CAE Professional Ethics & Standards 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An engineer working on autonomous vehicle software becomes aware that a competitor's proprietary algorithm was copied by a colleague. The correct response is to:
- Use the algorithm since competitors do it too
- Report the potential intellectual property theft to legal counsel or management (Correct answer)
- Delete the files and say nothing
- Incorporate the algorithm only in internal testing
Correct answer: Report the potential intellectual property theft to legal counsel or management
Using misappropriated intellectual property exposes the company and engineer to legal liability and violates professional ethics.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes 'informed consent' as it applies to automotive engineering field testing with human participants?
- Participants are told the test is routine to avoid bias
- Participants receive full disclosure of risks and voluntarily agree before testing (Correct answer)
- Consent is implied when participants enter a test facility
- Only management needs to consent on behalf of participants
Correct answer: Participants receive full disclosure of risks and voluntarily agree before testing
Ethical field testing requires that human participants fully understand and voluntarily accept all associated risks prior to participation.
Question 3: A certified automotive engineer stamps drawings for work outside their area of demonstrated competence. This violates the principle of:
- Sustainable design
- Practicing only within one's area of competence (Correct answer)
- Confidentiality
- Cost efficiency
Correct answer: Practicing only within one's area of competence
Professional codes require engineers to practice only within their established areas of competence to protect public safety.
Question 4: Under FMVSS requirements, if a manufacturer discovers a safety defect after vehicle sale, the manufacturer must:
- Notify only fleet customers
- Notify NHTSA and remedy the defect at no charge to owners (Correct answer)
- Issue a technical service bulletin and charge dealers for parts
- Wait until the defect causes a statistically significant number of incidents
Correct answer: Notify NHTSA and remedy the defect at no charge to owners
NHTSA regulations require manufacturers to notify the agency and vehicle owners of safety defects and provide free remedies.
Question 5: An automotive engineer is offered a consulting contract by a company that also supplies parts to their employer. The most appropriate first step is to:
- Accept the contract as long as work is done after hours
- Disclose the potential conflict of interest to the employer and seek guidance (Correct answer)
- Decline all outside work categorically
- Negotiate the consulting fee independently
Correct answer: Disclose the potential conflict of interest to the employer and seek guidance
Disclosure allows the employer to assess whether the outside engagement creates an unacceptable conflict before it becomes a problem.
Question 6: ISO 26262 is most directly relevant to automotive engineers working on:
- Fuel economy certification
- Functional safety of road vehicles with electrical and electronic systems (Correct answer)
- Exhaust emission testing
- Crash energy management
Correct answer: Functional safety of road vehicles with electrical and electronic systems
ISO 26262 is the international standard for functional safety of automotive E/E systems, defining requirements from concept through decommissioning.
Question 7: A lead engineer's subordinate raises a safety concern that the lead believes is unfounded. The ethical obligation of the lead engineer is to:
- Dismiss the concern to maintain team morale
- Formally document and investigate the concern before closure (Correct answer)
- Transfer the subordinate to a different team
- Agree with the subordinate publicly but take no action
Correct answer: Formally document and investigate the concern before closure
All safety concerns must be documented and properly investigated, even when the lead believes them unfounded, to ensure accountability.
CAE Professional Ethics & Standards 3
An engineer working on autonomous vehicle software becomes aware that a competitor's proprietary algorithm was copied by a colleague.
The correct response is to: