PhD researcher - Dynamic Safety Assurance for Autonomous Outdoor Operation

**PhD researcher - Dynamic Safety Assurance for Autonomous Outdoor Operation** ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ *(ref. BAP-2026-668)* *Laatst aangepast: 14/11/26* At the M-Group at KU Leuven Bruges Campus, we are driving innovation in interconnected, intelligent mechatronic systems. A dedicated part of our team focuses on dependable autonomous systems and dynamic safety assurance, addressing the latest challenges in safety-critical autonomous operation and advancing the future of this rapidly evolving field in close collaboration with Flanders Make. With the newly launched COSAIN project – “Co-Designing Safety, Control and Perception for Autonomous Outdoor Operation” – we are looking for an ambitious junior researcher to help develop next-generation methods for runtime safety assurance in autonomous systems operating in complex, uncertain environments. ##### **Project** COSAIN addresses a key challenge in autonomous systems: ensuring safe behaviour in dynamic and uncertain outdoor environments where perception, control, and safety are tightly interconnected. The project introduces a novel co-design approach centred around Dynamic Safety Cases (DSCs) that evolve during system operation and interact with perception, modelling, and control components. As a PhD researcher, you will play a central scientific role in developing executable and runtime-integrated safety assurance mechanisms for the COSAIN project. Your responsibilities include: * Developing machine-readable and executable safety case representations and methods to derive runtime monitoring requirements and safety performance indicators. * Contributing to the development of dynamic safety case frameworks and their integration with runtime data and system behaviour. * Collaborating closely within an interdisciplinary team working on perception, modelling, and control. * Participating in experiments and validation (simulation, hardware-in-the-loop, real-world demonstrators). * Collaborating with industrial partners and contributing to use cases in domains such as inland navigation and robotics. * Publish research results in leading international journals and conferences. ##### **Profile** We are looking for a candidate with the following background: * A master degree in Safety Engineering, Computer Science, Electronics, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field. * Strong interest in safety engineering, autonomous systems, or cyber-physical systems. * Experience or interest in safety analysis methods and runtime safety assurance approaches. * Familiarity with model-based safety engineering tools is a strong plus. * Strong analytical and problem-solving skills. * Excellent communication and scientific writing skills in English. * Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively in multidisciplinary teams. ##### **Offer** We offer: * A fully funded 4-year PhD position at KU Leuven. * The opportunity