ISO/TS 5083 Has Landed: A Milestone for Safe Automated Driving

By Dr. David Ward, Global Head of VRES – Functional Safety

The automotive industry has reached a key milestone in the development of automated driving. With the release of ISO/TS 5083, we now have the first international engineering standard dedicated to the safety of automated driving systems (ADS), a landmark step toward widespread adoption of safe and secure Level 3 and Level 4 features.

iso ts 5083a

At HORIBA MIRA, we are proud to have played a key role in this breakthrough, leading the UK delegation in the international working group and contributing to the core development of the standard. This leadership reflects our decades-long commitment to shaping the future of vehicle safety, from functional safety and cybersecurity to the safe deployment of automated driving technologies.

ISO/TS 5083 provides technical guidance for achieving and demonstrating safety in automated driving systems integrated into road vehicles. The document lays out a structured approach grounded in high-level safety principles and globally recognised practices.

Key focus areas include:

Safety by design
Verification and validation
Post-deployment activities

This guidance applies specifically to SAE Level 3 and 4 automated features, where responsibility transitions (either partially or entirely) away from the human driver.

Until now, the industry has not had a “state of the art” engineering standard for the development of ADS. While standards like ISO 26262 (functional safety) and ISO 21448 (SOTIF) address important aspects of safety, they were originally developed with human-driven vehicles in mind. That said, SOTIF now includes Level 3 and 4 automation within its scope, offering guidance on the safe performance of perception and decision-making systems in the absence of driver intervention.

iso ts 5083B

There’s been a perceived gap in standards for the safety of automated driving systems. ISO/TS 5083 fills that gap, building on ISO 26262 and SOTIF while introducing essential new guidance tailored for ADS.

The release of ISO/TS 5083 represents an emerging global consensus, the result of extensive collaboration across OEMs, suppliers, and regulatory bodies, on what safety development of ADS should look like.

ISO/TS 5083 will be especially impactful for:

Vehicle manufacturers developing L3/L4 automated features
Tier 1 suppliers providing enabling technologies and subsystems
Regulators tasked with evaluating ADS against frameworks such as UN Regulation 157 (ALKS) and Regulation 171 (DCAS)

By establishing a clear and adaptable framework, this standard helps organisations:

Navigate complex technical assurance challenges
Integrate safety into product development lifecycles
Align with international expectations for regulatory readiness

We offer a comprehensive portfolio of services to help organisations align with ISO/TS 5083 and strengthen their approach to safe ADS development, including:

✅ Training (including our new 1-day ISO/TS 5083 overview course)
✅ Process alignment and engineering support
✅ Safety case development and review
✅ Independent audit and assessment
✅ Expertise across ISO 26262, SOTIF, and ISO/PAS 8800 (AI safety)

Our cross-disciplinary teams combine technical rigour with real-world engineering insight, making us a trusted partner to OEMs, Tier 1s, and regulators across the globe.

Get in Touch

If you’re looking to align with ISO/TS 5083 or need guidance on how it fits into your current safety approach, our experts are ready to help.

Schedule a call or reach out to us at [email protected]