Dr. John Valasek, professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University and director of the Vehicle Systems & Control Laboratory, was an invited panelist on the topic of “Verification and Validation in the Age of Autonomy” at the 2019 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Science and Technology (SciTech) Conference held San Diego, California, in January.
Panelists in the session discussed the verification and validation of autonomous systems and how they pose a challenge for regulators and others tasked with evaluating those systems. As the second and third waves of autonomy become reality, concerns arise as to the safety and reliability of new technologies that leverage these capabilities. Methods for verification and validation of software that enable autonomous systems must be developed to support new certification processes. For safety critical systems, ethical issues regarding machine decision making and the role of human-on-the-loop paradigms must be addressed. For defense applications, mission assurance will be a significant driving factor in certifying systems for deployment. The discussion centered around how government authorities, companies, and the general public can be assured that new, autonomous technologies are reliable.
The webinar can be heard here. Valasek’s introductory presentation begins at 41:00 before the Q&A with the audience begins.