The technology in the area of automated vehicles is gaining speed and
promises many advantages. However, with the recent introduction of
conditionally automated driving, we have also seen accidents. Test protocols
for both, conditionally automated (e.g., on highways) and automated vehicles do
not exist yet and leave researchers and practitioners with different
challenges. For instance, current test procedures do not suffice for fully
automated vehicles, which are supposed to be completely in charge for the
driving task and have no driver as a back up. This paper presents current
challenges of testing the functionality and safety of automated vehicles
derived from conducting focus groups and interviews with 26 participants from
five countries having a background related to testing automotive safety-related
topics.We provide an overview of the state-of-practice of testing active safety
features as well as challenges that needs to be addressed in the future to
ensure safety for automated vehicles. The major challenges identified through
the interviews and focus groups, enriched by literature on this topic are
related to 1) virtual testing and simulation, 2) safety, reliability, and
quality, 3) sensors and sensor models, 4) required scenario complexity and
amount of test cases, and 5) handover of responsibility between the driver and
the vehicle.Comment: 8 page
