ATAC - Advanced Test Automation for Complex Software-Intensive Systems

Purpose and goal

Bombardier Transportation has had three specific goals in the ATAC project. The first goal was to define a process for testing on different levels which has been achieved though improvements of unit testing and increased coverage. The target to identify tools for testing on different levels has been partly achieved, mapping out available tools. Also, the tool set for unit tests and integration testing has been broadened. The final goal, to establish the team in Västerås in a leading role in the division within test and test techniques has been achieved.

Results and expected effects

The expected result from ATAC is to reduce costs, shorten time to market, and increase the quality of the control system. The methods and tools that have been introduced have increased the efficiency of the test case development, automated design documentation and increased coverage in the unit testing. Examples include the automation of test reducing the test time to less than 20 % of the manual test time, and that through model based testing, 100 % coverage on design has been achieved. By implementing the results from ATAC, the prediction is that the effects will exceed expectations.

Approach and implementation

The main idea for the ATAC project has been to start with real industrial challenges and use innovations to solve these. By early identification of suitable pilot projects, the cooperation between Bombardier Transportation and other project partners has been performed in short iterations between idea and feedback. The result is that the organization is involved which contributes to a quick implementation on a broad scale. The exchange of experiences with other industrial partners has resulted in an increased maturity and provides a basis for additional innovations.