Software in real time embedded systems is highly engineered from my perspective. Closing on the Toyota recall is very interesting, as it highlights the importa

Software in real time embedded systems is highly engineered from my perspective. Closing on the Toyota recall is very interesting, as it highlights the importance and complexity in engineering real time embedded systems. - Cosmic radiation could cause a bit-flip resulting in a sudden acceleration event. Even though NASA and NHTSA could not find or demonstrate a problem with fly-by-wire, the issue was identified through expert analysis of the source code, which found that it did not follow best practices either. [0] It also sheds light on the manufacturer's unpopular approach to these issues. - The sticking accelerator issue discussed in the article only resulted in 3 complaints to Toyota in 2009 [1] - Toyota sells 10 million cars a year. We can easily estimate that 50 million are on the road, placing this at or above Six Sigma reliability (3.4 dpmo) Ultimately braking could safely override a stuck accelerator, still stopping in a safe distance in the most tests [1] One could argue that the recall was more due to the PR backlash than any degrading part. [0] http://www.sddt.com/Commentary/article.cfm?SourceCode=20131104tbc&Commentary_ID=140&_t=Software+bugs+found+to+be+cause+of+Toyota+acceleration+death#.VKsCKivF-ch http://www.sddt.com/Commentary/article.cfm?SourceCode=201311... [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009%E2%80%9311_Toyota_vehicle_recalls#Field_workaround_for_sudden_unintended_acceleration http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009%E2%80%9311_Toyota_vehicle_...