Case Study: Tata Motors achieves major cost savings and rapid EMS validation for the Nano with MathWorks Model-Based Design

Tata Motors Develops Engine Management System for Tata Nano, the World’s Least Expensive Car

TATA Motors needed to design a completely new engine management system for the ultra‑low‑cost Tata Nano under tight cost, emissions, safety, and schedule constraints, and brought initial EMS development in‑house because vendor iterations would take too long. To accelerate development and reduce risk, they adopted MathWorks’ Model‑Based Design toolchain — using MATLAB, Simulink, Stateflow, and Simulink Coder — to model, simulate, and prototype control software before hardware was available.

Using MathWorks tools for SIL/HIL testing and rapid on‑target prototyping, TATA Motors iterated control algorithms quickly and generated production code, enabling them to eliminate two costly sensors, cut validation cycle time from weeks to about half a day, and prove prototype requirements before supplier selection. The MathWorks‑enabled solution met cost, safety, and Bharat Stage IV emissions targets and led Tata to expand use of MathWorks products for production code generation.

TATA Motors

S Govindarajan

Deputy General Manager of the Advanced Engineering Group