The purpose of the research presented in this paper is to provide a methodological framework for primary automotive safety. The methodology proposed is based on a systemic approach of driving and follows the principles of System Safety Analysis. The paper first covers the general concepts involved in the approach. A Generic Driving Model is proposed and the notions of Operating Range and Accident Mechanism are explained. An Accident Typology and a Classification of Safety Systems are provided on the basis of these notions.

A method for the Determination of Critical Scenarios encountered in automotive driving is then proposed. This method first requires a qualitative modeling of the operation of the driver-vehicle system in a given driving phase. The different possible failures are then deduced from this model which leads to a Qualitative Failure Model. Finally, the malfunction probabilities must be quantified using In-Depth Accident Investigations and Driving Simulator Experiments. The Quantified Malfunction Model obtained can be used for Specification and Probabilistic Safety Assessment of crash avoidance