Incident: Airbag Electronics Fault in Toyota Vehicles Leads to Safety Recall

Published Date: 2018-01-31

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident with the fault in the airbag electronics affecting Toyota Prius, Lexus NX, and RX models happened when Toyota issued a safety recall for the affected vehicles [67004]. 2. Published on 2018-01-31. 3. The software failure incident likely happened in late 2015 or early 2016 based on the information provided in the article and the publication date.
System 1. Airbag electronics system in Toyota Prius hatchback, Lexus NX, and RX crossovers from the 2015 and 2016 model years [67004].
Responsible Organization 1. The software failure incident in the Toyota vehicles was caused by a fault in the airbag electronics, where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the deployment of airbags [67004].
Impacted Organization 1. Customers who own the affected Toyota Prius hatchback, Lexus NX, and RX crossovers models from the 2015 and 2016 model years were impacted by the software failure incident related to the airbag electronics fault [67004].
Software Causes 1. The software cause of the failure incident was a fault in the airbag electronics where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the deployment of side curtain and/or front airbags [67004].
Non-software Causes 1. Fault in the airbag electronics leading to an open circuit [67004]
Impacts 1. The impacts of the software failure incident in the Toyota vehicles included the potential risk of airbag warning lights illuminating accidentally and the side curtain and/or front airbags not deploying in the event of a crash, posing a safety hazard to the occupants [67004].
Preventions 1. Implementing thorough testing procedures during the development phase to detect any potential faults in the airbag electronics [67004]. 2. Conducting regular maintenance checks and inspections on the airbag sensors to identify and address any emerging issues before they escalate into a widespread problem [67004]. 3. Enhancing the monitoring system for airbag warning lights to ensure timely detection of any anomalies in the airbag electronics [67004].
Fixes 1. Toyota dealers will check the serial numbers of the airbag sensors and replace new ones if needed [67004].
References 1. Press release from Toyota [67004]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization (a) The software failure incident related to the airbag electronics fault in Toyota vehicles has happened again within the same organization. Toyota issued a safety recall for its Prius hatchback, Lexus NX, and RX crossovers due to a fault in the airbag electronics, where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with airbag deployment [67004]. This indicates a recurring software failure incident within Toyota's products.
Phase (Design/Operation) design (a) The software failure incident in the article is related to the design phase. Toyota issued a safety recall for certain models due to a fault in the airbag electronics where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with airbag deployment in the event of a crash. This fault is attributed to the design of the airbag electronics system [67004]. (b) The article does not provide information indicating that the software failure incident was due to factors introduced by the operation or misuse of the system.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: The software failure incident reported in the article is within the system. Toyota mentioned that the affected vehicles have a fault in the airbag electronics where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the airbag warning light and potential non-deployment of airbags in a crash. This indicates an internal system issue with the airbag electronics [67004].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions, human_actions (a) The software failure incident in this case is attributed to a fault in the airbag electronics, where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the airbag warning light and potential non-deployment of side curtain and/or front airbags in the event of a crash. This issue is described as a non-human action, as it is related to a technical fault in the software or electronics system of the vehicles [67004]. (b) The response to the software failure incident involves human actions, as Toyota mentions that its dealers will check the serial numbers of the airbag sensors and replace them if needed. Additionally, recall notices will be sent by mail to customers, indicating a human intervention to address the software-related issue [67004].
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware (a) The software failure incident in the article is related to hardware. Toyota issued a safety recall for certain vehicles due to a fault in the airbag electronics where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the airbag warning light and potential non-deployment of airbags in a crash [67004]. This indicates that the contributing factor for the failure originates in the hardware of the airbag electronics system.
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The software failure incident described in the article is non-malicious. Toyota issued a safety recall due to a fault in the airbag electronics where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to issues with the airbag warning light and potential non-deployment of airbags in a crash. This fault was not introduced with malicious intent but rather as a result of a technical issue in the system [67004].
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) unknown (a) The software failure incident described in the article is not related to poor decisions but rather to a fault in the airbag electronics that could lead to the airbag warning light illuminating accidentally and the airbags not deploying properly in the event of a crash. This issue is attributed to a technical fault rather than poor decisions [67004].
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) accidental (a) The software failure incident in the article is not attributed to development incompetence. The issue with the airbag electronics in Toyota vehicles was described as a fault where an open circuit can be created over time, leading to the airbag warning light illuminating accidentally and the airbags potentially not deploying in a crash. This indicates a technical fault rather than incompetence in development [67004]. (b) The software failure incident in the article is described as accidental. The fault in the airbag electronics was mentioned to cause an accidental illumination of the airbag warning light and potential non-deployment of airbags in a crash. This suggests that the issue was not intentional but rather an unintended consequence of the fault in the system [67004].
Duration temporary The software failure incident described in the article is more aligned with a temporary failure. The issue with the airbag electronics in the Toyota vehicles is attributed to an open circuit that can be created over time, leading to the airbag warning light illuminating accidentally and the airbags potentially not deploying in a crash. This indicates that the failure is due to specific contributing factors introduced by certain circumstances (such as the degradation of the airbag electronics over time) rather than being a permanent issue inherent in all circumstances [67004].
Behaviour crash (a) The software failure incident described in the article is related to a crash. The fault in the airbag electronics could lead to the side curtain and/or front airbags not deploying in the event of a crash, indicating a failure of the system to perform its intended functions [67004].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence property, theoretical_consequence (a) death: There is no mention of any deaths related to the software failure incident in the provided article [67004]. (b) harm: The article does not mention any physical harm caused to individuals due to the software failure incident [67004]. (c) basic: The article does not indicate any impact on people's access to food or shelter due to the software failure incident [67004]. (d) property: The software failure incident mentioned in the article could potentially impact people's safety as the airbags might not deploy in the event of a crash, affecting their physical well-being and potentially leading to property damage [67004]. (e) delay: There is no mention of any activity being postponed due to the software failure incident in the article [67004]. (f) non-human: The software failure incident primarily affects the functionality of airbag electronics in vehicles, which are designed to protect human occupants in the event of a crash. There is no specific mention of non-human entities being impacted [67004]. (g) no_consequence: The article does not state that there were no real observed consequences of the software failure incident [67004]. (h) theoretical_consequence: The article mentions that the software failure could lead to the airbag warning light illuminating accidentally and the airbags not deploying properly in a crash. While there is no specific mention of actual crashes or injuries related to this problem, the potential consequences are discussed [67004]. (i) other: There are no other consequences of the software failure incident mentioned in the article [67004].
Domain transportation (a) The software failure incident reported in Article 67004 is related to the transportation industry. Toyota issued a safety recall for its Prius hatchback and Lexus NX and RX crossovers due to a fault in the airbag electronics that could affect the deployment of airbags in the event of a crash [67004].

Sources

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