Safety hazard identification of inspection and maintenance operations for Automated Driving Systems in Mobility as a Service

Camila Correa-Jullian, John McCullough, Marilia Ramos, Ali Mosleh, and Jiaqi Ma presented a paper titled, “Safety hazard identification of inspection and maintenance operations for Automated Driving Systems in Mobility as a Service” at the 33rd European Safety and Reliability Conference (ESREL) at the University of Southampton, United Kingdom, on 3 -7 September 2023. This paper is within the framework of project titled, “Operational Safety for Level 4 Automated Driving System Fleets” at the Safety and Reliability of Autonomous Systems research unit at the Garrick Institute. 

Abstract: Cooperative decision-making between humans and automated agents operating at various levels of autonomy (LoA) is an increasing trend observed across multiple industries and research areas. Assessing emerging properties and unintended behaviors in complex engineering systems is key to developing policies to prevent and mitigate risks during operation stages. An aspect often overlooked in analyses of autonomous system operation is developing and enforcing adequate inspection and maintenance policies. In this work, the Concurrent Task Analysis (CoTA) method is used to analyze the operation of a Level 4 Automated Driving System (L4 ADS) fleet employed for Mobility as a Service (MaaS). The method is employed to define tasks and responsibilities key to supporting the safe operation of the ADS vehicles based on a functional breakdown of the system, the development of operational scenarios, and the identification of safety hazards. The CoTA describes the interaction between distinct fleet operator agents (e.g., fleet monitoring and vehicle maintenance), identifies critical tasks, and traces cascading and latent failures between them. This paper presents the CoTA of the inspection and maintenance operational phases and discusses the safety implications on the fleet operator’s safety responsibilities to ensure adequate operation of the ADS fleet. 

ESREL is the annual event in the area of reliability analysis, risk assessment, risk management and optimization of the safety performance of socio-technological systems. This conference runs under the auspices of the European Safety and Reliability Association (ESRA, https://esra.website/). It is not only an event of scientific excellence but also an occasion for the community of safety and reliability specialists to meet in the spirit of conviviality in the broadest sense.

Selected papers contributed to a Special issue in the journal of Reliability Engineering and Systems Safety and in the Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part O: Journal of Risk and Reliability.