FormaliSE 2019: The Benefits of (having doubts about) Formal Methods

Описание: Keynote at FormaliSE 2019 by Dr. Jeffrey Joyce.

Abstract: A variety of industry standards for critical systems, such as RTCA DO-178C and ISO 26262, refer to the possibility of using formal methods to produce verification results for the purpose of certification. However, satisfying the expectations of a certification authority using verification results obtained by means of formal methods can be a formidable challenge. Dr. Joyce will describe some reasonable doubts that might be raised by a certification authority about a plan to use formal methods as a source of verification results in place of test-based results. He will explain how such doubts influenced guidance developed by the aerospace industry for use of formal methods in the certification of airborne software. Anticipating these doubts can be the basis of an effective strategy to use formal methods as part of the certification of a critical system.

Speaker: Dr. Jeffrey Joyce is the co-founder and managing director of a Vancouver-based engineering consultancy, Critical System Labs Inc., (CSL) that provides clients with expertise in the specification, analysis and certification of software-intensive critical systems. Jeff has more than 30 years of experience across a variety of technical domains including aerospace, automotive, defence, energy, medical devices and rail signalling systems. He has served on international working groups that have developed industry standards such as RTCA DO-178C (airborne software), RTCA DO-333 (formal methods) and ISO 26262 (automotive). In 1990, Jeff earned a doctorate from Cambridge University following earlier degrees from the University of Calgary and the University of Waterloo. His doctoral research under the supervision of Prof. Michael Gordon was among early work on the use of formal methods to verify digital hardware. More recently, Jeff and his CSL colleagues have used formal methods to verify aspects of critical software systems for clients in aerospace, automotive and high-energy physics.