Ensuring avionics software is reliable and safe is a top priority for aviation engineers. However, maintaining compliance throughout the software lifecycle is no simple task. Utilizing an ALM tool such as PTC’s Codebeamer can help ensure compliance with aviation regulations like DO-178C. Let’s explore the importance of DO-178C for aviation software engineers and how Codebeamer’s Avionics DO-178C Template drives aviation systems engineering excellence.
What is DO-178C?
DO-178C is a regulatory compliance document published by the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA). It is also known as “Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification.” The document includes guidelines for avionics software development, ensuring it meets the safety and reliability standards required by aviation authorities like the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the U.S. and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in Europe. Additionally, it provides a framework for planning, designing, coding, integrating, verifying, and maintaining aircraft software.
What is Codebeamer?
PTC’s Codebeamer is an application lifecycle management (ALM) platform offering a range of tools that efficiently manage the entire software development lifecycle. These tools ensure proper project planning, requirements management, version control, defect tracking, and testing. Its goal is to help businesses develop high-quality digital products at reduced costs by improving visibility, quality, and overall efficiency.
Codebeamer Avionics DO-178C Template
How can Codebeamer help ensure compliance with DO-178C? Codebeamer offers an Avionics DO-178C Template which leverages Codebeamer’s capabilities to support aviation development processes. It enables users to reduce the time, effort, and costs of achieving compliance with regulations and standards by the FAA, EASA, and other government agencies. Let’s explore how this template simplifies compliance and drives aviation best practices.
The Codebeamer Avionics DO-178C Template includes:
One of the main features of the template is its easy-to-understand data model guidelines. In addition to these guidelines, the template includes built-in examples of DO-178C workflows that cover key configuration management activities. Features like suspected changes and the vertical merge functionality ensure proper change management throughout the development process. The template also includes configuration management features like problem reporting and change review. Furthermore, the template offers review management and examples of test procedures to help with the software verification process. The template offers a “checklist” for core elements such as planning, requirements, and verification cases, making the development process easier.
Benefits of Codebeamer’s Avionics DO-178C Template
The Avionics DO-178C Template is user-friendly and fully pre-configured with room for modifications. The flexible guide offers a multitude of benefits.
Flexibility
Firstly, the adaptable workflows allow users to define processes that best fit their internal requirements while remaining compliant with DO-178C. Additionally, the system supports the combination of traditional V-model and scaled agile development methodologies like SAFe.
Traceability
Using the template, users can derive artifacts such as change requests, defects, source code, and test cases directly from requirements and establish links between them to ensure end-to-end traceability. The template automatically stores a history of changes on all artifacts. Additionally, Codebeamer’s Traceability Browser helps users visualize workflows and the links between their work items. Its Coverage Browser provides a visual representation of test coverage. This is commonly displayed in a hierarchical tree structure, showing the associated test cases and test runs of each item.
Requirements Management
The template allows users to specify, organize, and document software requirements throughout the entire lifecycle. Additionally, users may store them in a central repository and link them to other artifacts. Managing requirements in libraries like these enables users to reuse requirements in later variants.
Quality Assurance and Software Verification
The Avionics DO-178C Template offers test cases and test procedures to help manage the software verification process. It supports test management by letting users define custom test cases, compose test sets, and execute parameterized tests. Additionally, users may utilize Codebeamer’s Test Coverage Browser and customizable dashboards to monitor and report on test coverage, execution, and results. In addition to these dashboards, users have access to a single source of truth regarding the development lifecycle at all times. These features are great for quality assurance testers as they ensure accessible and up-to-date compliance requirements.
Security
While Codebeamer’s Avionics DO-178C Template offers preconfigured workflows, it also allows users to customize workflows. This means they can customize their processes to ensure compliance. The template also offers project-based and role-based security features as well as conditional logic and guards with optional e-signatures. E-signatures and configurable access permissions support the approval process by providing a structured and secure way to manage approvals.
Audit Trail Dashboard
Codebeamer’s Audit Trail Dashboard simplifies and accelerates aviation compliance by automatically recording a lifecycle-wide audit trail. This trail records all changes to your work items, fields, and workflows, as well as provides an overview of current permissions. Users may also create an automatically updated widget with their lifecycle data and export reports to accelerate compliance audits.
Baselines
Users can easily manage baselines and releases with the Codebeamer Avionics DO-178C Template. Users can create comprehensive snapshots of the current state of all their artifacts, capturing all specifications. Additionally, the baselines include wiki pages, documents, attachments, comments, and more to support versioning.
Integration
Codebeamer offers several integration points, providing highly customizable workflows. These include Microsoft Office, ReqIF, IBM Rational DOORS, Jira, Jenkins, Enterprise Architect, and more. Additionally, the platform is connected to agosense and the Tasktop Integration Hub for additional ALM and software delivery capabilities.
Data and Workflow Visualization
Lastly, Codebeamer offers amazing visualization capabilities for data and workflows. Users can easily filter data, and then visualize it with preconfigured charts. These visualization tools allow users to effortlessly monitor KPIs. Once data is visualized, users may create and share dashboards and reports. In addition to data visualization, users may visualize and automate workflows with automated gates and conditions. When configured with repeatable processes, product quality rises and costs lower.
Implementing the Codebeamer Avionics DO-178C Template
Codebeamer’s Avionics template supports software developers, project managers, and certification bodies in the aviation industry. It offers detailed and sophisticated DO-178C support for users while being user-friendly and configurable. If you are interested in learning more about this Codebeamer template or would like to implement it today, contact one of our experts.
