Delivering Self-driving Definitions

Shifting AV-safety validation from millions of miles driven to an understanding of the “quality” of simulation coverage.

The auto industry is under increasing pressure to prove that autonomous vehicles (AV) can be safe. But before OEMs can begin to establish the necessary benchmarks for safety, the industry needs a common framework for describing the infinite scenarios and roadway variabilities that a self-driving vehicle might encounter. Foretellix, a Tel Aviv-based software company, is fulfilling that need with its Measurable Scenario Description Language (M-SDL), a machine- and human-readable programming language for AV validation.

The open-source language, described in a 120-page technical document, has been downloaded by hundreds of engineers. Companies using M-SDL in pilot projects include Volkswagen. Foretify, Foretellix's software product, compiles high-level scenarios written in M-SDL into specific scenarios that are run via an application programming interface (API) in an AV simulation tool or other test environment. Foretify is either licensed per developer seat or on a simulation runtime basis.