Req2Road: A GenAI Pipeline for SDV Test Artifact Generation and On-Vehicle Execution

📅 2026-02-17
📈 Citations: 0
✨ Influential: 0
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🤖 AI Summary
This work addresses the challenges in functional testing of software-defined vehicles, where natural language requirements are often ambiguous, specifications are heterogeneous, and test assets are fragmented. To overcome these issues, the paper presents the first end-to-end framework that integrates large language models (LLMs) and vision-language models (VLMs) to automatically extract signal and behavioral logic from multimodal requirements. The framework generates Gherkin-style test scenarios and translates them into executable test scripts compliant with the Vehicle Signal Specification (VSS) standard, validated in both simulation and real-vehicle environments. Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) is employed to enhance cross-platform portability. Evaluated on a child presence detection system, the approach successfully converted 89% (32 out of 36) of requirements into executable tests, demonstrating its feasibility and effectiveness.

Technology Category

Machine Learning: Large Multimodal Models (LMMs)Computer Vision: Language and VisionNatural Language Processing: Language Grounding & Multi-modal NLP

Application Category

Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Applied ML and AI for Web-based mobile applicationsSemantics and Knowledge: Data modeling to support human-machine intelligence, including LLMs agents, intelligent system behavior, explanations, and user-friendly interactionsSearch and Retrieval-Augmented AI: Search Tool Learning with LLM: Teaching LLMs to invoke search and make use of retrieved information
📝 Abstract
Testing functionality in Software-Defined Vehicles is challenging because requirements are written in natural language, specifications combine text, tables, and diagrams, while test assets are scattered across heterogeneous toolchains. Large Language Models and Vision-Language Models are used to extract signals and behavioral logic to automatically generate Gherkin scenarios, which are then converted into runnable test scripts. The Vehicle Signal Specification (VSS) integration standardizes signal references, supporting portability across subsystems and test benches. The pipeline uses retrieval-augmented generation to preselect candidate VSS signals before mapping. We evaluate the approach on the safety-relevant Child Presence Detection System, executing the generated tests in a virtual environment and on an actual vehicle. Our evaluation covers Gherkin validity, VSS mapping quality, and end-to-end executability. Results show that 32 of 36 requirements (89\%) can be transformed into executable scenarios in our setting, while human review and targeted substitutions remain necessary. This paper is a feasibility and architectural demonstration of an end-to-end requirements-to-test pipeline for SDV subsystems, evaluated on a CPDS case in simulation and Vehicle-in-the-Loop settings.
Problem

Research questions and friction points this paper is trying to address.

Software-Defined Vehicle
requirements-to-test
test artifact generation
heterogeneous toolchains
natural language requirements
Innovation

Methods, ideas, or system contributions that make the work stand out.

GenAI pipeline
Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV)
Vehicle Signal Specification (VSS)
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
Gherkin scenario generation
D
Denesa Zyberaj
Mercedes-Benz AG, Bela-Barenyi-Straße, 71059 Sindelfingen, Germany
L
Lukasz Mazur
Institute for Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Embedded Systems, Technical University of Munich, Boltzmannstraße 3, 85748 Garching, Germany
P
Pascal Hirmer
Mercedes-Benz AG, Bela-Barenyi-Straße, 71059 Sindelfingen, Germany
Nenad Petrovic
Nenad Petrovic
Faculty of Electronic Engineering, University of Nis
Semantic TechnologyModel-Driven Software EngineeringDomain-Specific LanguagesLLM
Marco Aiello
Marco Aiello
University of Stuttgart
Distributed SystemsSmart Energy SystemsSpatial ReasoningMy Own Topic
Alois Knoll
Alois Knoll
Technische Universität München
RoboticsAISensor Data FusionAutonomous DrivingCyber Physical Systems