AUSTRALIA; PhD Studentship in Automotive Software Engineering

Fully funded PhD Studentship
(Automotive Software Engineering)

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Project title: AutoCRC: Methods for Identification and Formal Specification of Hazard Condition of Automotive Programmable Electronic Systems

Research topic: Programmable electronic systems have become an integral part in modern automobiles. These auxiliary components cover a multitude of functions both to ensure proper operation of a vehicle and to increase the safety of passengers, other motorists, and the environment. However, even though accident statistics clearly indicate that these devices can significantly reduce the number of severe accidents their operation is not free of risk. For example, an airbag that deploys falsely or not at all can cause serious harm to driver and passengers. The potential for such an unintended behaviour is a hazard condition. If not addressed, hazard conditions can lead to accidents. As a consequence, when constructing programmable electronic systems engineers must be able to detect hazard conditions, assess their impact, and devise proper measures in order to reduce the likelihood of emerging dangers.

Research Objective: The general goals of safety engineering processes are: (a) to identify as many of the potential hazard conditions as possible, and (b) to design the system in a way such that these hazard conditions can be avoided or eliminated. The quality of the identification of hazard conditions depends on the expertise, skills, and knowledge of safety experts. When examining a system for the hazard conditions currently engineers employ “what if” questions like “what will happen if the stability control system fails”, “what will happen if the airbag deploys unexpectedly”, etc. However, due to the complexity of modern systems, which has surged more than tenfold over the past decade, it has become increasingly more difficult to reliably identify hazard conditions. As a result, many hazard conditions remain unidentified and plague even the most prestigious car manufactures. Consequently, we need a systematic approach for the identification and analysis of hazard conditions. The goal of this project is to develop a new technique for the identification, specification, and assessment of hazard conditions in programmable electronic automotive systems.

Your Benefits: You will work on real-world research problems. (There will always be opportunities to cooperate with major software and systems engineering companies.)

• You will be trained in all skills that are required to successfully finish you research project
• You will conduct research at the highest standards
• You will get optimal and continuous supervision
• You study in a friendly and cooperative environment. Australia is known for its friendliness

We require: We are interested in a PhD student who has a good academic record (first class honours or equivalent) with a strong interest in one or more of the following areas:

• Probabilistic logics and probabilistic verification
• Probabilistic model checking
• Quality attributes such as performance, reliability, availability, safety, and security
• Software engineering (in the areas of embedded systems, robotics, etc)
• Software architectures and architecture evaluation
• Formal methods in system design
• Statistics

Since this project involves working with other PhD students and industrial partner, communication skills and the ability to work in a team environment are especially required.

Scholarship value and selection procedure:
The scholarship carries a value of AS$28,000+ pa, with fee exemption for both Australian and international students. The selection process will be competitive. A formal selection process will be applied. The closing date for applications is May 5, 2009 with interviews being held shortly thereafter.

How to apply:
If you are interested in the research project, please provide the following information (as complete as possible) via email to lgrunske@swin.edu.au and mlumpe@swin.edu.au with the subject “AutoCRC Studentship”:

• Detailed curriculum vitae
• An (electronic) copy of undergraduate and postgraduate transcripts (1st class honours or equivalent)
• Evidence of English proficiency for non native English speaker (officially required is an IELTS of 6.5 with no band below 6.0, practically scores above 7.0 are preferred).