Autonomous Vehicle Risk Management Profile for Traffic Sign Recognition

Abstract

For decades Americans have been dreaming of driverless automobiles, and today, those dreams are becoming reality; with autonomous taxis operating in cities, and many of today's vehicles equipped with semi-autonomous functionality, i.e., lane keeping, traffic sign recognition (TSR) and object detection. In the next few years, these implementations are expected to expand, with more and more vehicles adapting levels 3+ automation. Continued development of AI technologies is allowing for advancement in autonomous vehicles. Such advancement provides added safety benefits to consumers. Features such as TSR will help propel the industry into level 5+ automation. Managing the risks for this technology, including the cybersecurity implications is crucial.To provide guidance on risk management, and in response to the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed the AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF 1.0). The Framework, which was released in January of 2023, was written as a guideline for organizations in all industries, to utilize in managing risks throughout the AI system lifecycle.This work leverages the NIST AI RMF framework's functions, categories, and subcategories as a comprehensive guideline. It combines this framework with extensive research on the associated automated technologies to develop a temporal AI risk management use case profile for TSR. This profile is designed to offer valuable insight into effectively managing risk throughout the AI lifecycle, specifically focusing on the associated technologies of the use case. To ensure accuracy and relevance, we have sought feedback from industry professionals involved in the development of AI technologies for autonomous vehicles.Additionally, we provide insight gathered from a survey we conducted on the public's perception of the trustworthiness of autonomous vehicles, the helpfulness of TSR, and what organizations can do to enhance the public's comfort level with the adoption of fully autonomous vehicles utilizing TSR functionality.