Digital Key Test Solutions

COMPRION’s Digital Key Test Solutions

COMPRION’s Digital Key Test Solutions address the various testing needs in relationship to digital access solutions in the automotive area. The guiding industry initiative in this area is the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC). COMPRION provides tools for testing various contactless communication aspects of a Digital Key according to the CCC:

NFC Forum Compliance
Car Connectivity Consortium Compliance
Compliance with Smartphone Manufacturer Requirements (e.g. Apple)

NFC Forum Compliance

NFC Forum compliance provides the baseline for all NFC components involved in the communication process - both on the vehicle side, such as an NFC reader integrated into a door handle or tray, and on the user device side, such as a smartphone or potentially other device types in the future.

The objective is to ensure standard-compliant communication at the underlying NFC layer, providing the foundation for the CCC-defined application-layer protocol that operates on top of it.

In particular, the NFC Forum defines a dedicated device class for CCC-compliant NFC readers, such as those integrated into vehicle door handles or trays.

CCC Compliance

The CCC Technical Specification defines Digital Key transactions at the application layer, using NFC and Bluetooth for contactless communication between the vehicle and the user’s device. Based on this specification, the CCC has developed detailed protocol-level test cases. COMPRION’s test solutions address two groups of these test cases:

NFC Interoperability Test Cases: These verify the baseline requirements for interoperability between the vehicle and the device through real-time tracing of the NFC protocol. Additional tests cover the behavior of the vehicle and device when NFC communication is disturbed. NFC testing is mandatory for CCC Digital Key product certification, and COMPRION provides a CCC validated test solution for this purpose.
BLE Test Cases: These extend interoperability testing to Digital Key transactions based on BLE and provide detailed protocol-level verification of CCC specification compliance. While protocol-level BLE testing is not mandatory for CCC product certification, it is highly recommended to ensure a high-quality, interoperable product.

Compliance with Smartphone Manufacturer Requirements (e.g. Apple Car Key)

Some smartphone manufacturers define additional test cases that complement NFC and CCC requirements. These tests are typically part of the manufacturer’s own certification program.

For Apple’s Car Key MFi program, COMPRION addresses various test aspects related to NFC communication. The final assessment of the test results remains with Apple. COMPRION’s solutions in this area either:

Provide essential NFC trace data required by Apple, or
Automate test case execution to generate Apple-required data, significantly improving testing efficiency.

Benefits

Identify and resolve interoperability and compliance issues throughout the Digital Key product engineering process - even at an early stage.
Support mandatory certification requirements across the ecosystem.
Increase testing efficiency while saving time and costs.
Ensure reliable and reproducible test results.

Who is it for?

Authorized Car Connectivity Consortium members working on a digital key implementation, including but not limited to:

Automotive manufacturers
Automotive suppliers
Smartphone, and smart device manufacturers
Certification laboratories
Quality assurance teams

Related Test Tools

TraceCase

Small spying tool to trace, visualize, and analyze NFC interaction in real-time.

CL Verify A

Real-time tracing, visualization, and analysis of NFC interactions with the ability to simulate and disturb NFC communication.

Digital Key Viewer

Visualizes Bluetooth Digital Key communication and translates it into a human-readable format for analysis.

COMPRION MoVie

The stand-alone and free of charge viewing software for NFC log files recorded with COMPRION test tools.

COMPRION Launches New CCC Digital Key Test Solution for BLE

COMPRION has expanded its range of digital key testing solutions with the introduction of the CCC Digital Key Test Solution for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE).

Unlocking car door handle by smartphone using NFC

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NFC Forum Conformance Testing

The Digital Key relies on NFC for communication, making NFC interface validation and certification an essential part of the development process. Our NFC Forum conformance test solution covers all types of device classing, including the ones which have specifically been defined for the Digital Key use case, i.e. CCC Digital Key Reader.

COMPRION’s test solution covers the analog as well as digital test cases. For analog testing, an industrial-grade robot is used to automate measurements with mm-precise positions and orientations.

NFC Forum conformance testing is key for components which shall be used in a Digital Key solution as the automotive industry is very sensitive with regards to assured quality, interoperability and user experience. To learn more, visit:

NFC Forum Test Solution

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NFC Forum CR15 Explained

Discover what NFC Forum Release 15 mean for the future of contactless technology. This video explains the major technical and user-experience improvements — especially the extension of the operating range from 5mm to 20mm — and highlights how the automotive industry is driving adoption through the digital car key use case.

NFC and BLE Testing in Compliance with CCC Specifications

The CCC Digital Key Test Solution is developed for engineers to prove interoperability and ease the debugging process of NFC- and BLE-based car access solutions in compliance with the latest Car Connectivity standard. It features real-time communication monitoring for seamless capture and analysis of contactless communication. Moreover, our solution comes with translation capabilities of the CCC Digital Key™ protocol, making it easier for engineers to understand what happens during test case execution and what might have failed. For the Digital Key transactions based on NFC, real-time disturbance of the communication enables engineers to simulate diverse failure scenarios during comprehensive testing. With its efficient test case management capabilities, the solution facilitates test execution and automation, ultimately delivering dependable and precise results for contactless access systems.

Our test solution serves as a vital tool for automotive companies and device manufacturers engaged in the digital key implementation process.

CCC Digital Key Certification

The Car Connectivity Consortium unveiled its CCC Digital Key Certification for the Digital Key based on NFC, aiming to establish worldwide compatibility for vehicle and mobile digital key apps using consistent standards and validated tools. COMPRION is the provider of the validated mandatory CCC End-to-End Interoperability Test Tool for NFC.

CCC Digital Key NFC Test Cases

CCC Digital Key NFC Test Cases

All required CCC Digital Key NFC End-to-End Interoperability test cases are integrated into a comprehensive test bench that forms the core of COMPRION’s CCC Digital Key Test Solution. Built on COMPRION’s established CL Verify A hardware and Device Test Center test management platform, it enables comprehensive testing of CCC Digital Key implementations based on NFC.

Validated by the CCC, the solution supports both automotive development processes and CCC-defined conformance testing.

Setup

This diagram illustrates the test setup orchestrated by an operator. The operator is auditing the End-to-End (E2E) interoperability tests according to the certification program.

Software components:

NFC log viewer
Displays the NFC protocol with translation into human readable format
Test Framework
Test plan management software running test cases

Hardware components:

NFC Sniffer
NFC traffic monitoring over the air using a spy antenna
NFC Disturb Unit
Jamming communication, causing a deliberate error

NFC Test Cases

The test cases comprehensively verify the NFC protocol and evaluate whether the expected behavior and message patterns occur at the correct time. They cover the following areas:

Owner pairing test cases, including test cases for error handling.
Door transaction test cases, including test cases for error handling and friend device handling.
Console transaction test cases.
Key management test cases for owner and friend digital key termination (offline/online).

Components

The CCC Digital Key Test Solution for NFC includes the following components that together enable comprehensive testing and verification of NFC-based car access solutions:

CL Verify A
COMPRION's contactless testing tool for validation of contactless interface design.
Device Test Center
Sophisticated test plan management software and NFC log viewer.
CCC Digital Key NFC End-to-End Interoperability Test Bench
WCC1 (NFC only) according to Car Connectivity Consortium specification.
A set of monitoring (spy), and disturb antennas.

CCC Digital Key BLE Test Cases

CCC Digital Key BLE Test Cases

Combined into a test bench, the CCC Digital Key BLE End-to-End Interoperability Test Cases enable comprehensive monitoring and analysis of Bluetooth Digital Key communication. Our test solution processes HCI log files captured on the mobile device for detailed analysis. Alternatively, the solution provides an interface for connecting to an Ellisys Bluetooth Tracker as an optional third-party component. It supports the Digital Key engineering process by enabling detailed analysis and verification of product implementations.

Setup

This diagram illustrates the test setup orchestrated by an operator. The operator is auditing the End-to-End (E2E) interoperability tests according to the certification program. The operator can either use a recorded HCI log-file or use Ellisys Bluetooth Tracker for live capturing of BLE communication.

Software components:

BLE log viewer
Displays BLE protocol with translation into human readable format
Test Framework
Test plan management software running test cases

Optional hardware component:

BLE Tracker

BLE Test Cases

The test cases thoroughly examine the content of the BLE protocol. A result is generated based on whether the expected pattern matches at the correct time. The included test cases cover the following areas:

Owner Pairing
Passive Entry
Driving Readiness
RKE
Interoperability with Key Fob

Components

The following components are used to perform comprehensive testing and verification of Bluetooth Low Energy-based car access solutions:

Device Test Center
Sophisticated test plan management software and BLE log viewer.
CCC Digital Key End-to-End Interoperability Test Bench
WCC2 (BLE only) according to Car Connectivity Consortium specification.
Ellisys' Bluetooth Tracker (optional)
Supports integration with the Ellisys Bluetooth Tracker for monitoring and analysis. The tracker is available separately.

NFC Forum CR15 Explained

Testing Additional Requirements for Apple Car Key MFi

Certifying a Digital Key according to Apple’s Car Key MFi program also requires extensive testing of NFC aspects. COMPRION automates complex measurement procedures for key aspects of Apple Car Key development, helping automotive suppliers and manufacturers reduce manual effort and obtain consistent, traceable test results.

COMPRION provides a test solution for selected test cases of the Car Key program, for which tool-based testing is most beneficial, including required measurement hardware and a robot for automation. Our solution automates complex positioning and measurement processes, eliminating the error-prone need to perform hundreds of measurements manually.

Test Areas

COMPRION translates the relevant Apple CarKey testing requirements into test cases, organized into three test areas. They automate complex NFC measurements and provide reproducible, traceable results. The test areas cover the performance of NFC readers, the timing behavior required for reliable device detection and communication, as well as NFC functional tests:

Operating Volume: Automated testing of NFC communication at defined positions, orientations, and distances.
Polling Timing: Measurement and evaluation of relevant NFC timing parameters for door handle readers and center consoles.
NFC Functional Test Cases: capture the NFC trace data, required by apple.

NFC Reader Compatibility Operating Volume Test Cases

NFC Reader Compatibility Operating Volume Test Cases

Testing NFC communication across the complete operating volume of a vehicle reader requires measurements at numerous positions, orientations, and distances. Manual testing quickly becomes time-consuming and difficult to reproduce.

COMPRION automates the positioning and measurement process using the Design Validation Center software. A robot guides the Apple reference devices through precisely defined measurement points around the reader, enabling consistent and reproducible testing at more than 590 positions.

Components

The setup required for the NFC Reader Compatibility Operating Volume Test Cases includes the following components that together enable automated and comprehensive testing according to Apple's requirements:

CL Verify A
COMPRION's test hardware for validation of contactless interface design.
Design Validation Center
COMPRION’s advanced software for NFC Measurement Volume design and 3D visualization of NFC-fields.
A set of NFC monitoring antennas.
Dobot Nova 2
6-axis robot for automated and precise positioning.
CL Quantify (optional)
Digital storage oscilloscope.

LPCD & Polling Timing Test Cases

Quick NFC Signal Analysis with the Integrated Digital Oscilloscope

LPCD and Polling Timing Test Cases

LPCD and polling behavior are key parameters for NFC-based vehicle access. Verifying the relevant timing parameters traditionally requires an oscilloscope and manual evaluation of measurement results.

COMPRION integrates the required oscilloscope functionality into its test hardware based on CL Verify A. The Device Test Center software automatically performs the measurement and evaluation, eliminating the need for a separate oscilloscope and reducing manual effort.

Components

The Digital Key Test Solution for the Timing Polling Test Cases includes the following components:

CL Verify A
COMPRION's test hardware for validation of contactless interface design.
Device Test Center
COMPRION's advanced test case execution software for managing test plans.
A set of NFC monitoring antennas.

NFC Functional Test Cases

NFC Functional Testing

As part of its MFi Program, Apple mandates the use of COMPRION’s TraceCase. TraceCase is a contactless test tool for capturing and analyzing NFC communication. The included TraceCase Viewer software provides powerful visualization and analysis of recorded analog and digital signals in the lab.

For more information about TraceCase and its use, please visit the product website:

TraceCase

Building on the CCC Digital Key Test Solution

Apple Car Key testing builds on many of the same NFC test principles and hardware already used for CCC Digital Key. COMPRION extends its established CCC Digital Key Test Solution with dedicated Apple Car Key test cases, allowing existing test environments to be leveraged for additional testing requirements.

Already using a COMPRION CCC Digital Key test solution? Talk to our experts about extending an existing test environment with Apple CarKey testing capabilities.

NFC Forum CR15 Explained

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