ActSafe

Ensuring the safety of automated interactive systems requires multiple strategies to cover all aspects of the development and operation of such systems. These systems can be as diverse as autonomous mobile robots, modern computerized airliners, or nuclear power stations. ActSafe explores design principles for the human interfaces for and human interaction with such systems, which we view as socio-technical systems, i. e. systems that comprise the technical hardware and software, as well as human participants, either dedicated operators (in the case of airplanes or power stations), or counterparts in other interactions, for instance when interacting with an assistive robot. A further aspect is the dependability of the hardware and software. Here, ActSafe is involved in developing and improving international standards (IEC 61508) for the functional safety of electric/electronic/programmable electronic (E/E/PE) systems; (a) by developing new, world leading qualitative methods for hazard analysis (OHA), which are unique amongst hazard analysis methods in that they assess and ensure relative completeness, (b) by gaining insight into interactive systems through causal analysis of incidents with such systems. The method Why-Because-Analysis identifies causal factors for an accident formally or semi-formally way, to find similarities to other occurrences and effectively look for possible countermeasures to prevent a recurrence. It is extended for analysis of incident databases.
ActSafe also promotes international co-operation with the Universitas Gunadarma in Jakarta, Indonesia with regular exchange of students.

ActSafe has initiated the international workshop “Interacting with Extreme Events” that will work on aspects of technology with high-severity/low-probability events such as nuclear accidents, focusing on the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant accident.

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