Professional Articles

The certification of the functional safety of a system is complex. All the manufacturers involved have to contribute to comply with standards - from the hardware with its BSPs and drivers, through the hypervisor and operating system, to the application code of the OEM and third-party supplier. The operating system, which is optimized specifically for the hardware, and the hypervisor used in mixed-critical systems have a key function here - lying between the hardware and the application. If this…

Hybrid system-on-chips increasingly integrate heterogeneous processors. However, developers see them as one component that they want to develop as integrated as possible. A homogeneous RTOS and hypervisor ecosystem for both MPU- and MMU-supported processors provides the critical convenience gain.

When developing embedded systems that are to be real-time capable, one of the first and most important questions is whether the applications should run under a real-time operating system (RTOS) or whether a bare-metal solution should be developed. Bare-metal programming is generally understood to mean that an application is written directly on the hardware without using an external programming interface, i.e. an operating system. Applications access here directly hardware registers of…

The electronic systems such as the anti-lock braking system inside a modern car are able to take control of critical systems such as the steering and braking gears. This significantly increases functional safety during vehicle operation, but at the same time also creates the risk of unauthorized access. Consequently, the functional safety of a vehicle must be supported by IT security measures. Real-time applications require deterministic response times, which can only be achieved with the help…

The ISO 26262 safety standard is a specialization of the general IEC 61508 functional safety standard and defines generic (software) applications and generic (hardware) products that can receive independent certification for automotive applications. When building a complex safety system, such commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) products can be reused, including their existing certification artifacts. With this approach, safety-related electronics can be assembled from pre-certified software and…

Functional security and cybersecurity are among the most important issues in the development of modern vehicles, and the certification of individual systems will become increasingly important in the future. Developers must therefore increasingly work according to the "Safety & Security by Design" principle. Real-time operating systems based on a separation kernel enable new approaches.

In many applications in the railways, aircraft or automotive industry the interaction between safety and security is of particular importance, since there are many dependencies between them and they can therefore no longer be considered separately.

The cost-effective and safe implementation of assistance systems and autonomous cars requires a new approach to development of the control components. The objective is to integrate diverse applications on one hardware platform, but - for safety reasons - to be able to continue operating them fully independently.

Alongside electromobility, driver assistance systems and autonomous driving are currently the most important focal points in automotive development. Today, many functions in automobiles are already fully or partially automated; driver assistance systems such as distance warning systems, rear-view cameras or parking aids are finding their way into series production of even small and medium-sized vehicles. Fully autonomous cars, buses and even trucks are in test operation on public roads; the…

What steps led to the creation of a heterogeneous overall system that meets the functional safety requirements defined in ISO 26262?