicle-in-the-Loop (ViL). As the volume and complexity of software increases, it is pushing testing of automotive software to earlier stages of product development with models, software, and processors in virtual environments.

Thus, the combination of Synopsys’ leading Software-in-the-Loop (SiL) and virtual hardware solutions with PikeTec’s test automation tools have become beneficial. Particularly, the services offer automotive companies a strong solution to bring SDVs to market faster, safer, and more secure.

“Many automotive OEMs have adopted PikeTec’s software testing and verification solutions to address the rapidly increasing software content and complexity as they move towards software-defined vehicles,” said Ravi Subramanian, general manager of the Systems Design Group at Synopsys.

Lastly, Subramanian said, “Combining the expertise of Synopsys and PikeTec will enable us to bring to market innovative virtualization and testing solutions that directly address our customers’ challenges as they shift left in software development and verification.”