Effect Analysis of the Introduction of AUTOSAR: A Systematic Literature Review

Many complex software-intensive systems have a long life time, and undergo substantial evolution. These evolutions are either additions of functionality or system refactoring, i.e., updating the architecture to improve quality attributes without changing functionality. However, the return of investment for such a system refactoring is not easily measured due to a lack of understanding of its effects. In order to improve our understanding of these effects, we have conducted a systematic literature review of the reported effects of one such refactoring: the introduction of AUTOSAR, an open automotive software architecture standard. The effects include both benefits, like lower complexity and more efficient system development, and costs, like performance risks. We have investigated how the effects depend on different elements in AUTOSAR, and how the reports correspond to the stated objectives of the standard. It is also discussed to what extent these effects can be generalized to other types of refactoring.