Proposal to amend UN R13, 13-H, 79, 89, 130, 131, 139, 140, 152, 155, 156, 157, 171, 175, and 178 by introducing provisions on software identification and software updates. Amendments add new paragraphs referring to Software Identification Number definitions in Consolidated Resolution R.E.3, require manufacturers to provide Technical Services with information on hardware and software influencing performance, permit vehicle manufacturers to apply for new approvals differentiating software versions for registered versus new vehicles while avoiding test duplication, and modify production discontinuation provisions to exclude cases where manufacturers seek approval extensions for software updates of registered vehicles.

For the purposes of type approval under any UN Regulation requiring the verification of the timing of a system intervention, manufacturers shall provide to the approval authority or its designated technical service information on the method by which the initiation of any system intervention can be objectively identified and retrieved, including specific flags, status bits, event codes on in-vehicle networks, or visual indications on screens; clear instructions and all necessary tools for the Technical Service to extract, access and interpret the signal identifying the initiation; documented procedures including corresponding data sources, resolution, and timing accuracy appended to the type approval test report; and, where a visual indication displayed on a screen is used, documented latency between the earliest internal point at which the system initiates the function and the moment the visual indication becomes visible on the screen, expressed as a fixed value with associated uncertainty, with the documented latency value used to correct the observed timing of the screen indication appended to the type approval test report.