LDRA

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LDRA Limited
Company typePrivately held company
IndustrySoftware testing
Founded1975
Headquarters
Wirral Peninsula, England
Key people
Professor Michael Hennell, CEO
ProductsLDRA tool suite, TBrun, TBvision, & others
Websitehttp://www.ldra.com

LDRA (previously known by the expanded form of Liverpool Data Research Associates) is an independent, privately owned, provider of software analysis, test, and requirements traceability tools for the Public and Private sectors.

It is a pioneer in static and dynamic software analysis.

History[edit]

Liverpool Data Research Associates was founded in 1975 by Professor Michael Hennell to commercialize a software test-bed created to perform quality assessments on the mathematical libraries on which his Nuclear physics research at the University of Liverpool depended.[1][2]

This research included the invention of the Linear Code Sequence and Jump (LCSAJ) software analysis method.[3]

Its product range covers a range of verification and validation tools.

Industry Standards[edit]

LDRA is a contributor to several industry standards, including DO-178C,[4] MISRA C[5] and MISRA C++.[6] Additionally, LDRA is an Industry Partner[7] for the CERT C Secure Coding Standard[8] produced by the Computer Emergency Response Team at Carnegie Mellon's Software Engineering Institute.

In February 2018, LDRA announced[9] the hiring of Andrew Banks to boost their Standards activities. Banks is the Chairman of both the MISRA C Working Group and of the BSI Software Testing Working Group, and a contributor to a number of national and international standards in the Software Engineering and Functional Safety domains, notably ISO 26262.

In September 2012, the United States arm of LDRA joined The Open Group's Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) Consortium as a Verification Authority.[10]

LDRA tool suite[edit]

LDRA tool suite
Initial release1975; 49 years ago (1975)
Stable release
v10.2.1 / November 27, 2023; 5 months ago (2023-11-27)
Operating systemWindows, Linux, macOS
TypeStatic code analysis, Unit testing, Requirements traceability
LicenseProprietary
Websiteldra.com/products/ldra-tool-suite/

LDRA tool suite is a proprietary software analysis tool providing static code analysis, and also provides code coverage analysis, code, quality, and design reviews. It is a commercial implementation of the software test-bed created by Hennell as part of his university research.

It is used primarily where software is required to be reliable, rugged, and as error free as possible, such as in safety critical aerospace electronics (or Avionics).[11] It has also been used in the detection and removal of security vulnerabilities.[12]

LDRA tool suite is an integrated suite of software tools from LDRA, including:

  • TBrun — an automated unit testing tool
  • TBmanager — a requirements traceability tool
  • TBevolve — supports software baseline management
  • TBsafe — supports certification objectives: DO-178C, Def Stan 00-55, IEC 61508[13]
  • TBpublish — for publishing HTML indexes
  • TBaudit — for Microsoft Word reports
  • LDRAcover — coverage tool[14]
  • LDRArules — standards compliance[15]
  • TBmisra — LDRArules add-on to apply MISRA C and other related or similar safety and security rulesets[13]
  • Tool Qualification Support Packages — for safety- and security-critical workflows,[13] e.g., DO-178C

Services[edit]

In March 2012, LDRA announced a fully compliant FAA/EASA certification solution[16] to provide support and guide certification applicants through a wide range of standards including:

Formula One Launch Control Controversy[edit]

The 1994 San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 1 May 1994 at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, located in Imola, Italy.

Following the race, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) hired LDRA[17] to investigate allegations of cheating using driving aids that had been prohibited at the start of the year, such as traction control and launch control. The top three cars of Michael Schumacher (Benetton), Nicola Larini (Ferrari) and Mika Häkkinen (McLaren) were investigated and their teams were asked to surrender their systems' source code to the company. Ferrari complied but Benetton and McLaren refused, citing copyright reasons. After being fined $100,000 by the FIA, both teams complied eight days after the race. LDRA discovered that McLaren were running a programme that permitted automatic gearshifts but the car was declared legal.[18]

The winning Benetton-Ford car was found to have launch control software in its engine management computer, designed to regulate engine speed and prevent wheel spin. Benetton admitted its presence but asserted that it wasn’t used during the race, asserting it was added for testing and left there due to workload pressures. LDRA concluded that the software likely wasn't used during the Grand Prix, leading the FIA to take no action against Benetton or Schumacher.[19] The incident underscored concerns about prohibited software in Formula 1 and the challenges of enforcing regulations in the evolving landscape of engine management technology.

References[edit]

  1. ^ M. A. Hennell, An experimental test bed for numerical software. {I}. {Fortran}, The Computer Journal 21(4):333--336, @nov, 1978
  2. ^ M. A. Hennell and D. Hedley, An experimental testbed for numerical software. {II}. {ALGOL 68}, The Computer Journal 22(1):53--56, @feb, 1979
  3. ^ M.A. Hennell, M.R.Woodward and D.Hedley, "On program analysis", Information Processing Letters, 5(5), pp. 136 – 140, 1976
  4. ^ LDRA Certification Services team lead to be formally recognized in Washington, D.C. as a key member of the RTCA SC-205 Committee. April 30, 2012 01:00 PM Eastern Time (http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120430005629/en/RTCA-Honors-LCS-Team-Lead-Todd-R.)
  5. ^ MISRA - The Motor Industry Software Reliability Association - MISRA C, http://www.misra-c2.com/
  6. ^ MISRA - The Motor Industry Software Reliability Association - MISRA C ++, http://www.misra-cpp.com/
  7. ^ CERT Research Annual Report 2008, SEI Communications, Executive Editor Richard Linger
  8. ^ CERT C Secure Coding Standard, The, Robert C. Seacord, Oct 14, 2008, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-321-56321-2.
  9. ^ ""LDRA Extends Commitment to Safety and Security Compliance Through Hire of Automotive Software Standards Champion"". Thomas Industry Update. 28 February 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  10. ^ "FACE approved verification authorities". The open Group. Retrieved 2023-08-08.
  11. ^ John Binder, Testing software: The new frontier, Aerospace America, June 2005, pp 30 - 31
  12. ^ Jay-Evan J. Tevis, John A. Hamilton, Methods for the prevention, detection and removal of software security vulnerabilities, Proceedings of the 42nd ACM annual Southeast regional conference, pp 197 - 202, Huntsville, Alabama, 2004, ISBN 1-58113-870-9
  13. ^ a b c "LDRA". Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  14. ^ "New code analysis tool released by LDRA at Design East". Military Embedded Systems. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  15. ^ "DESIGN East - LDRArules programming rule checker assures standards compliance". Embedded.com. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  16. ^ "Design West: LDRA Certification Services streamlines FAA/EASA certification at LDRA Certification Services streamlines FAA/EASA certification at a fixed price". Design West. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  17. ^ "May the best car win". New Scientist. September 1994. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  18. ^ "Benetton Launch Control". Motorsport.com. 25 March 1995. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  19. ^ "Benetton in the dock". Motorsport Magazine. 8 May 1994. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
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