![\"Application](\"http:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2019\/09\/Application-Lifecycle-Management-Car-Electronics-1.png\" "\\"Application")
<\/span><\/p>\nMy wife drove the new truck a few times, and I\u2019d get a frantic call each time she left with it: she was lost, again. My wife doesn\u2019t have a great sense of direction. So I took my vehicle back to the dealer, and for a few hundred dollars, the technicians flashed the navigation software on it.<\/p>\n
To test the system while I was at the dealer, I programmed it with my home address. It worked perfectly and took me right to our driveway. Then I pressed the button on the overhead console to open the garage door, but it didn\u2019t open. I thought the power was out or the door opener stopped working. I saw the lights on in the house, so I knew we hadn\u2019t lost power. I hit the garage door button in the house and the door opened. But when I got back in the truck and hit the door opener button on the console \u2013 nothing.<\/p>\n
Something went wrong during the flash process and the door-opener button had been disabled. The other infotainment settings were fine, it was only the opener that didn\u2019t work. These were items I didn\u2019t think were related. But for performance or communication reasons, these items became examples of how software functions spread across a number of seemingly unrelated processors have become interdependent.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s Behind the Rise in Product Defects and Recalls?<\/h3>\n
Software-driven electronics is quickly infringing on hardware\u2019s dominance in the product development process, so my story isn\u2019t that unusual. Virtually all products today are software-enabled products, and things are rapidly advancing. Within 15 years, between 15 and 20 percent of all vehicles on the vehicle on the road could be fully autonomous<\/a>, according to Strategy Analytics<\/em>. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems is also one of the fastest growing segments<\/a> in automotive electronics.<\/p>\n These developments make life better now than it has been at any other time in history. But the news isn\u2019t all roses. The year 2015 was a record year for product recalls<\/a>, and a high percentage of those recalls focused on software issues.<\/p>\n According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the auto industry recalled almost 50 million vehicles<\/a> in 2014, and the recalls in 2015 have surpassed 2014\u2019s record. Financial advisory firm Stout Risius Ross has discussed this ongoing surge in vehicle recalls<\/a>. The firm says that there are likely a number of factors contributing to this rise in recalls, and \u201ca larger factor at play may very well be the increase in vehicle technology and component complexity.\u201d<\/p>\n This increase in recalls should concern companies. What can these companies do to prevent product defects? Is product lifecycle management, or PLM the answer? Yes, and no. Is application lifecycle management, or ALM, the answer? Yes, and also no.<\/p>\n Let me explain. When you think about product failures or recalls stemming from software, it\u2019s important to understand there\u2019s really no such thing as a \u201csoftware-only product.\u201d All software needs hardware to run, and most of today\u2019s products have software embedded into electronics processors that control other hardware actions. It\u2019s the Why do software Bugs Continue to Plague Products<\/a>that increases product complexity and contributes to the rising number of recalls.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also an increase in multi-system, multi-domain dependencies. There are multiple design domains, controls and interfaces spanning multiple sub-systems and functions many of which are developed by suppliers that must be integrated. Because of this increase in complexity, there\u2019s a greater need to enable extensible architectures and leverage variant-aware design processes, which spans the hardware and software boundary and necessitates cross-domain testing, verification, and validation.<\/p>\n So what\u2019s the best way to address these challenges? You need more than PLM \u2013 you also need ALM. PLM, or Product Lifecycle Management, manages a product\u2019s entire lifecycle<\/a>, including its inception, design, manufacture, maintenance, service and disposal.<\/p>\n To handle your software, you need ALM. ALM is the PLM of application software. It encompasses requirements management, software architecture, computer programming, software testing, change management, project management, release management, software maintenance and delivery; enabling manufacturers to define, build, test, manage and deliver complex software systems more efficiently and effectively.<\/p>\nWhat Can Companies Do to Prevent Product Defects?<\/h3>\n
![\"Application](\"http:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2019\/09\/Application-Lifecycle-Management-Software-Design-Management-1.png\" "\\"Application")
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