# A Deontic Logic Analysis of Autonomous Systems' Safety

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.00738 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2009.00738/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 1 Sep 2020.

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [Algorithmic Ethics: Formalization and Verification of Autonomous Vehicle Obligations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2105.02851/) (2021)
- [Deontic Temporal Logic for Formal Verification of AI Ethics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.05765/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

We consider the pressing question of how to model, verify, and ensure that autonomous systems meet certain textitobligations (like the obligation to respect traffic laws), and refrain from impermissible behavior (like recklessly changing lanes). Temporal logics are heavily used in autonomous system design; however, as we illustrate here, temporal (alethic) logics alone are inappropriate for reasoning about obligations of autonomous systems. This paper proposes the use of Dominance Act Utilitarianism (DAU), a deontic logic of agency, to encode and reason about obligations of autonomous systems. We use DAU to analyze Intel's Responsibility-Sensitive Safety (RSS) proposal as a real-world case study. We demonstrate that DAU can express well-posed RSS rules, formally derive undesirable consequences of these rules, illustrate how DAU could help design systems that have specific obligations, and how to model-check DAU obligations.