First baseline safety assessment for ASIL D Linux
Codethink in the UK has published the first baseline Safety Assessment report for its Linux operating system to ASIL D.
The report validates the safety argument for using Codethink Trustable Reproducible Linux (CTRL OS) in safety-critical and mixed-criticality systems up to the highest level of ASIL D for automotive and SIL3 for industrial. This independently confirms that Codethink’s approach satisfies the expectations of the IEC 61508 standard for industrial applications and ISO 26262 for automotive.
The objective-based approach developed by Codethink in Manchester means that the safety argument and the evidence to support it are built and maintained alongside the software. This simplifies the safety case validation and certification for the systems running the OS.
“We are concentrating on the real work of engineering safety, security, and reliability, not just chasing certificates by following a standard,” said Paul Sherwood, Codethink’s Chairman. “This all boils down to trust. How can we trust software to do what we expect, and how can we trust our mitigations when things go wrong?”
The development of CRTL OS was driven by customer demand for a safe Linux automotive platform and now extends beyond the operating system to integration of critical software stacks, where the re-use of mature open source components can significantly reduce costs versus proprietary software, and reduce engineering risks versus creating new software from scratch.
This is a key capability for software-defined vehicles and an area where companies such as Ford have struggled significantly. There are several other suppliers providing safety versions of Linux., such as elektrobit with EB Corbos Linux and Green Hills Software with Automotive Grade Linux. Lynx also provides automotive Linux in its aerospace-focused MOSA.ic framework.
- Linux and software containers in the vehicle
- Functional safety assessment for automotive Linux
- NXP in major software defined vehicle push
“Trust is fundamental to modern technology, and Codethink’s approach to trustable software is groundbreaking,” said Jonathan Moore, Director of Advanced Systems at certification firm Exida, which has previously certified the development toolchain to ISO26262 . “Their rigorous Trustable Software Framework methodology sets a new benchmark for how safety and assurance can be engineered into complex, open source–based systems from day one.”
Codethink joined the open source Eclipse Foundation back in January and CTRL OS is delivered in alignment with the Eclipse Trustable Software Framework to create transparent, open foundations for safety-certified systems.
This assessment shows the way for any product company building safety-critical systems to adopt mature open source components such as Linux with confidence.
If you enjoyed this article, you will like the following ones: don't miss them by subscribing to :
