Abstract
ABSTRACTCombat System overhauls add to the complexity of surface ship availabilities because of the high level of system testing that is required. In keeping with this complexity, shipyard test programs must be solidly based in systems test theory in order to achieve test integrity and ensure combat system readiness at the end of the availability.All too often, the ship systems are not ready for post availability trials. Evidence indicates that in many cases system test principles are either not used or not well understood. This is not surprising when we consider that, in the ship repair industry, a system is defined as a collection of equipments rather than as a process, as it is in the aerospace industry. The sense of continuity encouraged by the idea of a process is missing from the idea of a collection.This paper defines a system in an abstract way. Relationships are defined in terms of system state, its inputs, and its outputs. Controllability and observability are defined in a way that is useful to the test engineer. Both axiomatic and heuristic definitions are presented in order to provide a basis for test philosophy. These concepts are then examined for principles that can be applied to system testing.Having established an abstract system as a process, both definitions and principles are applied to surface ship combat systems with the intention of reshaping the idea of what a system is and how it must be tested.Finally, the paper offers a list of definitions appropriate to the ship repair industry that will tie its test programs to the language and ideas of system testing that are held in the aerospace industry and in the systems manufacturing world.
Published Version
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