Use of Six Sigma to Move Verification of Vehicle Remote Keyless Entry Upstreams in Product Development Process

Bjorn M. Bergqvist; Mikael Nilsson; Dan Jiresten II

doi:10.4271/2010-01-0701

A primary goal within the industry is to shorten the lead time to get shorter time to market and lower cost. System verification can set the limits for how short the lead time can be. Traditionally verification of automotive communication systems like Remote Keyless Entry, RKE, is performed in a complete vehicle late in the product development process.

To fulfill the quality demands during the shorter project time Volvo Cars, VCC, has experienced that it is necessary to develop new requirements and verification methods. Six Sigma contains a complete toolbox to do this in a structured and time efficient way.

VCC has together with other Ford Motor Company, FMC, brands and the supplier Continental developed methods and requirements so that the RKE system can be verified before vehicles are built. Only a last validation has to be performed in a complete vehicle.

The process consists of:

Well defined technical requirements on the transceiver and key fob modules that can be verified in a bench test.
Requirement levels for the individual parts in the communication link (antenna, cable, transceiver, key fob) are set by using a verified link budget formula for the complete communication link in different environments.
By using antenna simulations and the link budget formula, fulfillment of complete vehicle requirements can be calculated before vehicles are built.
A new harmonized RF-protocol for RKE and other functions has been developed in order to decrease complexity and number of variants for both vehicle manufacturer and supplier.

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Use of Six Sigma to Move Verification of Vehicle Remote Keyless Entry Upstreams in Product Development Process 2010-01-0701

SAE MOBILUS