Grand Challenges of Traceability: The Next Ten Years

In 2007, the software and systems traceability community met at the first Natural Bridge symposium on the Grand Challenges of Traceability to establish and address research goals for achieving effective, trustworthy, and ubiquitous traceability. Ten years later, in 2017, the community came together to evaluate a decade of progress towards achieving these goals. These proceedings document some of that progress. They include a series of short position papers, representing current work in the community organized across four process axes of traceability practice. The sessions covered topics from Trace Strategizing, Trace Link Creation and Evolution, Trace Link Usage, real-world applications of Traceability, and Traceability Datasets and benchmarks. Two breakout groups focused on the importance of creating and sharing traceability datasets within the research community, and discussed challenges related to the adoption of tracing techniques in industrial practice. Members of the research community are engaged in many active, ongoing, and impactful research projects. Our hope is that ten years from now we will be able to look back at a productive decade of research and claim that we have achieved the overarching Grand Challenge of Traceability, which seeks for traceability to be always present, built into the engineering process, and for it to have "effectively disappeared without a trace". We hope that others will see the potential that traceability has for empowering software and systems engineers to develop higher-quality products at increasing levels of complexity and scale, and that they will join the active community of Software and Systems traceability researchers as we move forward into the next decade of research

Grand Challenges of Traceability: The Next Ten Years

In 2007, the software and systems traceability community met at the first Natural Bridge symposium on the Grand Challenges of Traceability to establish and address research goals for achieving effective, trustworthy, and ubiquitous traceability. Ten years later, in 2017, the community came together to evaluate a decade of progress towards achieving these goals. These proceedings document some of that progress. They include a series of short position papers, representing current work in the community organized across four process axes of traceability practice. The sessions covered topics from Trace Strategizing, Trace Link Creation and Evolution, Trace Link Usage, real-world applications of Traceability, and Traceability Datasets and benchmarks. Two breakout groups focused on the importance of creating and sharing traceability datasets within the research community, and discussed challenges related to the adoption of tracing techniques in industrial practice. Members of the research community are engaged in many active, ongoing, and impactful research projects. Our hope is that ten years from now we will be able to look back at a productive decade of research and claim that we have achieved the overarching Grand Challenge of Traceability, which seeks for traceability to be always present, built into the engineering process, and for it to have "effectively disappeared without a trace". We hope that others will see the potential that traceability has for empowering software and systems engineers to develop higher-quality products at increasing levels of complexity and scale, and that they will join the active community of Software and Systems traceability researchers as we move forward into the next decade of research

Boundary Objects and their Use in Agile Systems Engineering

Agile methods are increasingly introduced in automotive companies in the attempt to become more efficient and flexible in the system development. The adoption of agile practices influences communication between stakeholders, but also makes companies rethink the management of artifacts and documentation like requirements, safety compliance documents, and architecture models. Practitioners aim to reduce irrelevant documentation, but face a lack of guidance to determine what artifacts are needed and how they should be managed. This paper presents artifacts, challenges, guidelines, and practices for the continuous management of systems engineering artifacts in automotive based on a theoretical and empirical understanding of the topic. In collaboration with 53 practitioners from six automotive companies, we conducted a design-science study involving interviews, a questionnaire, focus groups, and practical data analysis of a systems engineering tool. The guidelines suggest the distinction between artifacts that are shared among different actors in a company (boundary objects) and those that are used within a team (locally relevant artifacts). We propose an analysis approach to identify boundary objects and three practices to manage systems engineering artifacts in industry

Why and How Your Traceability Should Evolve: Insights from an Automotive Supplier

Traceability is a key enabler of various activities in automotive software and systems engineering and required by several standards. However, most existing traceability management approaches do not consider that traceability is situated in constantly changing development contexts involving multiple stakeholders. Together with an automotive supplier, we analyzed how technology, business, and organizational factors raise the need for flexible traceability. We present how traceability can be evolved in the development lifecycle, from early elicitation of traceability needs to the implementation of mature traceability strategies. Moreover, we shed light on how traceability can be managed flexibly within an agile team and more formally when crossing team borders and organizational borders. Based on these insights, we present requirements for flexible tool solutions, supporting varying levels of data quality, change propagation, versioning, and organizational traceability.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, accepted in IEEE Softwar

Identifying Redundancies and Gaps Across Testing Levels During Verification of Automotive Software

Testing of automotive systems usually follows the V-Model, a process where sequential testing activities progress from low-level code structures to high-level integrated systems. In theory, the V-Model should reduce redundant testing and prevent gaps in verification. To assess whether such benefits translate in practice, in a case study at Scania CV AB, we have developed a framework to identify redundancies and gaps in test cases across V-model test levels.Our framework identified both redundancies and gaps in Sca-nia’s scripted testing efforts. Deviating cases were also identified where, e.g., requirements were outdated or contained incorrect details. Factors contributing to redundancy include re-verification in a new context, difficulties mapping requirements across levels, and lack of test case documentation. Both redundancies and gaps result from a lack of communication and traceability of test results across test levels. We recommend active collaboration across levels, as well as use of coverage matrices to alleviate these issues. We offer our framework to help refine testing practices and to inspire process improvements

What Am I Testing and Where? Comparing Testing Procedures based on Lightweight Requirements Annotations

[Context] The testing of software-intensive systems is performed in different test stages each having a large number of test cases. These test cases are commonly derived from requirements. Each test stages exhibits specific demands and constraints with respect to their degree of detail and what can be tested. Therefore, specific test suites are defined for each test stage. In this paper, the focus is on the domain of embedded systems, where, among others, typical test stages are Software- and Hardware-in-the-loop. [Objective] Monitoring and controlling which requirements are verified in which detail and in which test stage is a challenge for engineers. However, this information is necessary to assure a certain test coverage, to minimize redundant testing procedures, and to avoid inconsistencies between test stages. In addition, engineers are reluctant to state their requirements in terms of structured languages or models that would facilitate the relation of requirements to test executions. [Method] With our approach, we close the gap between requirements specifications and test executions. Previously, we have proposed a lightweight markup language for requirements which provides a set of annotations that can be applied to natural language requirements. The annotations are mapped to events and signals in test executions. As a result, meaningful insights from a set of test executions can be directly related to artifacts in the requirements specification. In this paper, we use the markup language to compare different test stages with one another. [Results] We annotate 443 natural language requirements of a driver assistance system with the means of our lightweight markup language. The annotations are then linked to 1300 test executions from a simulation environment and 53 test executions from test drives with human drivers. Based on the annotations, we are able to analyze how similar the test stages are and how well test stages and test cases are aligned with the requirements. Further, we highlight the general applicability of our approach through this extensive experimental evaluation. [Conclusion] With our approach, the results of several test levels are linked to the requirements and enable the evaluation of complex test executions. By this means, practitioners can easily evaluate how well a systems performs with regards to its specification and, additionally, can reason about the expressiveness of the applied test stage.TU Berlin, Open-Access-Mittel - 202

Living Boundary Objects to Support Agile Inter-Team Coordination at Scale

Context: In the last decades, large-scale agile development has received increasing attention, as also organizations with many stakeholders and large systems aim for higher development speed and focus on customer value. A recognized research challenge in large-scale agile development relates to inter-team coordination. To coordinate effectively, organizations need to identify what knowledge is required across team borders and how it can be managed over time. Knowledge is potentially manifested in boundary objects – artifacts that create a shared understanding between teams (e.g., requirements or architecture descriptions). Traceability between artifacts is a key necessity to manage change in agile contexts. Moreover, agile practitioners aim to reduce the documentation effort to absolutely crucial artifacts and trace links.Objective: This thesis aims to improve how practitioners can manage knowledge for inter-team coordination in large-scale agile development. We focus especially on how knowledge can be made explicit in artifacts and trace links that are evolved over time. Method: We empirically investigated problems and developed solutions using a research approach that was inspired by design science. Case studies, an in-depth design science study, a mixed methods study, and surveys were performed. Using this mix of research methods, we leveraged both qualitative and quantitative data. Results: We coined the concept of living boundary objects to manage knowledge for inter-team coordination. Living boundary objects are boundary objects that are traced to other artifacts, kept up to date, and serve for inter-team coordination. They should be established early in the lifecycle to create a common understanding of the product to be developed. We scrutinized architecture descriptions, interfaces, and requirements and traceability information models as examples of concrete boundary objects. We recommend establishing alignment using a common high-level structure, but also supporting diverse knowledge management practices to fulfill the individual needs of agile teams. Conclusions: Our contributions help to establish knowledge management practices that are considered beneficial by practitioners and focus on the crucial aspects to align agile teams on. We suggest concepts and requirements for knowledge management tools that take the distinct role of living boundary objects into consideration and can be adjusted as organizations\u27 needs evolve

The Impact of Requirements on Systems Development Speed: A Multiple-Case Study in Automotive

Automotive\ua0manufacturers have historically adopted rigid\ua0requirements\ua0engineering processes. This allowed them to meet safety-critical\ua0requirements\ua0when producing\ua0a\ua0highly complex and differentiated product out of the integration of thousands of physical and software components. Nowadays, few software-related domains are as rapidly changing as the\ua0automotive\ua0industry.\ua0In\ua0particular, the needs of improving\ua0development\ua0speed\ua0are increasingly pushing companies\ua0in\ua0this domain toward new ways of developing software.\ua0In\ua0this paper, we investigate how the goal to increase\ua0development\ua0speed\ua0impacts how\ua0requirements\ua0are managed\ua0in\ua0the\ua0automotive\ua0domain. We start from\ua0a\ua0manager perspective, which we then complement with\ua0a\ua0more general perspective. We used\ua0a\ua0qualitative\ua0multiple-case\ua0study, organized\ua0in\ua0two steps.\ua0In\ua0the first step, we had 20 semi-structured interviews, at two\ua0automotive\ua0manufacturers. Our sampling strategy focuses on manager roles, complemented with technical specialists.\ua0In\ua0the second step, we validated our results with 12 more interviews, covering nine additional respondents and three recurring from the first step.\ua0In\ua0addition to validating our qualitative model, the second step of interviews broadens our perspective with technical experts and change managers. Our respondents indicate and rank six aspects of the current\ua0requirements\ua0engineering approach that\ua0impact\ua0development\ua0speed. These aspects include the negative\ua0impact\ua0of\ua0a\ua0requirements\ua0style dominated by safety concerns as well as decomposition of\ua0requirements\ua0over many levels of abstraction. Furthermore, the use of\ua0requirements\ua0as part of legal contracts with suppliers is seen as hindering fast collaboration. Six additional suggestions for potential improvements include domain-specific tooling, model-based\ua0requirements, test automation, and\ua0a\ua0combination of lightweight upfront\ua0requirements\ua0engineering preceding\ua0development\ua0with precise specifications post-development. Out of these 12 aspects, seven can likely be addressed as part of an ongoing agile transformation. We offer an empirical account of expectations and needs for new\ua0requirements\ua0engineering approaches\ua0in\ua0the\ua0automotive\ua0domain, necessary to coordinate hundreds of collaborating organizations developing software-intensive and potentially safety-critical\ua0systems

LEVERAGING BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY TO REVAMP THE VEHICLE ELECTRIFICATION JOURNEY: PERSPECTIVES OF ACCOUNTABILITY AND ECONOMIC CIRCULARITY

The automotive industry is undergoing a significant transition accelerated by global emission regulations for a phase out of internal combustion engines (ICEs) and a transition toward the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). While regulatory measures and incentivized adoption for EVs presents opportunities for reducing emissions and promoting sustainability, it also poses complex challenges. The EV industry faces potential production challenges, particularly in the sourcing, manufacturing, and lifecycle management of critical minerals and raw materials for electric vehicle batteries (EVBs). With a heavy reliance on a steady and diversified supply of critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt and rare earth elements, the finite nature of mineral resources poses long-term challenges for EV stakeholders. The recent measures instituted by government regulations do recognize the need for EV stakeholder accountability, requiring substantiated evidentiary proof by way of data collection and analysis mandating resource recapture and reintroduction into circularity, environmental benefits, and real-time data availability. By implementing clear end-of-life requirements such as collection targets, material recovery goals, and extended producer responsibility, EV producers are held responsible for managing the entire lifecycle of electric vehicle batteries (EVBs). Government regulations are aimed at bolstering sustainability standards, and a high degree of accountability for all battery products, showing a clear shift towards circular economic standards. This culminating experience project explores the role of collaborative initiatives and innovative technological frameworks, particularly, blockchain, smart contracts, and Nash equilibrium game theory, in addressing sustainability challenges within the EV ecosystem. The research questions are: (RQ1) How does the strategic application of blockchain technology within a circular economic framework facilitate cooperation among stakeholders in the EV industry, leading to improved oversight, enhanced accountability, and guided decision-making? (RQ2) How can the implementation of private-permissioned blockchain technology, particularly through smart contracts, be strategically employed to enhance transparency, traceability, and sustainability throughout the lifecycle of electric vehicles, within the broader context of the EV ecosystem? (RQ3) Why should EV industry stakeholders engage in a consortium, that is driven by blockchain technology, smart contracts, Nash Equilibrium game theory, and what are the potential effects? The findings for each question are: (Q1) The partnership among RCS, IBM, Ford, exemplified how integrating blockchain into a circular economic framework can establish oversight, ensure accountability, and enable informed decision-making with traceable and transparent data circularity. Ford notably improved its cobalt due diligent management system, marked by a notable forty-six percentage point within one year, demonstrating its commitment to responsible sourcing and regulatory compliance. (Q2) Private-permissioned blockchain networks, especially with smart contracts, automate performance obligations, without an intermediary interaction, strengthening self-governance within a decentralized network. The consensus mechanism, integral to blockchain architecture, enhances accountability among EV stakeholders by validating and authenticating transactions. Opting for a consensus algorithm, emphasizing participant reputation over computational power, reduces reliance on resources while maintaining network integrity. (Q3) EV stakeholders and their tier-1 suppliers, in a consortium, are incentivized to uphold their reputation and branding through adherence to ethical and sustainable practices facilitated in a blockchain network. By doing so, they contribute to the overall stability of the industry and the circular economic framework, as mutual benefits are maximized, unilateral deviations are discouraged, and collaborative dynamics are fostered. The conclusions are: (Q1) EV producers involved in circular economic initiatives can be perceived as collaborative partners that prioritize collective success over individual gain, fostering positive brand associations with teamwork and partnership. (Q2) By aligning incentives, fostering collaboration, and leveraging data-driven insights, EV producers and their suppliers can optimize resource use, minimize waste, and contribute to the transition towards a more sustainable economic model. (Q3) By adhering to ethical and sustainable practices the equilibrium ensures that EV stakeholders maintain trust and credibility, promoting a sustainable ecosystem for the EV industry within the circular economy