Hardware as a Service (HaaS): Physical and virtual hardware on demand

Cloud computing has already been adopted in a broad range of application domains. However, domains like the distributed development of embedded systems are still unable to benefit from the advancements of cloud computing. Besides general security concerns, a common obstacle often is the incompatibility between such applications and the cloud. In particular, if applications need direct access to hardware elements, cloud computing cannot be used. In this paper we describe an approach of a novel cloud layer called Hardware as a Service (HaaS), which allows for usage distinct hardware components through the Internet analogously to the cloud services. HaaS focuses the transparent integration of remote hardware that is distributed over multiple geographical locations into an operating system. Furthermore, HaaS will not only enable interconnection of physical systems, but also virtual hardware emulation. Therefore, we consider in this paper only the use of emulated hardware and the interconnection with hardware models. To demonstrate the tremendous improvement by a Haas cloud, we explain the applicability in a distributed development process by an anti blocking system and an adaptive cruise control system in the automotive industry.