1. Purpose of the gate
Airborne equipment commits to an assurance level, an installation and a support life that can span decades. The certification plans will describe how the hardware and software are built and shown to be correct, and they name the device technology, the use of any commercial off-the-shelf parts or multicore processors, and the tools. Before those plans are submitted and the program commits people and money to development, this review asks a narrower question than the plans do: is the technology the equipment depends on able to deliver what the assurance level and the installation need? Ready does not mean finished. It means the team has evidence, rather than hope, and that every gap is known and has a credible way to close.
Five criteria apply. The device technology, including any commercial off-the-shelf parts and multicore processors, must be shown feasible with an assurance approach for the assurance level assigned. Component reliability and the environmental and radiation effects of the installation must be assessed, with gaps recorded. The obsolescence and counterfeit risk of the critical components must be assessed, with mitigations proposed. The tool and design environment for the chosen technology must be available, with a qualification approach proposed. Open technology risks are tracked.
The review sits before the plans are submitted for a reason. The plans are the commitments the evidence will be checked against. If a device cannot be given an assurance approach the authority will accept, a component will not survive the installation, or a key part will be out of production before the equipment is, finding it now costs a change to the plans. Finding it after the conceptual design is baselined costs a redesign, and finding it in verification or at the final compliance review costs far more.
10 more sections for registered members.