The use of complex electronic systems in medical technology applications is constantly increasing. These systems are becoming increasingly important, particularly in the area of analyzing the progress of treatment, as they can be used to identify any deficits that may still exist. Although systems are now available from a number of manufacturers, they are not always applicable to all mobile problems, so approaches with adapted system technology must be used.

Ensuring the safety of human workers collaborating with industrial robots is paramount. This research work presents a novel approach by developing a safety-related intruder detection system for the operational zones of industrial robots, following the IEC 61508 standard and adopting the related redundant architecture. The hardware integrates light curtains and radar sensors in a dual-layer configuration, while the software utilizes a safety system-on-chip to implement real-time diagnostics and fault tolerance. Protecting employees and ensuring a smooth and safe work environment are significant concerns for all companies. As a result, numerous standards and regulations have been established to provide safe collaboration between humans and machines. However, despite these measures, accidents continue to occur, resulting in varying degrees of injuries. The proposed system is depicted through a comprehensive schematic, emphasizing the integration of safety measures within the robotic environment. The detailed prototype demonstrates practical application, show-casing the system's ability to detect intrusions, initiate emergency responses, and transition to fail-safe states during component failures. This research work advances safety protocols in human-robot collaboration within industrial settings, fostering a safe working environment through a well-defined safety framework.

Dead times can manifest in various control systems, posing a challenge due to their limiting effect on the maximum allowable gain required for system stability. Consequently, researchers have developed various structure-based controllers to enhance control performance or mitigate the strong influences of the dead time component. Among these structures are the Smith Predictor, Generalized Predictive Controller (GPC), and fractional PID controllers. With the significant advancements in networking and communication technology, the application of networked control has gained importance. However, due to the diverse network characteristics, additional variable delays are challenging to avoid. Modern control engineering offers methods capable of significantly improving control performance, considering both theoretical and practical aspects.

Wireless communication is a key issue in many industrial and research areas. On one hand cables are not necessary anymore, and this reduces costs while it is getting much more flexible and information can be selected from any device. On the other hand, safety and especially security are becoming even more important as data can be read by everyone and can be more easily perturbed or intentionally falsified. This article defines protocols that changes its safety attributes according to the continually calculated probability of error per hour value. A grey (gray) channel is defined that is not ignoring any information from the communication channel (black-channel) and uses the observed information to adapt the safety attributes. The protocols use short data-lengths and several different cyclic redundancy checks (CRCs) which are changed depending on the current safety integrity level, the observed channel characteristics and the amount of data to be sent.

This paper introduces a novel and comprehensive approach for estimating the reliability of safety critical software components in autonomous vehicle motion systems. The proposed approach in this paper presents a combination software reliability model (CSRM) that integrates multiple non-homogeneous Poisson process (NHPP) software reliability growth models (SRGMs) to achieve a reasonable compromise between accuracy, the trade-off between the goodness of fit and the simplicity, and stability. By using machine learning techniques, the CSRM effectively combines the strengths of individual SRGMs while mitigating their weaknesses through suitable evaluation and calibration techniques. The developed CSRM has been successfully applied and validated to facilitate a smoother and more efficient evaluation of reliability targets for software components in autonomous robotic wheelchair (ARW). Based on the validation results, the new CSRM has significantly enhanced the efficiency of the process for evaluating whether the defined reliability goals were being achieved. Furthermore, has facilitated a more accurate assessment of the need for further test executions and better planning of the required verification and validation session. This new approach provides valuable insights into the reliability of the developed software, particularly for software developers lacking extensive experience in identifying and applying appropriate SGRM.

This paper investigates the utilization of model-checking as a potent method for verifying system designs, emphasizing its early error detection capabilities, reducing failures, increasing safety, and saving costs. The study explores the application of the UPPAAL tool and model-checking techniques within control systems. A case study in the paper concentrates on formally verifying Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) controllers, emphasizing integral windup issues. A model is constructed in UPPAAL for a control system that includes the system dynamics and the actuator limitations. The model’s accuracy is validated against the MATLAB/Simulink® model. Formal requirements addressing integral windup are formulated, and a practical model-checking example using UPPAAL illustrates its utility in control system verification.

In general, failure data is obtained in the automotive industry during the warranty period. If these contain the expression of a service life characteristic for each failure, statements can be made about the reliability and availability of the systems. For this purpose, estimation methods are used to adapt empirical lifetime distributions to theoretical lifetime distributions. By means of the distribution characteristics, a prognosis of the reliability and availability to be expected is also possible beyond the observation time. In addition to the data basis to be investigated, which is available completely in test bench and experimental trials or re-censored in the field, various methods can be used for estimation. In the past, several methods have been used, such as the estimators according to Eckel [1], Kaplan-Meier [2] or the estimators according to Pauli [3]. In general, a field failure is subject to several stresses, which can be described by expressions of several lifetime characteristics. For this application case, which occurs in the automotive industry, the known estimation methods, [1]–[3], cannot be used. In this paper, the necessity of multidimensional estimation methods will be introduced first. Then, a new estimation method for multidimensional metrics is presented. In a further step, mathematical proof is given that the new method can provide realistic results. Finally, two example data sets from bench testing and field are presented. Furthermore, some recommendations for the use of the new method are concretized in this context.

Optical speed sensors based on the spatial frequency filter method are a proven technology that offer high measurement accuracy over a wide speed range. Newly developed variants also enable measurements at very low speeds and increase the robustness of the method [1]. This makes the sensor very suitable for use in the area of functional safety. A measurement chain up to safety integrity level 3 (SIL3) should be feasible via a combination with a safety system on a chip (SoC) for evaluating the measurement data and an extension of the sensor module to include safety-related elements [2], [3]. By integrating the sensor at IC level, a compact overall solution is to be made possible. After the first successful tests with the safety SoC, further examinations of the measuring method with regard to functional safety are now necessary.

The increasing digitalization of production processes and current technological developments make it possible to use sophisticated digital product models or virtual images of industrial and technical processes, so called digital twins. In this paper a digital twin is created using different development environments and systems, such as Simulink®, B&R® control, CAD design environment and OPC-UA communication. The creation process used is verified and simulations are performed with the created digital twin to test and validate its behavior and efficiency compared with the physical model. Then the two systems, which are the digital twin and the elevator model, are linked together so that the communication between the two can be verified. The ability to communicate with the real world is one of the main characteristics of an optimal digital twin.

With the ongoing shift from fossil fuels towards electric mobility, there’s an increasing need for charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, both private and public. With this increasing role of charging infrastructure in day-to-day life, safety and security should be guaranteed for these systems. In this work we report on the development of an integrated electronic charging infrastructure system. The development was based on both current functional safety and charging infrastructure standards. The whole development process is presented, including requirements analysis, overall system design, safety hardware and software design, as well as the verification & validation of the safety system against the requirements set in the beginning. The presented work can be used as a basis and reference for the functional safety aspects when developing next generation charging infrastructure systems.

New technologies offer decisive advantages over stationary conveyor systems. They are much more flexible in terms of routing. Traffic routes can be used jointly by people and the conveyor technology elements, the autonomously navigating systems. In order to realise this, a high level of availability and reliability is required in the self-positioning of the vehicles. Since individual sensors can fail in different and conditionally detectable ways, redundant architectures are used. In the example shown, the availability and accuracy of the recorded trajectory can be improved with a 3oo6 architecture. Even several simultaneously occurring errors can be detected and the vehicle is transferred to a safe state if necessary.

Various research institutions and semiconductor manufacturers have presented approaches for miniaturized safety systems based on redundant configurations in the last years. ICAS has been working on approaches for Safety Systems on Chip (SoC) since 2005 and has developed several certified variants of safety SoCs in this context together with well-known safety manufacturers. In parallel, the further development of the architecture of safety SoCs was also driven forward and manifested with the ReSCU-V1 in 2018. A logical consequence is the development of the ReSCU-V2, with which further architectural developments of the safe SoC design at ICAS in Kassel have succeeded with a practically completely redundant architecture. The resulting SoC was realized on a 180 nm process from UMC. It has a chip size of 5×5 mm and consumes less than 500 mW of power.

In this paper, a Safety System-on-Chip based on the open-source RISC-V processor SweRV EH1 from Western Digital is presented. A hardware comparator concept is followed. The SSoC is implemented on a Xilinx FPGA system and extended with standard peripherals from the Xilinx IP library and from Cobham Gaisler, so that the overall system has an Ethernet interface in addition to GPIO and UART. The goal is to create a complete redundancy approach with a hardware fault tolerance of nearly 1 from input to output based on the freely available RISC-V instruction set and prove its feasibility.

Abstract In diesem Beitrag wird ein neuartiges Sensorsystem für die Mensch-Roboter-Kollaboration vorgestellt, das auf Millimeterwellen-Radartechnologie basiert und entscheidende Vorteile gegenüber aktuell genutzten Sensortechnologien bietet. Es besteht aus einem Radarsensorring, der beliebig an Roboterachsen angebracht werden kann, einem Sensorknoten und einer Auswertungseinheit. Das System wurde im Zuge des BMBF-geförderten Forschungsprojekts RoKoRa entwickelt und in einem funktionalen Demonstrator realisiert.

Compressed air systems are essential components in various industrial and everyday applications. The efficiency of these systems is very important due to their role in the energy consumption of industrial plants. To increase efficiency, a new concept for compressed air compressors based on Industry 4.0 is presented. Due to the aggressive environmental conditions in which the compressed air compressors operate, a new design of a SoC with high availability based on 1oo2 redundancy architecture is developed.

When a brake engages or releases on an electric motor, a mechanical shock is generated. These so-called brake shocks propagate across the motor housing and the motor shaft, affecting safety relevant mechanical and electronic components. The nature of the interference may be irreversible, i.e. mechanical damage, or reversible, e.g. interference of signal measurement or data transmission. Especially component failures or faulty signal values on rotary encoders are undesirable from a safety point of view. Current shock testing procedures are insufficient to simulate real brake shock characteristics and to identify valid shock limits regarding these shocks. In the first part of this paper, the characteristics of brake shocks are presented and compared to pyroshocks with similar characteristics. Furthermore, it shows that the Pseudo-Velocity Shock Response Spectrum (PVSRS) appears to be the best mathematical method to describe the severity of brake shocks with respect to their potential of damaging encoder components or influencing electrical signals. In the second part a testing machine will be introduced, which is able to generate mechanical shocks with comparable characteristics of real mechanical brake shocks for up to several million cycles. During further research, endurance tests shall be performed with the machine to determine the resilience of safety-related components against mechanical brake shocks. The long-term goal is to define scientifically confirmed test criteria for a standardized shock testing procedure to be applied on safety-related components on electric motors. It is intended to include this testing procedure in an international safety-related standard, like IEC 61800-5-3.

Autonomous guided vehicles have great advantages over rigidly track-guided conveyor technology, as they can react flexibly to changes in the application area. Temporary obstacles can be easily avoided. The vehicles can circumnavigate bottlenecks and areas at risk of congestion switch to alternative routes. To avoid accidents, safety-relevant position detection is necessary in many areas. The current speed is derived from this driven trajectory and this is safely reduced in the working areas. Minimum distances can also be safely maintained. Therefore it is necessary to permanently control the measured position with regard to disturbance variables and to monitor the reliability of the position detection in real time.

Cyber Physical Systems (CPS) are predestined for use in Industry 4.0 applications. However, the interaction between the virtual and physical world also creates risks that is essential to be controlled. In highly automated industrial systems, for example, robots are used in confined spaces together with working humans. The risk posed by such systems endangers, among others, the people working there. This paper presents an approach to ensure the safety of the situation described above, which makes the workspace of industrial robots safer by implementing a safe workspace detection system. This system comprises several detection sensors implemented in a 2oo3 safety architecture and a Safety System on a Chip (SSoC) based on a safe 1oo2 system architecture. The safety-related redundancy provided by the detection and calculation elements enables a safe position detection of the robotic arm in the 3-dimensional space. The presented system monitors the position of the robotic arm and thus supports the safety of the surrounding objects and the people working there by leading to a safe standstill or to a reduced speed of movement of the robot as soon as the defined and permitted working space is left.