Validation of a SIL3 middleware for safety-related system-on-chips

The aim is reducing IEC 61508 certification effort for safety-related applications. Therefore, an object-oriented middleware has been implemented which, once being SIL3-certified, would allow transferring safety-related aspects from the application into an already-certified code layer. Safety-related applications using this middleware then could be written as straightforward as non-safety-related code. The SIL3 middleware is designed for an 8051-based microcontroller. Because of the 8-bit CPU architecture, several limitations have been encountered. These issues are explained in this paper, and solutions are proposed. The middleware will be used on the multi-more safety chip. SIL3 certified multi-core architecture for safety-related applications is described. Also, the SIL3 middleware architecture is given. The middleware is modular. Therefore, if the user does not want to use some modules they will not be included and code footprint will be smaller. In the SIL3 middleware numerous design patterns can be found. Patterns description and purpose are explained. The pseudo code for the singleton pattern is shown. Moreover, module implementation is depicted. The validation of the middleware is presented and the V-model for the middleware is provided. It conforms to the IEC 61508.