A simulation platform for human-machine interaction safety analysis of cyber-physical systems

Human-machine interaction (HMI) safety for cyber-physical systems (CPSs) is critical and its analysis is mandatory in many domains such as SCADA, autonomous cars, and medical devices. Generation of dynamic accident scenarios is the cornerstone of safety analysis. This paper presents a platform and associated methodology to effectively generate accident scenarios by modeling HMI errors using model-level fault injection, followed by simulation to produce dynamic evolutions of accident scenarios. An HMI fault tree template is proposed to guide the simulation. Results show that human mode confusion triggered by false displays may lead to severe accidents. Run-time assertions play a crucial role to detect HMI errors. A case study is described. The methodology expands Ptolemy II's modeling and simulation capabilities for CPS applications.