Task: Optimize Safety and Reliability Architecture
This task is about run-time risk management through the identification and specification of control measures.
Purpose
The purpose of the safety and reliability architecture is to enable the system to identify, isolate, and correct errors during the system execution.
Relationships
RolesPrimary: Additional: Assisting:
InputsMandatory: Optional: External:
  • None
Outputs
Main Description
Safety and reliability are managed through the application of redundancy. Many different patterns exist to address safety and reliability concepts. This task clarifies the nature of the risks and puts into place measures (as defined by the relevant design patterns) that mitigate these risks.
Steps
Analyze control measures
This step analyzes the proposed solutions to ensure that they provide adequate risk mitigation and meet the other, possibly opposing, design constraints in an optimal way. This analysis is often done in the form of an FTA or FMEA.
Integrate safety and reliability patterns into architecture
This step elaborates the architecture to include the safety and reliability design patterns, that is, implement the control measures at the architectural level.
Select design solutions to add control measures to mitigate risks
Based on the nature of the risks and the other design constraints, different design patterns may be more optimal than others. This step selects one or more such patterns. See DOU02 for more information on safety-related design patterns.
Review the hazard analysis
The hazard analysis is usually initially created during requirements definition (see Task: Manage Safety and Reliability Requirements). This document initially identifies hazards, risks, basic faults, and (possibly) control measure meant to mitigate the risks.
More Information
Concepts
Guidelines