Optimizing Fault Simulations with Formal Analysis to Achieve ASIL Compliance for Automotive Designs

Most safety critical SoCs, such as those developed for automotive driver aid systems, require ASIL-D compliance. ASIL-D is the highest grade in the ISO 26262 Standard’s risk classification system, required less than 1% Single Point Fault. According to the ISO 26262 Standard, fault campaign on the targeted designs is the recommended methodology to generate FMEDA report and safety manual as metrics to demonstrate compliance. 

The typical fault injection campaign is executed using a fault simulator. This methodology often requires long fault simulation time and significant user manual effort to analyze fault classification results. Use of formal technology can help improve verification efficiency and save manual effort. 

In this Synopsys webinar, we will showcase an improved fault injection campaign methodology using a memory controller IP. Fault simulation is conducted using Synopsys Z01X. Synopsys VC Formal FuSa App is used to prune safe faults, hence reducing fault simulation runtime, and refine fault classification to reduce manual analysis effort. Both technologies work off of the shared fault database. A couple of proposed flows are compared to offer insight on the best flow to provide the shortest turnaround time, as well as repeatability and portability. The results demonstrate the advantages of including formal functional safety analysis in any fault campaign to meet ISO 26262 requirements efficiently.