Automotive Software Expert Witnesses

Barr Group's experienced automotive software expert witnesses advise attorneys in product liability and intellectual property cases.  All of our experts in automotive systems technology have hands-on experience designing electronic systems for cars and trucks.  Barr Group experts have testified in high-profile multi-million dollar class action jury trials.

Need an expert for automotive litigation?  Contact us >

Electronic Automotive Systems

Motorcycles, cars, and trucks are increasingly powered by networks of embedded systems, each of which is a combination of software and electronics. Some modern vehicles have over one hundred processors and when even one of these electronic automotive systems malfunctions, the results can be deadly. Barr Group is in the business of designing reliable and secure computers and our team of expert software engineers, electrical engineers, and mechanical engineers is intimately familiar with electronic automotive subsystems including:

  • Engine control units (ECU) and transmissions
  • Anti-lock braking systems​ (ABS)
  • Navigation systems and GPS
  • Airbag controllers and electronic data recorders (EDR)
  • Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS)
  • Automotive vision systems and self-driving technologies
  • Other vehicle safety and security systems
  • In-vehicle infotainment (IVI) and telematics like OnStar
  • CAN busses and related SAE network protocols
  • Hybrid and electric vehicles and battery charging

Barr Group's software experts are familiar with all of the operating systems used by carmakers, including real-time operating systems like OSEK and QNX, and Android/Linux, as well as all programming languages such as assembly, C, C++, and Matlab.  And we are just as comfortable with electronic circuits and ASICs and the Verilog and VHDL languages.

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Expert Witness Services

Barr Group's automotive software experts support plaintiffs and defendants in litigation in U.S. District Courts, at the International Trade Commission (ITC), and before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). Our services include:

  • Technical assistance with drafting of discovery requests
  • Software source code review and analysis
  • Source code comparisons for copyright and trade secret theft
  • Analysis of electronics and related design documents
  • Prior art review for patent invalidity
  • Reverse engineering, including disassembly of binary code
  • Forensic analysis and accident reconstruction
  • Crash data retrieval and analysis
  • Expert reports, declarations, and witness statements
  • Testimony at deposition, oral hearings, and trials

Our experience with automotive litigation is extensive and includes source code analysis and testimony in the runaway Toyota economic loss and personal injury cases as well as in suits relating to excess VW diesel emissions, faulty MyFord Touch subsystems, and deadly GM ignition switches.

Barr Group has a demonstrated ability to quickly activate one or more code reviewers to match the size, scope, and complexity of any project.

How can we help you today? >

The following is a representative subset of Barr Group's experts who have experience designing and/or testifying about these technologies:

Automotive Systems
Full Title: 
Experts in Automotive Systems

Adaptive Control Systems Expert Profile

Mechanical and electrical engineering consultant and professor with decades of experience in systems for automated industrial control and intelligent transportation. Significant expertise in adaptive control and intelligent transportation systems as well as nonlinear systems, vehicle dynamics and control, marine transportation, and neural networks.

Vehicle Informatics & Safety Expert Profile

Independent consultant and electrical engineer with more than four decades of industry experience. Has significant experience in systems engineering, advanced technology development, enterprise software, strategic planning, and program/project management. Majority of career spent in automotive industry where he developed expertise in vehicle electrical and electronics systems, vehicle informatics systems, and vehicle safety and control systems. Also has experience with spacecraft electronics, communications systems, and mobile information technologies.

Battery Design & Testing Expert Profile

Experienced electrochemist, consultant, and adjunct professor of materials science and engineering. Has extensive experience in research and industry for battery electronics, including new product development, manufacturing and testing, applications engineering, as well as battery system design.

Battery Failure Electrochemistry Expert Profile

Chemist and consultant with four decades of experience in the area of electrochemical energy related devices, including batteries, capacitors, fuel cells, electrolysis and corrosion. Has significant expertise in laptop, cell phone, and e-cigarette batteries, electric vehicles, and other applications of electrochemical energy storage. Expert working knowledge of electronics and laboratory instrumentation as applied to the testing of batteries, chargers, and battery-powered devices.

Satellite & Cellular Base Station Expert Profile

Independent engineering consultant specializing in wireless cellular mobile technology and real-time embedded software development.

Energy Storage and Transfer Expert Profile

Professor of electrical and computer engineering with over twenty-five years of experience in materials science, systems engineering and design of microelectronics.

Connected Vehicle Telematics Expert Profile

A leader in the field of connected vehicle technologies with three decades of focus on accessing and processing data from vehicle sensors.

Vehicle Sensor & Electronics Expert Profile

Independent consultant and former professor of technical product management with decades of industry experience in automotive sensors, electronics, and systems.

Linux-Based Computer Systems Expert Profile

Former professor of computer science and independent engineering consultant and trainer with specialized technical knowledge in the internal structure of the Linux operating system.

Smartphone Software & Apps Expert Profile

Computer engineer and consultant with more than two decades of industry experience developing software for embedded systems and mobile apps powered by Android, Linux, Windows, and real-time operating systems such as VxWorks.

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Expert W425N

A leader in the field of connected vehicle technologies with three decades of focus on accessing...

Expert I500N

Mechanical and electrical engineering consultant and professor with decades of experience in...

Expert H555N

Automotive engineer with over twenty five years of experience in road and race vehicle...

Expert A536S

Independent consultant and electrical engineer with more than four decades of industry...

Expert Z261T

Chemist and consultant with four decades of experience in the area of electrochemical energy...

Expert S425N

Electrical engineer and expert in battery and power electronics technology with special...

Expert V534K

Experienced electrochemist, consultant, and adjunct professor of materials science and...

Expert H620K

Technology consultant with more than thirty years of experience in battery, materials, and...

Expert J525N

Experienced computer engineer and corporate information technology leader with a successful...

Expert J520S

Independent engineering consultant in the design of both electronics and software with a formal...

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Don't see the right expert for your project among this subset?

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Case Study: Runaway Toyotas

In support of automotive product liability lawsuits and a class action against Toyota, a team of Barr Group automotive software experts performed an extensive source code review of the engine control unit software for seven Toyota and Lexus models spanning the 2002 to 2010 model years. In analyzing these millions of lines of automotive software source code, the Barr Group team built upon a prior NASA review and concluded they'd found what NASA's engineers sought: “a systematic software malfunction in the Main CPU."

But what did the jury decide? >