Write a Blog >>
ICSE 2021
Mon 17 May - Sat 5 June 2021
Tue 25 May 2021 15:55 - 16:15 at Blended Sessions Room 1 - 1.3.1. Quality Assurance Chair(s): Silvia Abrahão
Wed 26 May 2021 03:55 - 04:15 at Blended Sessions Room 1 - 1.3.1. Quality Assurance

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are an emerging computation platform known for their safety-critical need. In this paper, we conduct an empirical study on a widely used open-source UAV software framework, Paparazzi, with the goal of understanding the safety-critical concerns of UAV software from a bottom-up \emph{developer-in-the-field} perspective. We set our focus on the use of Bounding Functions (BFs), the runtime checks injected by Paparazzi developers on the range of variables. Through an in-depth analysis on BFs in the Paparazzi autopilot software, we found a large number of them (109 instances) are used to bound safety-critical variables essential to the cyber-physical nature of the UAV, such as its thrust, its speed, and its sensor values. The novel contributions of this study are two fold. First, we take a static approach to classify all BF instances, presenting a novel \emph{datatype-based} 5-category taxonomy with fine-grained insight on the role of BFs in ensuring the safety of UAV systems. Second, we dynamically evaluate the impact of the BF uses through a \emph{differential} approach, establishing the UAV behavioral difference with and without BFs. The two-pronged static and dynamic approach together illuminates a rarely studied design space of safety-cirtical UAV software systems.

Tue 25 May

Displayed time zone: Amsterdam, Berlin, Bern, Rome, Stockholm, Vienna change

15:20 - 16:15
1.3.1. Quality AssuranceNIER - New Ideas and Emerging Results / Technical Track at Blended Sessions Room 1 +12h
Chair(s): Silvia Abrahão Universitat Politècnica de València
15:20
20m
Paper
Supporting Quality Assurance with Automated Process-Centric Quality Constraints CheckingTechnical Track
Technical Track
Christoph Mayr-Dorn Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Michael Vierhauser Johannes Kepler University Linz, Stefan Bichler JOHANNES KEPLER UNIVERSITY LINZ, Felix Keplinger JOHANNES KEPLER UNIVERSITY LINZ, Jane Cleland-Huang University of Notre Dame, Alexander Egyed Johannes Kepler University, Thomas Mehofer Frequentis AG
Pre-print Media Attached
15:40
15m
Paper
Inconsistency-tolerating guidance for software engineering processesNIER
NIER - New Ideas and Emerging Results
Christoph Mayr-Dorn Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Roland Kretschmer Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Alexander Egyed Johannes Kepler University, Ruben Heradio UNED (Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia), David Fernandez-Amoros UNED
Pre-print Media Attached
15:55
20m
Paper
Understanding Bounding Functions in Safety-Critical UAV SoftwareTechnical Track
Technical Track
Xiaozhou Liang SUNY Binghamton, John Henry Burns SUNY Binghamton, Joseph Sanchez SUNY Binghamton, Karthik Dantu University at Buffalo, Lukasz Ziarek University at Buffalo, Yu David Liu SUNY Binghamton
Pre-print Media Attached

Wed 26 May

Displayed time zone: Amsterdam, Berlin, Bern, Rome, Stockholm, Vienna change

03:20 - 04:15
03:20
20m
Paper
Supporting Quality Assurance with Automated Process-Centric Quality Constraints CheckingTechnical Track
Technical Track
Christoph Mayr-Dorn Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Michael Vierhauser Johannes Kepler University Linz, Stefan Bichler JOHANNES KEPLER UNIVERSITY LINZ, Felix Keplinger JOHANNES KEPLER UNIVERSITY LINZ, Jane Cleland-Huang University of Notre Dame, Alexander Egyed Johannes Kepler University, Thomas Mehofer Frequentis AG
Pre-print Media Attached
03:40
15m
Paper
Inconsistency-tolerating guidance for software engineering processesNIER
NIER - New Ideas and Emerging Results
Christoph Mayr-Dorn Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Roland Kretschmer Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Alexander Egyed Johannes Kepler University, Ruben Heradio UNED (Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia), David Fernandez-Amoros UNED
Pre-print Media Attached
03:55
20m
Paper
Understanding Bounding Functions in Safety-Critical UAV SoftwareTechnical Track
Technical Track
Xiaozhou Liang SUNY Binghamton, John Henry Burns SUNY Binghamton, Joseph Sanchez SUNY Binghamton, Karthik Dantu University at Buffalo, Lukasz Ziarek University at Buffalo, Yu David Liu SUNY Binghamton
Pre-print Media Attached