The function of functional safety: IEC 61508 for industrial and ISO 26262 for automotive

Besides providing an entertaining start, the presenter made a good point. The function of the safety measure needs to be defined in order to be effective. One definition of a safe plane, for example, could be one that cannot fly. Or the safest match could be one that cannot ignite, or stab in this case. After all, it is called functional safety.

Four ways to simplify functional safety

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication,” Leonardo DaVinci once said. Sometimes I have to agree. Everyone who has dealt with functional safety standards knows that they can be complicated. After reading more than 1,000 pages and meanings that can sometimes appear arbitrary, it’s entirely possible to feel more like a lawyer than an engineer. This is understandable though since both hardware and software from the microcontroller to the end system needs to be considered. There’s no getting around it, achieving functional safety system compliance is time consuming. Therefore any simplification of functional safety compliance will save a company time and money, and this is what Freescale’s SafeAssure functional safety program is designed to do.

Freescale launched the SafeAssure program last September to help system manufacturers more easily achieve compliance with functional safety standards, including IEC 61508 and ISO 26262 for the automotive and industrial markets. This assistance is accomplished by focusing on four main areas, see figure below.

The safety process is one of the first areas that needs to be addressed. We all know that functional safety is more than just passing a few additional tests at the end of a build. That is why Freescale is making functional safety an integral part of its product development process. Microcontrollers like the PXS20 for industrial and the Qorivva MPC564xL for automotive were designed from the ground up to comply with functional safety standards, with additional safety tests and analysis throughout the product development.

With functional safety hardware it’s all about detecting and mitigating faults. Freescale offers a vast breadth of safety hardware to cover many functional safety applications including: single-chip dual core microcontroller safety solutions, analog devices, and sensors. Check out the comprehensive list of hardware in the SafeAssure functional safety program.

With functional safety, systems hardware and software need to work seamlessly together. This is why Freescale has developed its own software and partnered with industry leading third-party partners to offer a robust safety software offering. The automotive team has developed the AUTOSAR OS, and the industrial team is partnering with Green Hills Software and Sciopta to assist in functional safety compliance.

Freescale understands that more is required of a company than just handing over a piece of silicon. That’s why the fourth element of the SafeAssure approach is safety support. Freescale is putting regional functional safety experts around the world for customer support as well as teaming up with expert training partners. Support documentation is offered for SafeAssure products like detailed safety manuals and dynamic failure modes, effects and diagnostic analysis.

The truth is functional safety will never be easy, but easier is possible.

You may also be interested in this recent white paper on addressing the challenges of functional safety in the automotive and industrial markets.

As this is a new topic area that I’m covering on the Embedded Beat, I think it is fitting to explain its function. I’ll cover various aspects of industrial functional safety including, hardware, software, safety standards, tools, challenges, current events, and industry trends. While I will not be stabbing fruit, I do hope to provide an interesting point of view and foster some discussion around industrial functional safety. — Aaron