Click on a search word OR use the drop-down choices to search for a paper.
2020
Annable, Nicholas
A Model-Based Approach to Formal Assurance Cases Masters Thesis
McMaster University, 2020.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: safety assurance, software engineering
@mastersthesis{Annable2020,
title = {A Model-Based Approach to Formal Assurance Cases},
author = {Annable, Nicholas},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/11375/25343},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-03-20},
school = {McMaster University},
abstract = {The rapidly increasing complexity of safety-critical embedded systems has been the cause of difficulty in assuring the safety of safety-critical embedded systems and managing their documentation. More specifically, current approaches to safety assurance are struggling to keep up with the complex relationships be- tween the ever growing number of components and the sheer amount of code underlying safety-critical embedded systems such as road vehicles. We believe that an approach to safety assurance able to cope with this complexity must: i) have sound mathematical foundations on which safety assurance can be built; and ii) provide a formal framework with precisely defined semantics in which the assurance can be represented. In doing this, assurance can be made less ad-hoc, more precise and more repeatable. Sound mathematical foundations also facilitate the creation of tools that automate many aspects of assurance, which will be invaluable in coping with the complexity of modern-day and future embedded systems. The model-based framework that achieves this is + Workflow . This framework is rigorous, developed on proven notations from model-based methodologies, comprehensively integrates assurance within the development activities, and provides the basis for more formal assurance cases.},
keywords = {safety assurance, software engineering},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {mastersthesis}
}
The rapidly increasing complexity of safety-critical embedded systems has been the cause of difficulty in assuring the safety of safety-critical embedded systems and managing their documentation. More specifically, current approaches to safety assurance are struggling to keep up with the complex relationships be- tween the ever growing number of components and the sheer amount of code underlying safety-critical embedded systems such as road vehicles. We believe that an approach to safety assurance able to cope with this complexity must: i) have sound mathematical foundations on which safety assurance can be built; and ii) provide a formal framework with precisely defined semantics in which the assurance can be represented. In doing this, assurance can be made less ad-hoc, more precise and more repeatable. Sound mathematical foundations also facilitate the creation of tools that automate many aspects of assurance, which will be invaluable in coping with the complexity of modern-day and future embedded systems. The model-based framework that achieves this is + Workflow . This framework is rigorous, developed on proven notations from model-based methodologies, comprehensively integrates assurance within the development activities, and provides the basis for more formal assurance cases.
2019
Kokaly, Sahar
Managing Assurance Cases in Model Based Software Systems PhD Thesis
McMaster University, 2019.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Automotive Safety, Model Based Systems, Model Driven Engineering, safety assurance, software
@phdthesis{Kokaly2019,
title = {Managing Assurance Cases in Model Based Software Systems},
author = {Kokaly, Sahar},
url = {https://www.mcscert.ca/kokaly_sahar_201904_phd/},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-04-30},
school = {McMaster University},
abstract = {Software has emerged as a significant part of many domains, including financial service platforms, social networks, medical devices and vehicle control. In critical domains, standards organizations have responded to this by creating regulations to address issues such as safety, security and privacy. In this context, compliance of software with standards has emerged as a key issue. For companies, compliance is a complex and costly goal to achieve and is often accomplished by producing so-called assurance cases, which demonstrate that the system indeed satisfies the property imposed by a standard (e.g., safety, security, privacy) by linking evidence to support claims made about the system. However, as systems undergo evolution for a variety of reasons, including fixing bugs, adding functionality or improving system quality, maintaining assurance cases multiplies the effort. Increasingly, models and model-driven engineering are being used as a means to facilitate communication and collaboration between the stakeholders in the compliance value chain and, further, to introduce automation into regulatory compliance tasks. A complexity problem also exists with the proliferation of software models in model-based software development, and the field of Model Management has emerged to address this challenge. Model Management focuses on a high-level view in which entire models and their relationships (i.e., mappings between models) can be manipulated using specialized operators to achieve useful outcomes. In this thesis, we exploit this connection between model driven engineering and regulatory compliance, and explore how to use Model Management techniques to address software compliance management issues, focusing on assurance case change impact assessment, evolution and reuse. We support the presented approach with tooling and a case study. Although the main contributions of this thesis are not domain specific, for validation, we ground our approaches in the automotive domain and the ISO 26262 standard for functional safety of road vehicles.},
keywords = {Automotive Safety, Model Based Systems, Model Driven Engineering, safety assurance, software},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {phdthesis}
}
Software has emerged as a significant part of many domains, including financial service platforms, social networks, medical devices and vehicle control. In critical domains, standards organizations have responded to this by creating regulations to address issues such as safety, security and privacy. In this context, compliance of software with standards has emerged as a key issue. For companies, compliance is a complex and costly goal to achieve and is often accomplished by producing so-called assurance cases, which demonstrate that the system indeed satisfies the property imposed by a standard (e.g., safety, security, privacy) by linking evidence to support claims made about the system. However, as systems undergo evolution for a variety of reasons, including fixing bugs, adding functionality or improving system quality, maintaining assurance cases multiplies the effort. Increasingly, models and model-driven engineering are being used as a means to facilitate communication and collaboration between the stakeholders in the compliance value chain and, further, to introduce automation into regulatory compliance tasks. A complexity problem also exists with the proliferation of software models in model-based software development, and the field of Model Management has emerged to address this challenge. Model Management focuses on a high-level view in which entire models and their relationships (i.e., mappings between models) can be manipulated using specialized operators to achieve useful outcomes. In this thesis, we exploit this connection between model driven engineering and regulatory compliance, and explore how to use Model Management techniques to address software compliance management issues, focusing on assurance case change impact assessment, evolution and reuse. We support the presented approach with tooling and a case study. Although the main contributions of this thesis are not domain specific, for validation, we ground our approaches in the automotive domain and the ISO 26262 standard for functional safety of road vehicles.
2018
Diskin, Zinovy; Maibaum, Tom; Wassyng, Alan; Wynn-Williams, Stephen; Lawford, Mark
Assurance via model transformations and their hierarchical refinement Proceedings Article
In: Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Models Driven Engineering Languages and Systems, MODELS 2018, Copenhagen, Denmark, October 14-19, 2018, pp. 426 - 436, ACM, 2018.
Links | BibTeX | Tags: assurance case, block diagram, decomposition, model transformation, safety assurance, substitution
@inproceedings{Diskin2018,
title = {Assurance via model transformations and their hierarchical refinement},
author = {Zinovy Diskin and Tom Maibaum and Alan Wassyng and Stephen Wynn-Williams and Mark Lawford},
url = {https://www.mcscert.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/p426-diskin-1.pdf},
year = {2018},
date = {2018-11-21},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Models Driven Engineering Languages and Systems, MODELS 2018, Copenhagen, Denmark, October 14-19, 2018},
pages = {426 - 436},
publisher = {ACM},
keywords = {assurance case, block diagram, decomposition, model transformation, safety assurance, substitution},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {inproceedings}
}
2015
Cassano, V; Grigorova, S; Singh, NK; Adedjouma, M; Lawford, M; Maibaum, TSE; Wassyng, A
Is Incremental Safety Assurance Sound? Conference
4th International Workshop on Next Generation of System Assurance Approaches for Safety-critical Systems (SASSUR) 2015.
Links | BibTeX | Tags: incremental safety, safety assurance
@conference{Cassano2015,
title = {Is Incremental Safety Assurance Sound?},
author = {Cassano, V and Grigorova, S and NK Singh and M Adedjouma and M Lawford and TSE Maibaum and A Wassyng},
url = {http://mcscert.cas.mcmaster.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Cassano-et-al-2015-Incremental-Safety-Assurance-Sound-1.pdf},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-09-22},
pages = {397 - 408},
organization = {4th International Workshop on Next Generation of System Assurance Approaches for Safety-critical Systems (SASSUR)},
keywords = {incremental safety, safety assurance},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {conference}
}