As the multi-tiered automotive supply chain becomes increasingly complex, software and connected services become increasingly important. This, combined with higher safety awareness on the part of consumers and the ongoing threat of car hacking, has led automobile manufacturers to place higher expectations on software developers to reduce the risks associated with both functional safety and security vulnerabilities.
To this end, LDRA— software quality experts in the areas of functional safety, security, and standards compliance—has worked with General Motors for more than two years to implement new technologies used by GM for software component validation and verification. The specification enables suppliers to more easily and cost-effectively develop high assurance software by automating the process of complying with coding standards most appropriate for the end user applications ranging from multimedia and infotainment to powertrain and body electronics. These application areas have very different demands on the software development and verification teams, as well as the desired technology and software development languages used to realize these applications. The LDRA tool suite automates and simplifies the process of software quality analysis and verification in each of these domains and as a result, reduces the qualification time frame and effort while reducing risk and cost.
LDRA is focused on helping members of the automotive manufacturing community work together to comply with industry standards and OEM functional safety processes. LDRA has made a significant step toward this goal by incorporating the GM coding standards within the LDRA tool suite for Automotive, which helps suppliers comply with GM’s component validation and verification specification. While the final responsibility for certification lies with the automobile manufacturer, OEMs and suppliers face significant challenges managing distributed teams, reducing time to market, and containing compliance costs. Improved collaboration and communication between OEMs and suppliers at the software development level can help suppliers achieve compliance more quickly, shorten time to market, lower costs, and improve software quality.
Supplier requirements
Each automotive application has differing safety and security needs, and suppliers must adapt to the specific needs and meet the highest safety and security levels defined by industry and OEM standards. For instance, multimedia and infotainment applications such as GPS, in-vehicle connectivity, back-up cameras, and security systems, are dynamic in nature and rely on advanced software development languages, like C/C++ and Java. Powertrain and body electronics applications typically use the C programming language, as they are more statically oriented and safety-critical by nature. A failure of these components can result in physical harm or loss of life. By mitigating risk earlier in the development cycle and relying on stringent static analysis requirements that are more prescriptive in nature, developers can ensure that code is functionally safe.
Developers must also ensure they are meeting a variety of industry standards, depending on the application and target market. They include:
- AUTOSAR, an open and standardized software architecture for automotive electronic control units (ECUs)
- SAE J3061, an engineering process for designing and building cybersecurity into vehicle systems
- ISO 26262, an international standard for functional safety in electronic systems in vehicles
- MISRA, a set of software development coding standard for the C programming language that safety, security, portability, and reliability
“Because drivers and passengers alike are dependent on increasingly sophisticated electronics for vehicle performance, driver assistance, infotainment, and other advanced capabilities, car manufacturers have stepped up demands that suppliers deliver software that will function safely and without security vulnerabilities,” said Steve Hoffenberg, Director and Industry Analyst for IoT and Embedded Technology at VDC Research. “Software developers face the challenge of adhering to industry standards while meeting the tight deadlines of a multi-tiered supply chain.”
The LDRA tool suite for Automotive helps address the challenges suppliers face in developing software that meets such stringent automotive standards. It does this by automating the process of complying with industry and coding standards to ensure that progress from one stage to another is seamless. By providing GM suppliers a tool suite that fully integrates the GM coding standards, LDRA enables GM suppliers to streamline their verification process, improve communication with GM itself, and reduce potentially thousands of hours of documentation effort.
“Because Automotive OEMs recognize that safety and security are tightly coupled, they are applying pressure on software suppliers to adhere to strict development standards,” said Ian Hennell, Operations Director, LDRA. “The big-picture challenge for all suppliers is to do this in a cost-effective manner. Now, at least for GM and its suppliers, there is a solution. By automating the compliance process according to GM’s guidelines, we can ensure that suppliers have a cost-effective way to address GM’s safety and security requirements.”
Webinar: Leveraging LDRA to Help GM Suppliers Achieve Functional Safety and Security
Presented by LDRA and GM’s Software Validation Technical Integration Engineer John Theofanopoulos, this webinar will describe how GM is working with its suppliers to produce the industry’s highest quality software and, more specifically, how GM suppliers can leverage the LDRA tool suite to cost-effectively address the requirements of functional safety and security for GM.
Date: September 6, 2018
Time: 11am – 12pm EDT
Register: Leveraging LDRA to Help GM Suppliers Achieve Functional Safety and Security
