Software Testing Techniques for Improving the Quality of Smart-Home IoT Systems

Abstract

Software is present in any modern device and is one of the most important components of a new product. IoT systems for smart homes have become more popular in recent years, and testing these systems using advanced methods is very important because it should improve software quality from the beginning of development, resulting in a faster product development overall and a better user experience for the client. In this paper, we describe methods of how to build fast quality assurance software for automation testing in comparison with current trends. Those methods are applicable to teams that are using custom test automation frameworks and working in big projects. The methods have already been applied with success in testing infotainment systems in the automotive industry and our custom-made smart-home IoT system. We will present the system and testing techniques used for testing web interfaces, mobile applications, cross-platform mobile applications, and backend using a new design pattern, called ‘Locate, Execute, Expect’. We compare this new design pattern against Page Object Model and will guide you on how to integrate it in an existing project or how to use it with Gherkin. In conclusion, we will see the main advantages of using this technique and how much faster it is in a real-life scenario, we will learn how it can replace Gherkin, and we will also see the main disadvantages.