ISO 26262 is the international standard for functional safety of electrical and electronic systems in road vehicles, providing the definitive framework for ensuring that automotive E/E systems do not cause unreasonable risk due to hazards caused by malfunctioning behavior. First published in 2011 and updated in 2018, this standard has become the foundation for safety engineering throughout the global automotive industry, applicable to passenger cars, trucks, buses, and increasingly to other vehicle categories.
The cornerstone concept of ISO 26262 is the Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL), a risk classification ranging from ASIL A (lowest risk) through ASIL D (highest risk), with an additional QM (Quality Management) classification for items not requiring safety measures under the standard. ASIL determination follows from systematic Hazard Analysis and Risk Assessment (HARA), evaluating each potential hazard based on severity of harm, probability of exposure to the hazardous situation, and controllability by the driver or other road users. The assigned ASIL then dictates the rigor of development processes, verification activities, and safety measures required throughout the product lifecycle.
ISO 26262 addresses the complete safety lifecycle from concept through decommissioning. Key phases include safety management (organizational processes and culture), concept phase (hazard analysis and safety goals), system development (technical safety requirements and architecture), hardware development (semiconductor and component safety), software development (safety-critical coding practices), production (manufacturing quality assurance), operation and maintenance (field performance monitoring), and supporting processes (configuration management, documentation, tool qualification).
For organizations developing GNSS-based positioning systems for automotive applications, ISO 26262 compliance is increasingly mandatory. Positioning systems supporting lane-keeping, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, or autonomous driving features must meet appropriate ASIL levels, typically ASIL B for positioning inputs to ADAS functions. This requires systematic safety engineering throughout development, including hardware metrics calculations, software verification, FMEA and FTA analyses, and comprehensive documentation demonstrating safety goal achievement. Certification of GNSS positioning engines and correction services to ISO 26262 provides automotive OEMs with qualified components for integration into their safety architectures.
