SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SMS) APPLICATION TO SAE LEVEL 3, 4, 5 ADS - EQUIPPED VEHICLES AND SUPPORTING SYSTEMS
J3320
Applicable to SAE Level 3, 4, 5 ADS-equipped vehicle value chain (development, manufacture, operation, and decommission). Inclusions: Any development, manufacture, and deployment of ADS technology such as On-road personal- or fleet-owned and operated passenger motor vehicles, Transportation as a Service (TaaS), Mobility as a Service, taxi, delivery, shuttle vehicles, trucks, and buses, and enabling or supporting services. Exclusions: Off-road or closed course applications (e.g. mining, on airport, industrial equipment).
Rationale: This document recognizes the inherently automotive and transportation contexts of its products and services. Therefore, every effort has been made to tailor content of the SMS and its application to the entire value chain (development, manufacture, operation, and decommission) of SAE Level 3, 4, 5 ADS-equipped vehicles (the ADS industry). As such, this document acknowledges and interfaces with regulatory requirements, other management systems (e.g. QMS, Cyber), the concept of a Safety Case, and relevant Technical Standards (e.g. SOTIF, FuSa).
This document represents a voluntary Recommended Practice as first step to develop a future Standard. As a Recommended Practice serves as a baseline to seek implementation viability and feedback from the broad community of ADS industry participants who may not have had the opportunity to participate in its development. The goal is to create a common industry framework which accommodates company specific priorities and terminology, while providing common minimum generic elements to meet regulator and public expectations for the effective management of safety across an expansive value chain.
This document only articulates the framework of what elements are expected in a robust SMS. It does not provide guidance on prioritization, sequencing, or other questions of implementation. Nor does it provide guidance or criteria on how to assess how effective an SMS is once implemented. These latter two areas, implementation and assurance guidance are expected to be developed once this framework has been established as a published standard.
