editor's blog
Subscribe Now

Toyota Unintended Acceleration

The Toyota Unintended Acceleration case has seen a lot of discussion, but much of it is, to put it mildly, not terribly well informed.  Last week at the UK’s High Integrity Software conference (look at the slides here http://his-2015.co.uk/slides )  I heard an authoritative speaker.  Prof. Philip Koopman is regularly asked to act as an expert witness on behalf of people claiming against Toyota, and acted as such in the Bookout/Schwarz trial in 2013 when a jury decided that that defects in Toyota’s Electronic Throttle Control System (ETCS) software and safety architecture caused a fatal mishap. 

As Phil is involved in on-going litigation he has to be very careful in what he says, and his talk is carefully prepared.  He has put the slides, and a video, on his website http://betterembsw.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/a-case-study-of-toyota-unintended.html

If you have a few minutes to spare it is well worth a visit (sa is the rest of his site). If nothing else it will cause you to have severe qualms about the way in which the software was developed and the way in which people can interpret the result of investigations. I think it also raises serious questions about using normal court proceedings to get to the root of technical issues.

Leave a Reply

featured blogs
Nov 30, 2023
No one wants to waste unnecessary time in the model creation phase when using a modeling software. Rather than expect users to spend time trawling for published data and tediously model equipment items one by one from scratch, modeling software tends to include pre-configured...
Nov 27, 2023
See how we're harnessing generative AI throughout our suite of EDA tools with Synopsys.AI Copilot, the world's first GenAI capability for chip design.The post Meet Synopsys.ai Copilot, Industry's First GenAI Capability for Chip Design appeared first on Chip Design....
Nov 6, 2023
Suffice it to say that everyone and everything in these images was shot in-camera underwater, and that the results truly are haunting....

featured video

Dramatically Improve PPA and Productivity with Generative AI

Sponsored by Cadence Design Systems

Discover how you can quickly optimize flows for many blocks concurrently and use that knowledge for your next design. The Cadence Cerebrus Intelligent Chip Explorer is a revolutionary, AI-driven, automated approach to chip design flow optimization. Block engineers specify the design goals, and generative AI features within Cadence Cerebrus Explorer will intelligently optimize the design to meet the power, performance, and area (PPA) goals in a completely automated way.

Click here for more information

featured webinar

Rapid Learning: Purpose-Built MCU Software Tools for Data-Driven Embedded IoT Systems

Sponsored by ITTIA

Are you developing an MCU application that captures data of all kinds (metrics, events, logs, traces, etc.)? Are you ready to reduce the difficulties and complications involved in developing an event- and data-centric embedded system? This webinar will quickly introduce you to excellent MCU-specific software options for developing your next-generation data-driven IoT systems. You will also learn how to recognize and overcome data management obstacles. Register today as seats are limited!

Register Now!

featured chalk talk

Portenta C33
Sponsored by Mouser Electronics and Arduino and Renesas
In this episode of Chalk Talk, Marta Barbero from Arduino, Robert Nolf from Renesas, and Amelia Dalton explore how the Portenta C33 module can help you develop cost-effective, real-time applications. They also examine how the Arduino ecosystem supports innovation throughout the development lifecycle and the benefits that the RA6M5 microcontroller from Renesas brings to this solution.  
Nov 8, 2023
2,826 views