Breakout Box F
A rack-mounted interface for automated physical fault insertion and signal access.
Overview of the Breakout Box F
The Breakout Box F (BOB-F) is a 19-inch, 6U interface unit for hardware-in-the-loop testing of automotive systems. It brings signal lines to the front panel for probing and enables controlled physical fault insertion while the simulation continues to run.
The BOB-F provides:
- 150 channels, including 120 general-purpose and 30 dedicated channels
- Four relays per channel for signal interruption and connection to three fault lines
- Front-panel probing for 144 of the 150 channels via 4 mm banana jacks
- Dedicated channels for CAN, resolver and return-path sensitive signals
- Physical faults including open circuits and shorts to the fault lines (including channel-to-channel shorts)
- Individual relay control from the model, the SCADA panel, or directly over CAN
- Relay states updated as fast as every 5 ms
Controlled from the model.
Fault Lines
Each channel combines four relays: one to open or close the channel path and three to connect the channel to fault lines FL1, FL2 or FL3. This enables controlled faults such as open circuits, shorts to ground or a supplied voltage, and shorts between channels. Fault states indicated by front-panel LEDs.
The BOB-F is controlled over CAN, allowing individual relays to be switched directly from the model, automated through SCADA and test scripts, or by an external CAN device directly sending commands. Built-in interlock logic prevents incompatible fault combinations from being applied.
resolver or return-path sensitive signals.
Dedicated Channels
Thirty dedicated channels are routed through eight D-Sub (DE9) connectors for CAN, resolver and auxiliary signals. Unlike the general-purpose EDAC connector, these connectors provide a direct chassis ground through the metal shell, improving shielding and noise immunity for sensitive signals.
The integrated CAN splitter also breaks the HIL device’s four CAN channels out to individual connectors with switchable termination.
Fast-Tracking Development with Turnkey e-Drive HIL Testbed
Our collaboration with Typhoon HIL has been a game-changer for our development process. With their turnkey testing solution, we were able to bring up the system in just a single day, accelerating our validation cycles significantly. Thanks to Typhoon HIL’s fast delivery and seamless integration, we can now perform 90% of our control development in a Hardware-in-the-Loop environment, ensuring efficiency and precision in every step.
