Call for Papers

SafeComp is an annual international conference covering the state-of-the-art, industrial experience, and new trends in the areas of safety, security, and reliability of critical computer applications. Established in 1979 by the European Workshop on Industrial Computer Systems (EWICS) Technical Committee 7 (TC7) on Reliability, Safety, and Security, SafeComp has since contributed to advancing the state-of-the-art in dependable application of computers in safety-related and safety-critical systems. Its single track conference format (i.e., no parallel sessions) affords attendees with ample opportunity to network, whilst exchanging insights and experience on emerging methods, approaches and practical solutions to current and future challenges in computer safety, reliability, and security.

Theme

The theme for SafeComp 2027 is “Innovation in Safety Assurance for Complex Autonomous Systems”. We particularly invite papers addressing innovative approaches to safety assurance for:

• Safety of complex systems of systems at industrial scale
• Emergent and evolving behaviour
• Autonomy and artificial intelligence (AI)

Topics

The conference covers all aspects related to the development, assessment, operation, and maintenance of safety-related and safety-critical computer systems. Contributions are solicited on the following major topics and application domains, which include but are not limited to:

Major Topics:

• Distributed and real-time monitoring and control
• Fault-tolerant and resilient hardware and software architectures
• Fault detection and recovery mechanisms
• Applications of AI technologies to computer safety, reliability, and security
• Security and privacy protection mechanisms for safety applications
• Safety guidelines and standards
• Safety/security co-engineering and tradeoffs
• Safety and security qualification, quantification, and certification
• Safety and assurance cases
• Threats and vulnerability analysis
• Risk assessment in safe and secure systems
• Dependability analysis using simulation and experimental measurement
• Model-based analysis, design, and assessment
• Formal methods for verification, validation, and fault tolerance
• Testing, verification, and validation methodologies and tools
• Application of the above topical areas to systems embedding AI technologies

Application Domains of Interest:

• Railways, automotive, space, & aviation
• Health and social care
• Highly automated and autonomous systems
• Energy production
• Telecommunication and networks
• Critical infrastructures, smart grids, SCADA
• Surveillance, defense, emergency & rescue
• Logistics, industrial automation, off-shore technology
• Education & training

Conference Venue

The conference will be held at the Ron Cooke Hub at the University of York, with workshops hosted nearby on the UoY campus. The Computer Science department at the University of York has been undertaking world leading research in software safety for 40 years. The newly built Institute for Safe Autonomy continues that legacy, specialising in safety of AI and Autonomous Systems. The University is in the beautiful medieval city of York, with stunning city walls, vikings and a dedicated railway museum. There are many easy to find bus routes from town to the east campus for the conference.

Workshops

Half day, and full day workshops will be collocated with and held immediately prior to the main conference dates (see Important Dates). Send workshop proposals—including scope, contents, proposed workshop programme committee, and duration (full/half day)—by email to the SafeComp 2027 Workshop Chairs: Erwin Schoitsch (erwin.schoitsch@ait.ac.at) and Rob Alexander (rob.alexander@york.ac.uk).

Important Dates

All submission times are Anywhere on Earth (AoE)

• Paper Abstract Submission: February 22, 2027
• Workshop Proposal Submission: March 1, 2027
• Full paper Submission: March 1, 2027
• Author Notification: May 16, 2027
• Camera-ready Submission: June 1, 2027
• Workshops: September 6, 2027
• Main Conference: September 7 – 9, 2027

Conference and Workshop Proceedings

All accepted research papers, practical experience reports, and tool descriptions will be published in two volumes: SafeComp 2027 Proceedings, and SafeComp 2027 Workshop Proceedings, by Springer in the Lecture Notes on Computer Science (LNCS) series.

Paper Submission Details

SafeComp has traditionally served as a confluence for academic research and industry needs. Thus contributions from the industry, including practical experience reports from real-world applications and use, are especially sought besides regular research contributions.

SafeComp 2027 invites the following types of full-paper submissions (each up to 14 pages including bibliography):

• Research papers that improve the state-of-the-art and advance current knowledge through theory, analysis, and evaluation (e.g. experimentation and case studies);
• Practical experience reports and/or tool descriptions that offer new insights, supporting realistic use by practitioners.

Papers exceeding the page limit or violating the required submission format will be desk-rejected without review. Papers must not have been previously published or concurrently submitted elsewhere. All paper submissions must be formatted according to the LNCS templates provided by Springer.

Papers should be submitted in PDF through EasyChair. Please ensure that embedded images are legible.

All papers will be reviewed by at least three members of the International Programme Committee. Calls for position papers and doctoral submissions will be invited at a later date.

Note: The use of generative AI to create papers and paper content is strictly prohibited, including for text, figures, and tables. LLMs may be used to check grammar, including wording and formatting changes to the text. Full transparency of the use of LLMs and generative AI in relation to the research presented should be provided as part of a methodology section.

Organizing Committee

General Chairs

• Philippa Ryan (University of York, UK)
• Simon Burton (University of York, UK)

Programme Chairs

• Ibrahim Habli (University of York, UK)
• Ganesh Pai (KBR / NASA Ames Research Center, USA)

Workshop Chairs

• Erwin Schoitsch (Austrian Institute of Technology, Austria)
• Rob Alexander (University of York, UK)

Industry Contacts and Chair

• Magnus Albert (SICK AG, Germany)

Publication Chair

• Friedemann Bitsch (Thales Ground Transportation Systems, Germany)

Local Organization and Finance Chairs

• Emily Ellis (University of York, UK)
• Chrysle Hudson (University of York, UK)

Posters Chair

• Jie Zou (University of York, UK)

Website Chairs

• Sepeedeh Shahbeigi Roudposhti (University of York, UK)
• Swarna Chetty (University of York)

Publicity and Marketing Chair

• Sara Thornurst (University of York, UK)

International Programme Committee

• TBC