Steps
1. Navigate to a Dashboard with Coverage Metrics
Start from any dashboard showing coverage bars:
- Home Dashboard — Overall project statistics
- Requirements Space — Requirements traceability
- Design Space — Design verification coverage
- Risks Space — FMEA coverage metrics
- Safety Readiness Scorecard — Standards compliance
Each coverage bar displays a percentage and a “gaps” link.
2. Identify Coverage Gaps
Look for coverage metrics below 100%. The coverage bar shows:
The color indicates health:
- Green (≥80%) — Good coverage
- Yellow (50-79%) — Needs attention
- Red (<50%) — Critical gap
3. Click the Gap Link
Click the “View N gaps” or “uncovered” link next to the coverage percentage. This executes a Lucene query in the Work Items Tracker showing only the items missing the required links.
4. Review the Gap Query Results
The Work Items Tracker opens with a pre-filtered query showing uncovered items. Example for unverified system requirements:
| ID | Title | Status | ASIL | Assignee |
|---|
| TA-123 | System shall detect obstacles | Draft | D | Unassigned |
| TA-145 | System shall calculate collision risk | Draft | C | J. Smith |
| TA-167 | System shall activate brake actuator | Review | D | Unassigned |
type:sysReq AND NOT backlinkedWorkItems:verifies=TA*
Right-click the gap link and select “Copy Link Address” to bookmark frequently used gap queries. This lets you monitor progress without navigating through dashboards.
5. Drill Down to Item Details
Click any work item ID to open the full form and investigate why the link is missing:
- Check the Linked Work Items section
- Verify the correct link role (e.g., “verifies”, “refines”, “assesses”)
- Review custom fields (ASIL, classification, Action Priority)
- Check workflow status — items in “Draft” may be intentionally unlinked
6. Understand Gap Query Logic
Different coverage metrics use different Lucene queries:
| Coverage Type | Query Pattern | Meaning |
|---|
| Forward links | type:A AND NOT linkedWorkItems:role=* | Items of type A with NO outgoing links |
| Backward links | type:A AND NOT backlinkedWorkItems:role=PREFIX* | Items of type A with NO incoming links from project |
| Enum classification | type:A AND NOT fieldName.KEY:(value1 value2) | Items missing enum value |
| Multi-hop | Custom Velocity loop | Transitive traceability (e.g., desReq → characteristic → failureMode) |
Complex traceability chains (like SC/CC Design Requirements → Failure Modes via Characteristics) cannot generate automatic gap queries. The dashboard shows the original query (e.g., type:desReq AND classification.KEY:(sc cc)) — you must manually verify each item.
7. Fix Gaps Systematically
From the gap query results:
- Batch select items needing the same link type
- Use Bulk Edit (from Work Items table toolbar) to add links
- For FMEA gaps, open the risksheet and complete missing fields
- For complex chains, use the relevant PowerSheet (e.g., Characteristics PowerSheet to link characteristics → failure modes)
8. Verify Coverage Improvement
Return to the dashboard and refresh (F5). The coverage percentage should increase as you add links. The gap count decreases in real-time.
Before: 26/31 verified (83.9%) — 5 gaps
After: 31/31 verified (100%) — 0 gaps
Common Gap Query Examples
Unverified System Requirements
type:sysReq AND NOT backlinkedWorkItems:verifies=TA*
Unrefined Customer Requirements
type:customerRequirement AND NOT backlinkedWorkItems:refines=TA*
SC/CC Characteristics Without FMEA
type:characteristic AND classification.KEY:(sc cc) AND NOT backlinkedWorkItems:assesses=TA*
Failure Modes Without Action Priority
type:failureMode AND NOT actionPriority.KEY:(h m l)
Visual Flow
Verification
You should now see:
- The Work Items Tracker filtered to show ONLY uncovered items
- A Lucene query in the search bar explaining the gap logic
- The ability to click individual items to investigate and fix gaps
- Updated coverage percentages when you return to the dashboard
See also
