IEC 61508

On 14 August ESC’s Ron Bell OBE (Director) and Dr Fan Ye (Principal Consultant) made a contribution to a research project titled “RoboTest” being undertaken at the Computer Science Department at the University of York in collaboration with the Department of Electronic Engineering, the University of Sheffield, and the University of Surrey.

RoboTest is focused on the systematic model-based testing and simulation of mobile autonomous robots. The objective of the one-day course was to provide the researchers with an overview of the functional safety aspects that would need to be addressed to comply with IEC 61508 requirements. There was much discussion on key topic areas and a general consensus that knowledge of the requirements in IEC 61508 and other related standards were important to ensure an effective transition from research into viable products.

Professors Ana Cavalcanti and Jim Woodcock, who are leading the project in the Department of Computer Science at York and attended the course, said of the one-day event “A goal of RoboTest is to develop techniques to produce, alongside a controller software, evidence of the quality and safety of the application. Understanding regulations and requirements for assurance is essential for us to identify and pursue the right pathways to impact in our society. The opportunity to learn from those who are in the front line developing and applying the relevant standards was a real privilege. The course was comprehensive, clear, and authoritative; the discussions were very interesting and illuminating. Collaborators from all institutions involved in RoboTest attended the course, and we are very enthusiastic about the prospects of what we can achieve in RoboTest in the context of the IEC 61508 requirements.”.