Operational design domain

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Operational design domain (ODD) is a term for a particular operating context for an automated system, often used in the field of autonomous vehicles. The context is defined by a set of conditions, including environmental, geographical, time of day, and other conditions. For vehicles, traffic and roadway characteristics are included. Manufacturers use ODD to indicate where/how their product operates safely. A given system may operate differently according to the immediate ODD.

The concept presumes that automated systems have limitations. Relating system function to the ODD it supports is important for developers and regulators to establish and communicate safe operating conditions. Systems should operate within those limitations. Some systems recognize the ODD and modify their behavior accordingly. For example, an autonomous car might recognize that traffic is heavy and disable its automated lane change feature.

ODD is used for cars, for ships, trains, agricultural robots, and other robots.

Various regulators have offered definitions of related terms:

In 2022, Mercedes-Benz announced a product with an ODD of Level 3 autonomous driving at 130 km/h.

• Scenario (vehicular automation)