Systems Engineering Practices Research Articles

Innovative Approaches to Wear Reduction in Horizontal Powder Screw Conveyors: A Design of Experiments-Guided Numerical Study

Numerical simulations play a vital role in the modern engineering industry, especially when faced with interconnected challenges such as particle interactions and the structural integrity of conveyor systems. This article focuses on the handling of materials and emphasizes the importance of using parametric numerical analysis to improve efficiency, reduce wear, and enhance the structural integrity of horizontal screw conveyors. Through the utilization of the Design of Experiments, we systematically investigated critical parameters such as screw pitch, clearance, wear, rotational velocity, and additional structural factors. This examination was carried out within a well-defined parametric framework, utilizing a combination of software tools provided by the Ansys suite and Minitab. The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the Design of Experiments analysis in achieving improved performance and provide valuable insights for engineers and researchers involved in the design of conveyor systems. Furthermore, this comprehensive approach clarifies how conveyor systems respond to changes in parameters and highlights the complex interaction between transported particles and the conveyor system. We present a detailed analysis that clarifies the complex relationships and dependencies among different parameters, providing engineers and researchers with valuable insights. By understanding the interactions of these factors, the methodology provides not only results but also a strategic framework for advancing conveyor system design and engineering practices.

Early Validation and Verification of System Behaviour in Model-based Systems Engineering: A Systematic Literature Review

In the Systems Engineering (SE) domain there has been a paradigm shift from document-based to model-based system development artefacts; in fact, new methodologies are emerging to meet the increasing complexity of current systems and the corresponding growing need of digital workflows. In this regard, Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) is considered as a key enabler by many central players of the SE community. MBSE has reached an adequate level of maturity, and there exist documented success stories in its adoption in industry. In particular, one significant benefit of utilising MBSE when compared to the traditional manual and document-centric workflows is that models are available from early phases of systems development; these enable a multitude of analyses prior any implementation effort together with other relevant capabilities, like the automation of development tasks. Nonetheless, it is noticeable there is a lack of a common understanding for how formal analyses for the verification and validation (V&V) of systems behaviour, specifically in the early phases of development, could be placed in an MBSE setting. In this article, we report on the planning, execution, and results of a systematic literature review regarding the early V&V of systems behaviour in the context of model-based systems engineering. The review aims to provide a structured representation of the state of the art with respect to motivations, proposed solutions, and limitations. From an initial set of potentially relevant 701 peer-reviewed publications we selected 149 primary studies, which we analysed according to a rigorous data extraction, analysis, and synthesis process. Based on our results, early V&V has usually the goal of checking the quality of a system design to avoid discovering flaws when parts are being concretely realised; SysML is a de facto standard for describing the system under study, while the solutions for the analyses tend to be varied; also V&V analyses tend to target varied properties with a slight predominance of functional concerns, and following the variation mentioned so far the proposed solutions are largely context specific; the proposed approaches are usually presented without explicit limitations, while when limitations are discussed, readiness of the solutions, handling of analyses simplifications/assumptions, and languages/tools integration are among the most frequently mentioned issues. Based on the survey results and the standard SE practices, we discuss how the current state-of-the-art MBSE supports early V&V of systems behaviour with a special focus on industrial adoption and identify relevant challenges to be researched further.

Towards a Method to Enable the Selection of Physical Models within the Systems Engineering Process: A Case Study with Simulink Models

The use of different techniques and tools is a common practice to cover all stages in the development life-cycle of systems generating a significant number of work products. These artefacts are frequently encoded using diverse formats, and often require access through non-standard protocols and formats. In this context, Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) emerges as a methodology to shift the paradigm of Systems Engineering practice from a document-oriented environment to a model-intensive environment. To achieve this major goal, a formalised application of modelling is employed throughout the life-cycle of systems to generate various system artefacts represented as models, such as requirements, logical models, and multi-physics models. However, the mere use of models does not guarantee one of the main challenges in the Systems Engineering discipline, namely, the reuse of system artefacts. Considering the fact that models are becoming the main type of system artefact, it is necessary to provide the capability to properly and efficiently represent and retrieve the generated models. In light of this, traditional information retrieval techniques have been widely studied to match existing software assets according to a set of capabilities or restrictions. However, there is much more at stake than the simple retrieval of models or even any piece of knowledge. An environment for model reuse must provide the proper mechanisms to (1) represent any piece of data, information, or knowledge under a common and shared data model, and (2) provide advanced retrieval mechanisms to elevate the meaning of information resources from text-based descriptions to concept-based ones. This need has led to novel methods using word embeddings and vector-based representations to semantically encode information. Such methods are applied to encode the information of physical models while preserving their underlying semantics. In this study, a text corpus from MATLAB Simulink models was preprocessed using Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques and trained to generate word vector representations. Then, the presented method was validated using a testbed of MATLAB Simulink physical models in which verbalisations of models are transformed into vectors. The effectiveness of the proposed solution was assessed through a use case study. Evaluation of the results demonstrates a precision value of 0.925, a recall value of 0.865, and an F1 score of 0.884.

Pragmatic verification and validation of industrial executable SysML models

AbstractIn recent years, Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) practices have been applied in various industries to design, simulate and verify complex systems. The verification and validation (V&V) of such systems engineering models are crucial to develop high‐quality systems. However, this is a challenging problem due to the complexity of the models and semantic differences in how different tools interpret the models, which can undermine the validity of the obtained results if they go undiscovered. To address these issues, we propose (i) a subset of the SysML language for which the practical semantic integrity of tools can be achieved and (ii) a cloud‐based V&V framework for this subset, lifting verification to an industrial scale. We demonstrate the feasibility of our approach on an industrial‐scale model from the aerospace domain and summarize the lessons learned during transitioning formal verification tools to an industrial context.

Considerations on Deploying Systems Engineering to Accelerate the R&D of New Nuclear Fuels

A project for the research and development (R&D) of new nuclear fuels is a system with the following characteristics: having large number of stakeholders, progressing through a set of life cycle stages, validated by advanced measures of effectiveness, integrating multiple disciplines and specialty groups, and facilitated by enabling systems, thus can be effectively managed with the approach of systems engineering (SE). In this paper, the deployment of SE in global nuclear industry including Russia, the U.S., France, Korea and China is reviewed. By learning the experience of SE deployment in global nuclear industry, the SE characteristics of projects for the R&D of new nuclear fuels are analysed based on systems science. The R&D projects of medical cobalt adjuster rod assemblies and mobile nuclear reactor in China North Nuclear Fuel Co., Ltd. (CNNFC) are discussed as SE practices. It is proposed that in order to accelerate the R&D of new nuclear fuels in nuclear fuel manufacturing plant, SE should be enhanced in the following aspects: adhering to systems science, making good use of SE engineers, introducing SE tools, and exploring SE characteristics.

Towards a formalized model-based process for the design of high-speed aircraft and related subsystems

Increasing complexity associated to advanced aircraft concepts for high-speed flight is pushing the limit of engineering practices concerning design phases of products lifecycle. Specific methodologies aimed at managing requirements over the entire vehicle architecture definition shall then be properly formalized and supported by means of standardized processes and languages in order to be effective. The approaches suggested by the Systems Engineering practices, especially when considering the model-based environments as main tools for systems design, can be exploited to face these challenges, if properly tailored to suit the specific engineering field considered. This paper aims at proposing a model-based process for the design of high-speed aircraft exploiting a formalized methodology and the typical tools of Systems Engineering. A conceptual design exercise, based on the STRATOFLY MR3 hypersonic cruiser case study, is performed from high-level stakeholder objectives to vehicle performance estimations, passing through functional and interface analyses. Additionally, some insights concerning on-board subsystems sizing activities are provided in terms of integration within the high-level design process. The whole work highlights the capability of performing a seamless requirements management and development within the design procedure, particularly focussing on the relationships among the different stages of the workflow.

Teaching Systems Engineering Practices Using Principles from Studio Art Education

ABSTRACTWe have created a cross‐disciplinary learning program across studio art, systems thinking, and systems architecture to improve systems competencies. Previous research produced a framework for relating learning concepts across these three domains. We describe how to apply these concepts to any learning situation to increase systems competencies using systems thinking and systems engineering tools. We have applied the framework in educational settings to teach systems thinking, critical thinking, and systems engineering using a tailored classroom approach derived from studio art classes. The studio format encourages the students to build their skills across a portfolio of work focused on creating appropriate views of a system, communicating them, and gaining critical review – three core aspects of the systems thinking process. An effective systems engineer conceptualizes and solves problems, addresses stakeholder concerns, explores and composes solutions, and manages system evolution. The use of art, as embodied in systems‐related tools, has proven to be an effective method for developing these skills. This article presents the framework and an example graduate level Systems and Critical Thinking class taught using the studio art approach.

Systems Engineering applied in the construction industry to achieve a BREEAM certification

AbstractBuildings have environmental impacts over their entire life cycle, which often exceed 50 years. Today buildings are responsible for 40‐50% of all energy usage and anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions globally. Green constructions are gaining increased attention, and a variety of building certifications provide a rating system designed to help develop buildings that are more sustainable, i.e., energy efficient, with zero emissions. BREEAM is a well‐known certificate with a clear outcome, and by satisfying different targets a building may gain points to achieve a certain benchmark rating. The construction industry in the last decade has shown an increased interest in Systems Engineering (SE). This thesis investigates the barriers to BREEAM and considers whether SE practices can help systematize the assessment process and make it less resource intensive. The research shows that there is a desire in the industry for a more systematic approach to achieving a BREEAM certification. The results indicate that an early life phase investment with a high focus on the requirements, in addition to a systematic use of the V‐model and hierarchy diagram, is useful.

Engineering Complicated Systems Still Needs Systems Engineering and Thinking

AbstractIn recent years there has been a totally valid move in Systems Engineering circles to consider and focus on capability / complex systems (of systems). This is important as the world is getting more inter‐connected and the consequences of undesired emergence more significant. Unfortunately this has led to a “marginalization” of (simply) complicated systems, which were the bedrock of Systems Engineering practice. Whilst practice obviously needs to adjust when the system of interest is complex, the fundamental principles still apply and the Systems Engineering profession must not simply abandon consideration of complicated systems. This paper is intended to act as a reminder of how important the application of Systems Engineering is to complicated systems.

Using modeling and simulation and artificial intelligence to improve complex adaptive systems engineering

Systems engineering practices are evolving to address fast-changing needs in fielding complex systems. These needs create an environment in which system needs evolve or change too quickly to be tracked or managed by humans’ natural capabilities. We propose that systems engineering must aid systems engineering managers by providing architectural alternatives and design options. Further, as systems become more complex and dynamic, there is an increased need to identify hidden risks, model emergent behavior, and expose hidden patterns in the behavior of stakeholders. Systems engineering needs to evolve to build fast-fielded, resilient, and adaptive systems that leverage positive reinforcement feedback loops with multiple experimental and real-world information sources. The very basis of systems engineering must evolve from today’s development paradigms to a future that leverages modeling, simulation, and artificial intelligence to drastically improve the capability and agility for developing new systems. This paper proposes a common way forward to enable this new form of complex adaptive systems engineering.

Applying systems engineering to roadmapping for digital transformation in the offshore exploration and production supply chain operations

AbstractThis article presents the results of the third cycle of an Action Research (AR) study conducted in an offshore exploration and production (E&P) operator on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) that investigated a digital transformation (DT) in offshore E&P supply chain operations, with a focus on drilling operations. This study provides the results of a brief investigation of the main factors that contribute the success of DT and demonstrates the value of using technology roadmapping alongside systems engineering (SE) practices to create a path between identified “AS‐IS” and “TO‐BE” operational states. Applying SE methods to the adoption of the “T‐Plan” roadmapping process resulted in a strategic communication tool that can be used among stakeholders to support them with the integration of business planning and technology adoption, and to help assess the impact that new technologies may have on their organizations in their journey toward a successful DT. In addition to the roadmap itself, which benefits the case company, this study contributes to building and enriching academic literature by providing insight from the oil and gas industry and demonstrating the use of technology roadmapping to create a strategic plan for DT in a well‐established industrial domain.

Aerospace System Engineering Model in the New Era

In the face of emerging opportunities of building a space power, the new challenges of complex international situations, and the new requirements put forward by the development of information technology to the modernization of national defense and the army, aerospace equipment presents a systematic development trend and requires that the theories and management methods guiding system engineering must change and follow the trend. By summarizing and judging the current research status of system engineering at home and abroad, based on the practice of aerospace system engineering, this paper designs a dynamic evolution process of system engineering, constructs the evolution, process and management model of system engineering, and puts forward some suggestions for further optimization of the practice of system engineering to provide reference for solving complex system engineering problems and enriching the theory of system engineering.

A Model Based System Commissioning Approach for Nuclear Facilities

Commissioning is considered as a critical phase in the delivery of a Nuclear Facility (NF) as it is the first stage in the authorization of the NF to be exploited. Most of the nuclear projects start to overrun costs during commissioning mainly since this phase is not addressed properly and is affected by many issues from previous phases (Design, Procurement, and Construction). This article proposes a general methodology to prepare and realize the commissioning activities. Using models to do so improves communication and removes ambiguities between stakeholders. It also formalizes and clarifies the commissioning organization and activities prior to any implementation. It also allows for capitalizing and sharing the experience from previous projects, by drawing references models and good practices patterns. The so-called Model Based commissioning method is elaborated around concepts, languages, processes, tools, and patterns inspired from Model Based System Engineering (MBSE) principles and practices. The theoretical foundations will be supported by results from nuclear facilities demonstrating the added value.

Model based systems engineering—A text mining based structured comprehensive overview

AbstractAn observed increase in systems scale and complexity has led to a significant momentum in exploring, identifying, and adopting model based systems engineering (MBSE) tools and techniques amongst research communities and industry practitioners. Several attempts to transform systems design and engineering practices through the use of MBSE in academia and industry has led to a considerable increase in the number of articles published containing the keyword “MBSE.” This growth serves as the motivation in this paper to explore the MBSE landscape with the help of text mining techniques to identify the most often used key terms, tools, and languages, in the context of research in MBSE and the thematic aspects defining the use of MBSE by researchers and practitioners. The objective of this paper is to provide a structured comprehensive overview of research contributions across the MBSE landscape by employing text mining techniques for: (a) identifying the concepts and methodologies inferred upon in relation to MBSE, and (b) classifying the literature published to identify commonalities across academic researchers and practitioners using MBSE tools and methods. For this purpose, the abstracts of 2380 relevant articles published in the period of the last two decades from five different databases are mined. It is found that the terms “SysML,” “Cyber Physical Systems,” and “Production” are the most used terms among researchers across the MBSE landscape with SysML being the most widely used modeling language. Further, six major thematic topics are identified that classify articles from over the last two decades with an increasing interest observed in the use of MBSE to support manufacturing and production engineering activities, especially in the cyber physical systems domain. The contributions of this paper provide a leeway on using text mining techniques to understand the research directions that are currently of interest in the field of MBSE and thereby identify potential future research directions.

A multistage successive approximation method for Riccati differential equations

Riccati differential equations have played important roles in the theory and practice of control systems engineering. Our goal in this paper is to propose a new multistage successive approximation method for solving Riccati differential equations. The multistage successive approximation method is derived from an existing piecewise variational iteration method for solving Riccati differential equations. The multistage successive approximation method is simpler in terms of computing implementation in comparison with the existing piecewise variational iteration method. Computational tests show that the order of accuracy of the multistage successive approximation method can be made higher by simply taking more number of successive iterations in the multistage evolution. Furthermore, taking small size of each subinterval and taking large number of iterations in the multistage evolution lead that our proposed method produces small error and becomes high order accurate.

The Exploration of Aerospace Engineering Project Management Method Based on System Engineering

Aiming at aerospace engineering project management, the practice of system engineering is given, and the difficulties and problems existing in aerospace development and the management contents that need to be strengthened in the future are put forward in this paper.

Reducing the drag of midpoint lateral orifices of exhaust air ducts by shaping them along vortex zone outlines

This study is concerned with the development of an energy-efficient design of a duct fitting comprising a midpoint lateral exhaust orifice. This is an element often encountered in the practice of exhaust ventilation system design and engineering. A numerical study was performed to identify relationships between the drag of such an orifice and its dimensions and the ratio of the airflow entering the orifice and passing through the duct at the confluence, GO/GC. Findings are well supported by other authors’ data and by our own experimental study. For the first time, the outlines of a vortex zone occurring at the inlet of the flow have been identified and supported by experimental visualization. A relationship behind orifice dimensions and the flow rate of passing airflow has been determined. A geometric approximation has also been identified for the vortex zone, enabling outlines of any vortex zones to be traced out within the studied range of dimensions and GO/GC flow ratios. The discovered outlines have been used for an energy-efficient exhaust orifice design featuring reduced drag both for the airflow entering through and bypassing the orifice. A “one-type-fits-all” shape has been identified that minimizes drag over the entire variation range of the GO/GC ratio. Approximate formulas for all identified relationships have been derived and programmed into an online calculator to facilitate their use in the design of energy-efficient ventilation systems. By making the duct fitting energy-efficient, drag can be reduced by 20–400% compared to a standard design. Reduced pressure losses enable reduction both of power consumption and size/rating of ventilation units used in the system.

A Method to Account for Personnel Risk Attitudes in System Design and Maintenance Activity Development

Systems engineering practices in the maritime industry and the Navy consider operational availability as a system attribute determined by system components and a maintenance concept. A better understanding of the risk attitudes of system operators and maintainers may be useful in understanding potential impacts the system operators and maintainers have on operational availability. This article contributes to the literature a method that synthesizes the concepts of system reliability, and operator and maintainer risk attitudes to provide insight into the effect that risk attitudes of systems operators and maintainers have on system operational availability. The method consists of four steps providing the engineer with a risk-attitude-adjusted insight into the system’s potential operational availability. Systems engineers may use the method to iterate a system’s design or maintenance concept to improve expected operational availability. If it is deemed necessary to redesign a system, systems engineers will likely choose new system components and/or alter their configuration; however, redesign is not limited to physical alteration of the system. Several other options may be more practical depending the system’s stage in the life cycle to address low risk-adjusted operational availability such as changes to maintenance programs and system supportability rather than on component and system reliability. A simple representative example implementation is provided to demonstrate the method and discussion of the potential implications for Navy ship availability are discussed. Potential future work is also discussed.

Systems Theory: Bridging the Gap Between Science and Practice for Systems Engineering

AbstractThis paper explores Systems Theory (ST) contributions to improve the Systems Engineering (SE) discipline and practice. Recently, INCOSE has recognized that ST can provide a valuable theoretical and conceptual foundation to better ground the evolving SE discipline. At a fundamental level ST can be described as a set of axioms (taken for granted truths about systems) and propositions (principles, concepts, and laws that explain system behavior, structure, and performance) with a basis in the underlying science of systems. Our purpose is to bridge the gap between Systems Science and SE by exploring the practical implications for ST to improve both the SE discipline and practice. Following a short introduction to ST in the context of the SE discipline challenges, two primary objectives are pursued: (1) overview and positioning of ST for contribution to SE development, and (2) examination of articulation of ST axioms and associated propositions and their implications for enhancing SE practice. The paper closes with suggestion of the reciprocal contributions for SE and ST as well as the enhancement of SE to deal more effectively with increasingly complex systems and their problems.

The SE Handbook: What Does It Mean to Me? A Proposal to Improve the Practical Application of the SE Handbook

AbstractThe INCOSE systems engineering (SE) handbook (Haskins, 2015) has served our discipline well for the years of its application. The authors foresee the future applicability of the contents in section 1.1 Purpose where it defines the discipline and practice of systems engineering (SE) for students and practicing professionals alike. The SE Handbook provides an authoritative reference to understand the SE discipline in terms of content and practice. Additionally, section 1.2 Application describes, while being consistent with the ISO/IEC/IEEE 15288, the handbook further elaborates on the practices and activities necessary to execute the processes, and that it is recommended that the tailoring guidelines in chapter 8 be used.With the strong baseline of defined systems engineering, Chapter 8 of the handbook addresses the Tailoring Process and Application of Systems Engineering. As of now, only 18 of the 290 handbook pages (6.2%) are dedicated to the tailoring process and applied tailoring. Section 8.2, Tailoring for Specific Product Sector or Domain Application is only afforded 5 pages (1.7% of the handbook total). The planned update of the INCOSE SE handbook offers an opportunity to enhance the practical application of the SE handbook. This paper reviews the current SE handbook structure, proposes an envisioned solution, provides a proof of concept, and discusses the recommended adjustments using a holistic systems engineering approach.