Functional Safety Management in Microcontroller Design and Development Process: the Case of Safety-Critical Vehicle Systems

Abstract

Safety is always the key issue in automotive industry. The adoption of hi-tech automotive applications requires not only the development of reliable electrical/electronic/programmable electronic (E/E/PE) systems and communication protocols, but also an evolution in functional safety process management. ISO/WD 26262, the adaption of IEC 61508 for road vehicles, provides guidelines and standardized measurements for functional safety. This paper discusses how automotive microcontroller suppliers can deal with this new challenge by integrating functional safety management into product design and development. An ISO/WD 26262-compliant functional safety management flow is proposed, with specifications on techniques of corresponding safety assessment.