Get to know essential concepts like functional safety, Safety Integrity Levels (SILs), and the safety lifecycle. From this chapter, you’ll also learn about the seven parts of IEC 61508, each covering different aspects of safety requirements and application techniques.

This chapter explains the four SILs, from SIL 1 to SIL 4, and their role in risk reduction and system reliability. It also outlines how to determine and assign the appropriate SIL through hazard identification and risk analysis, as well as the steps for implementing and maintaining SILs throughout a system’s lifecycle.

Learn about software safety lifecycle phases: from requirements specification to maintenance. This section emphasizes the importance of integrating safety throughout development to meet Safety Integrity Levels (SILs).

From this chapter, you’ll learn about the processes of risk assessment and hazard analysis in safety-critical systems under IEC 61508. It explains how to identify, analyse, and mitigate risks and introduces key techniques like Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), and Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP) to address potential safety issues effectively.

Explore essential design principles for safety-critical software, including modularity, redundancy, and fail-safe design. Learn about verification and validation techniques such as unit, integration, and system testing to ensure compliance with IEC 61508 and reliable performance in safety-critical applications.