Engineering safety cases for autonomous vehicles is a complex and evolving challenge. Safety cases—structured arguments supported by evidence—are used to justify that a system is acceptably safe. In practice, these arguments are often developed using Goal Structuring Notation (GSN). However, as systems grow in complexity, so too does the difficulty of understanding and managing the interplay between different sources of uncertainty.
In autonomous vehicle development, uncertainty arises at multiple stages: in the specification of system requirements, in the validation and verification processes, and in real-world operation. These uncertainties do not exist in isolation; they propagate through and influence the overall safety argument. Conventional tools for constructing and analyzing GSN-based safety cases offer limited support for visualizing these interactions, making it difficult for engineers to reason about the robustness and completeness of safety justifications.
Hier sorgst Du für Veränderung
This thesis explores the use of Virtual Reality (VR) as an innovative medium for representing and interacting with safety cases. By leveraging immersive visualization, the goal is to create a framework that allows users to intuitively explore GSN-based safety arguments and better understand how uncertainty affects them. The project will also lay the groundwork for integrating this visualization framework with a simulation environment (e.g., CARLA), enabling dynamic linking between simulated driving scenarios and the safety case evidence they support. This integration aims to provide a more tangible and interactive way of demonstrating how safety arguments respond to operational uncertainty.
The thesis is expected to span approximately six months and will combine elements of safety engineering, visualization, and software development.
Hiermit bringst Du Dich ein
* Conduct a literature review on existing visualization techniques for safety-critical systems, Applications of VR in engineering and data visualization.
* Analyze the limitations of current tools used for constructing and reviewing GSN-based safety cases.
* Define requirements for a VR-based visualization framework tailored to safety case exploration.
* Design a conceptual model for representing GSN elements and uncertainty relationships in a 3D/immersive environment.
* Implement a prototype VR framework that imports or constructs GSN safety case structures and visually represents goals, strategies, and evidence.
* Evaluate different visualization techniques (e.g., spatial layout, color, interaction) to effectively convey uncertainty and argument dependencies.
* Develop a basic interaction model for navigating and querying the safety case in VR.
* Establish an architectural foundation for future integration with a vehicle simulation platform (e.g., CARLA).
* Conduct a qualitative evaluation (e.g., user study or expert feedback) on the usability and usefulness of the VR framework.
Was wir für Dich bereithalten
If you're interested in safety-critical systems, autonomous vehicles, or immersive technologies, this thesis offers a chance to work at the intersection of these exciting fields.
We value and actively support the diversity of skills and perspectives within our workforce, and therefore welcome all applications — regardless of age, gender, nationality, ethnic or social background, religion, belief, disability, sexual orientation, or identity. Candidates with severe disabilities will be given preference when equally qualified. Our responsibilities are diverse and adaptable — and for applicants with disabilities, we work together to find solutions that best support their strengths.
Ready for a new challenge and real impact? Apply now and make a difference. Once we receive your online application, you will automatically receive a confirmation of receipt. We will then get in touch with you as soon as possible to let you know about the next steps.
If you have any questions, please contact:
Ioannis Sorokos
Nishanth Laxman
Fraunhofer-Institut für Experimentelles Software Engineering IESE