The invention relates to a method for checking arrangements of interlinked control devices in the development phase of motor vehicles. It is the object of the invention to find a method which permits networks of control devices to be improved to the extent that the arrangement of interlinked control devices is already made possible before the production of a prototype of the vehicle. A testing arrangement of the control devices is formed and the behaviour of the control devices in the testing arrangement is subsequently investigated. The testing arrangement in this case corresponds to the later arrangement insofar as the electrical connections of the control devices are equivalent to the connection of the control devices in the vehicle. The control variables, which are acquired by sensors in the vehicle and are transmitted to input interfaces of the control devices, are calculated in the testing arrangement by a real-time computer and communicated to the input interfaces. For this purpose, the actuating signals which are generated in the control devices and are output via the output interface are communicated to the real-time computer. On the basis of the actuating signals and a vehicle model, the control variables are determined by the real-time computer. In this case, the control devices must also be fed with control variables which can be influenced at will in the vehicle by the driver, such as, for example, control variables representing the accelerator pedal setting and the brake pedal setting.
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