Accelerating Vehicle Controls Development with Cloud-Based MIL Simulation

Virtual development is increasingly central to OEM strategies, especially in the hypercar segment, where production and development costs are substantial. This approach spans from early-stage prototyping to feature and component validation via model-in-the-loop (MIL) and driver-in-the-loop (DIL) methodologies, leveraging high-fidelity digital twin vehicle models correlated with real-world data. McLaren has focused on enhancing its virtual development capabilities, targeting both accurate, parameterized vehicle models and a scalable infrastructure to manage multiple variants (e.g., sport, ultimate, supercars). Emphasis has been placed on the design and integration of high-level control strategies affecting vehicle handling and performance. See a workflow based on MATLAB^® and Simulink^® that enables functional verification of critical features in a virtual environment, well before physical prototypes become available. The workflow is integrated within the McLaren cloud ecosystem, supporting seamless model and software deployment across engineering teams and facilitating early identification of bugs and integration issues—thus improving quality and reducing time-to-market. A use case is presented involving the active aerodynamics system of the upcoming McLaren W1, where a custom function is validated in the MIL environment using structured release procedures. This ensures system controllability and robustness during virtual testing. Moreover, the simulation environment is DIL-compatible, allowing early tuning and calibration of control algorithms through driver-in-the-loop sessions. This front-loaded approach reduces risk during physical validation and accelerates development timelines.