Detecting anomalies using real-time ECU processing activity

• US 10,289,404 B2
• Filed: 07/24/2018
• Issued: 05/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aurora Labs Limited
• Original Assignee: Aurora Labs Limited
• Inventors: Fox, Zohar
• Primary Examiner(s): Duncan, Marc
• Application Number:
  US16/044,405
• Publication Number:
  US 20190031203A1
• Time in Patent Office: 294 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/021 Means for detecting failure or malfunction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/02 Ensuring safety in case of control system failures, e.g. by diagnosing, circumventing or fixing failures
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0205 Diagnosing or detecting failures; Failure detection models
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0225 Failure correction strategy
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/04 Monitoring the functioning of the control system
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/045 Monitoring control system parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0721 within a central processing unit [CPU]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0751 Error or fault detection not based on redundancy power supply failures G06F1/30; network fault management H04L41/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/079 Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0793 Remedial or corrective actions recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1433 during software upgrading
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1629 Error detection by comparing the output of redundant processing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3612 by runtime analysis performance monitoring G06F11/3466
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0284 Multiple user address space allocation, e.g. using different base addresses interprocessor communication G06F15/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0646 Configuration or reconfiguration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/188 Virtual file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/57 Certifying or maintaining trusted computer platforms, e.g. secure boots or power-downs, version controls, system software checks, secure updates or assessing vulnerabilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/572 Secure firmware programming, e.g. of basic input output system [BIOS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/577 Assessing vulnerabilities and evaluating computer system security
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/1008 Correctness of operation, e.g. memory ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/1044 : Space efficiency improvement
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/1056 : Simplification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/033 : Test or assess software
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 : Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 : Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/654 : using techniques specially adapted for alterable solid state memories, e.g. for EEPROM or flash memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/656 : while running
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/658 : Incremental updates; Differential updates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/66 : of program code stored in read-only memory [ROM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 : Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4401 : Bootstrapping security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 : Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44521 : Dynamic linking or loading; Link editing at or after load time, e.g. Java class loading
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 : Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 : Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

Disclosed embodiments relate to identifying Electronic Control Unit (ECU) anomalies in a vehicle. Operations may include monitoring data representing real-time processing activity of the ECU; receiving comparable data relating to processing activity of at least one other ECU deemed comparable in functionality to the ECU; comparing the real-time processing activity data with the comparable data, to identify at least one anomaly in the real-time processing activity of the ECU; and implementing a control action for the ECU when the at least one anomaly is identified.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer readable medium including instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform operations for identifying Electronic Control Unit (ECU) anomalies in a vehicle, comprising:

monitoring data representing real-time processing activity of the ECU;

receiving comparable data relating to processing activity of at least one other ECU deemed comparable in functionality to the ECU;

comparing the real-time processing activity data with the comparable data, to identify at least one anomaly in the real-time processing activity of the ECU; and

implementing a control action for the ECU when the at least one anomaly is identified;

wherein

software on the ECU is mapped to a plurality of functional units, and the ECU is configured to utilize a virtual file system (VFS) to manage and track one or more versions of each of the plurality of functional units, and

the control action includes updating memory addresses of one or more functional units managed by the VFS based on a delta file corresponding to a second version of the software on the ECU, wherein the delta file comprises position-independent code.

2. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the control action includes issuing a prompt to adjust the ECU from executing a first version of the software on the ECU to the second version of the software on the ECU.

3. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the comparable data comprises data obtained in real-time relating to processing activity of a plurality of other ECUs deemed comparable to the ECU.

4. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the comparable data comprises data previously gathered relating to processing activity of a plurality of other ECUs deemed comparable to the ECU.

5. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving the comparable data further comprises:

obtaining the comparable data based on rules associated with ECU software running on the ECU.

6. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving the comparable data further comprises:

obtaining the comparable data based on known valid sequences of execution of the software on the ECU.

7. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving the comparable data further comprises:

obtaining the comparable data based on known potentially malicious sequences of execution of the software on the ECU.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving the comparable data further comprises:

obtaining the comparable data based on a map file associated with the software on the ECU.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving the comparable data further comprises:

receiving observational data from other vehicles; and

obtaining the comparable data based on the observational data.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the at least one anomaly corresponds to specific memory locations used by the ECU.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the at least one anomaly corresponds to specific sequences of memory locations used by the ECU.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the at least one anomaly corresponds to at least one peak in data flow in or out of the ECU.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the at least one anomaly corresponds to at least one peak in data processing by a processor of the ECU.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the at least one anomaly corresponds to at least one anomaly in power consumption of the ECU.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the control action comprises at least one of:

sending an alert associated with the ECU,

blocking an instruction sent from the ECU, or

rolling back a version of the software running on the ECU to a prior version of software.

16. A system for identifying Electronic Control Unit (ECU) anomalies in a vehicle, the system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memories having instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the operations of;

monitoring data representing real-time processing activity of the ECU;

receiving comparable data relating to processing activity of at least one other ECU deemed comparable in functionality to the ECU;

comparing the real-time processing activity data with the comparable data, to identify at least one anomaly in the real-time processing activity of the ECU; and

implementing a control action for the ECU when the at least one anomaly is identified;

wherein

software on the ECU is mapped to a plurality of functional units, and the ECU is configured to utilize a virtual file system (VFS) to manage and track one or more versions of each of the plurality of functional units, and

the control action includes updating memory addresses of one or more functional units managed by the VFS based on a delta file corresponding to a second version of the software on the ECU, wherein the delta file comprises position-independent code.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the control action comprises issuing a prompt to adjust the ECU from executing a first version of the software on the ECU to the second version of the software on the ECU.

18. A computer-implemented method for identifying Electronic Control Unit (ECU) anomalies in a vehicle, the method comprising:

monitoring data representing real-time processing activity of the ECU;

receiving comparable data relating to processing activity of at least one other ECU deemed comparable in functionality to the ECU;

comparing the real-time processing activity data with the comparable data, to identify at least one anomaly in the real-time processing activity of the ECU; and

implementing a control action for the ECU when the at least one anomaly is identified;

wherein

software on the ECU is mapped to a plurality of functional units, and the ECU is configured to utilize a virtual file system (VFS) to manage and track one or more versions of each of the plurality of functional units, and

the control action includes updating memory addresses of one or more functional units managed by the VFS based on a delta file corresponding to a second version of the software on the ECU, wherein the delta file comprises position-independent code.