Publications

2024

Tree-Based Scenario Classification

In: NASA Formal Methods (NFM 2024)

Scenario-based testing is envisioned as a key approach for the safety assurance of automated driving systems. In scenario-based testing, relevant (driving) scenarios are the basis of tests. Many recent works focus on specification, variation, generation, and execution of individual scenarios. In this work, we address the open challenges of classifying sets of recorded test drives into such scenarios and measuring scenario coverage in these test drives. Technically, we specify features in logic formulas over complex data streams and construct tree-based classifiers for scenarios from these feature specifications. For such specifications, we introduce CMFTBL, a new logic that extends existing linear-time temporal logics with aspects that are essential for concise specifications that work on field-recorded data. We demonstrate the expressiveness and effectiveness of our approach by defining a family of related scenario classifiers for different aspects of urban driving. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-60698-4_15.

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STARS: A Tool for Measuring Scenario Coverage When Testing Autonomous Robotic Systems

In: Dependable Computing – EDCC 2024 Workshops (EDCC 2024)

Extensive testing and simulation in different environments has been suggested as one piece of evidence for the safety of autonomous systems, e.g., in the automotive domain. To enable statements on the absolute number or fractions of tested scenarios, methods and tools for computing their coverage are needed. In this paper, we present STARS, a tool for specifying semantic environment features and measuring scenario coverage when testing autonomous systems. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-56776-6_6.

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2023

Tree-Based Scenario Classification: A Formal Framework for Coverage Analysis on Test Drives of Autonomous Vehicles

arXiv Preprint

Scenario-based testing is envisioned as a key approach for the safety assurance of autonomous vehicles. In scenario-based testing, relevant (driving) scenarios are the basis of tests. Many recent works focus on specification, variation, generation and execution of individual scenarios. In this work, we address the open challenges of classifying sets of scenarios and measuring coverage of theses scenarios in recorded test drives. Technically, we define logic-based classifiers that compute features of scenarios on complex data streams and combine these classifiers into feature trees that describe sets of scenarios. We demonstrate the expressiveness and effectiveness of our approach by defining a scenario classifier for urban driving and evaluating it on data recorded from simulations. The pre-print version is available online at https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2307.05106.

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Validating Behavioral Requirements, Conditions, and Rules of Autonomous Systems with Scenario-Based Testing

In: Electronic Communications of the EASST (ECEASST 2023)

Assuring the safety of autonomous vehicles is more and more approached by using scenario-based testing. Relevant driving situations are utilized here to fuel the argument that an autonomous vehicle behaves correctly. Many recent works focus on the specification, variation, generation, and execution of individual scenarios. However, it is still an open question if operational design domains, which describe the environmental conditions under which the system under test has to function, can be assessed with scenario-based testing. In this paper, we present open challenges and resulting research questions in the field of assuring the safety of autonomous vehicles. We have developed a toolchain that enables us to conduct scenario-based testing experiments based on scenario classification with temporal logic and driving data obtained from the CARLA simulator. We discuss the toolchain and present first results using analysis metrics like class coverage or distribution. The final authenticated version is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.14279/tuj.eceasst.82.1222.

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2022

Aligning the learning Experience in a Project-Based Course: lessons learned from the Redesign of a Programming Lab

In: 4th International Workshop on Software Engineering Education for the Next Generation (SEENG 2022)

In teaching and training the next generation of software engineers, programming labs with students working together in small groups provide the opportunity to obtain hands-on experience for software projects involving multiple developers. However, more than other types of courses, programming labs face some challenges in providing a similar learning outcome for all students. Based on feedback and own experience from various iterations of the programming lab at TU Dortmund University, we identified that the learning ex-perience varies significantly due to heterogeneous prior knowledge, experience levels, and personality traits of both students and tutors. In this experience report, we present our approach towards aligning the learning experience by applying three different didactic im-provements based on well-studied concepts. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1145/3528231.3528358.

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2021

Do Away with the Frankensteinian Programs! A Proposal for a Genuine SE Education

In: Third International Workshop on Software Engineering Education for the Next Generation (SEENG 2021)

It is widely accepted by now that the discipline of Software Engineering is distinct from both Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, and that it requires bespoke higher education programs. In this paper, we argue that previous attempts at designing such programs have often failed to fully account for three essential characteristics of the discipline. We propose a design philosophy for undergraduate Software Engineering programs addressing these particularities and outline a corresponding program. Incorporating this philosophy would make Generation Alpha the first generation to receive a genuine Software Engineering education. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1109/SEENG53126.2021.00012

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2020

Jaint: A Framework for User-Defined Dynamic Taint-Analyses Based on Dynamic Symbolic Execution of Java Programs

In: Integrated Formal Methods (IFM 2020)

We present Jaint, a generic security analysis for Java Web-applications that combines concolic execution and dynamic taint analysis in a modular way. Jaint executes user-defined taint analyses that are formally specified in a domain-specific language for expressing taint-flow analyses. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63461-2_7.

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