[wolpoli]

I don't have any experience in the automotive sector. But when you say that the development of control algorithms for the engine are visual, I immediately thought finite state machine. My question: Are they finite state machines or is there more to it than that?

[gmadsen]

Depending on how complex, it would be a hybrid system. You have finite discrete states, but also continuous dynamics that need to be controlled (like a PID)

Control systems have always been designed in a connected box fashion. Before gui software existed. Visual coding is just an extension of what was being done on a blackboard