SOTIF (ISO 21448:2022 )

Overview of SOTIF

SOTIF is the safety of the intended functionality which is a shorthand for the new ISO 21448:2022 international standard. SOTIF is related to the reasonably foreseeable misuse of the function by the driver or to the functional insufficiencies or performance limitations of vehicle sub-systems. There are different methods for the qualitative analysis of the functional insufficiencies to ensure SOTIF for new E/E automotive systems.

The rapid development of technology for autonomous vehicles has put the automakers in a challenging position- to rethink safety standards from several perspectives. The future is bright for self-driving-vehicles, yet the technology that utilizes complex and driverless vehicles can be fatal, despite numerous safety checks. Applying the SOTIF standard to autonomous vehicles will greatly reduce such risks, as SOTIF is expected to be a widely accepted standard by the industry.

Safety of the Intended Function Application

Safety of the Intended Function or SOTIF studies the performance limitations or insufficient situational awareness with or without reasonably foreseeable misuse. ISO 26262 covers only the functional safety aspects due to malfunctions in systems and does not include safety hazards that take place without system failures. Thus the need to implement ISO 21448:2022 .

SOTIF addresses hazards resulting from functional insufficiencies or performance limitations in some vehicle sub-systems, from operational situations involving other vehicles, and from reasonably foreseeable misuse by persons.

Companies that implement or are ready to implement SOTIF should know to:

Benefits

The SOTIF Standard addresses the safety of autonomous vehicles including Artificial Intelligence(AI) and Machine Learning (ML) concepts that equally contribute to safe-driverless vehicles.

The standard assists in the design and verification of the systems that impact safety even in vehicles without component failures. SOTIF studies the performance limitations or insufficient situational awareness with or without reasonably foreseeable misuse and also hazards that arise in operational situations involving other vehicles.

This standard serves as a new approach to systematic failure analysis for the developers of autonomous vehicles. Though Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning concepts are contributing to the development of autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles, there are still safety challenges addressed by SOTIF which need to be overcome for the automakers. Using SOTIF in the automotive industry helps at the design stage to develop a safe product including the definition of verification and validation measures. Applying these measures helps you achieve safety in situations where the system does not exhibit any malfunctions.