SysML Language Research Articles

Analysis of research into the mathematical foundations of model-based systems engineering

The article provides an analysis of research into the mathematical foundations of model-based systems engineering (MBSE, Model-Based Systems Engineering). Both the classical mathematical theory of Wymore’s system design and modern research are considered, in particular, the formalization of the semantics of the SysML language using automata theory, the use of category theory as a formal mathematical basis for model-based system design, the study of the possibilities of combining the theoretical basis of Wymore’s systems and the universal Discrete Event System Specification (DEVS) modeling formalism.

A Model-Based Approach for the Methodical Development and Configuration of Modular Product Families

This paper shows how a methodical development and configuration of modular product family concepts and their effects on economic targets can be implemented in SysML. For this purpose, different sources of inconsistency between different methodical tools are highlighted and the need for research is shown. As a solution approach, a methodical framework is presented, which can be used to implement product development methods for the developing of modular product family modeling by means of Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) in the modeling language SysML. By applying the framework, it is shown on the one hand how a product family of vacuum cleaner robots as a simple example can be modularized in a methodical, model-based manner. On the other hand, a configuration system and an impact model of modular product families are connected with the system model and applied to a product family of laser systems as an industrial use case. This made it clear that the framework can be used to model various methodical topics of product family modeling in a consistent manner, to enable higher-level analyses with the use of MBSE tools. This can reduce errors, decrease effort and increase traceability across different methodical tools.

Variability on System Architecture using Airbus MBPLE for MOFLT Framework

AbstractModel‐Based Product Line Engineering (MBPLE) and Variability Management are key enablers of Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE). A MBSE Architecture Framework based on the SysML language has been developed at Airbus Group Level: R‐MOFLT ‐ Requirements, Mission, Operational, Functional, Logical, Technical Analysis. MBPLE4MOFLT is a feature‐based product line engineering framework based on the ISO 26580 (2021) standard, extending R‐MOFLT. This paper defines the methodological foundations of the Airbus MBPLE4MOFLT framework and provides insights into its application in practice.

Research on Architecture Modeling of Aviation-guided Munitions System Based on MBSE

In order to explore the forward R & D mode of aviation-guided munitions, an architecture modeling method of aviation-guided munitions weapon system based on MBSE(Model Based System Engineering) is proposed. Based on MBSE typical methodology and SysML language, taking a certain type of aviation-guided munition as an example, the system architecture model is constructed, and the design process including the requirements analysis, functional logic analysis, architecture balance and analysis, and scheme detailed design of aviation-guided munitions is described. The simulation analysis and verification are carried out, and the complete description of the continuous dynamic behavior of the aviation-guided munitions system architecture is realized. The research results can provide support for the scheme design and agile research and development of aviation-guided munitions equipment.

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.

Reusable workflows for virtual testing of multidisciplinary products in system models

Developing increasingly complex multidisciplinary products in short development cycles is one major challenge in today’s product development. Model-based Systems Engineering (MBSE) approaches are well suited to address this challenge. With MBSE, products are virtually represented in central system models. For the efficient verification of customer requirements and to avoid exhaustive physical testing with prototypes, virtual domain models (e.g. FE-models) are integrated into the system model. To perform a virtual test, domain models need to be executed in a sequence, so-called workflows.Current workflows link several product system levels in one workflow and are often only valid for one specific system architecture. As the number of requirements and system complexity increases, these workflows become also more complex. The effort for creating new comprehensible workflows is currently high and the reusability cannot be ensured. To solve these deficits, a method for the systematic formalization of reusable workflows in system models as well as their structured integration is presented. Behavior diagrams in the modelling language SysML are used to control the execution order of the domain models of different purposes and fidelities. Modular sub-workflows are developed for each system level. These sub-workflows can be reused and combined modularly to form larger workflows. The approach shows a high potential to easily build and organize workflows in reusable libraries thereby supporting automated virtual testing in product development. To demonstrate the approach, workflows for bearing lifetime calculation and shaft fatigue testing of a wind turbine drive train as well as their integration into the SysML system model are presented.

Modeling language for the function-oriented development of mechatronic systems with motego

As mechatronic products gain in popularity, methods for mastering the complexity of these systems in development become increasingly relevant, such as model-based systems engineering (MBSE). Main pillars of MBSE are method, language and tool. A method specifies procedures in product development. The application of the method is supported by a language and tool as the language specifies a system of symbols with which development artifacts can be represented in a software environment (i.e. tool). Currently, various MBSE methods exist, such as motego. Motego specifies a framework for the function-oriented seamless development of mechatronic systems from requirements to the physical realization down to mechanical and electrical contacts and the description of these via parameters and models. Central element in MBSE is the system model, which connects all relevant development artefacts. The system model is created with a language in a software environment such as Cameo Systems Modeler. In MBSE, the graphical systems modeling language SysML is widely established. The language elements in SysML are very abstract and numerous. As a result, the language is difficult to apply. However, its reasonable applicability is an essential prerequisite for the introduction of the motego methods in industrial practice. This results in the following research need: A specific modeling language for the motego method is needed that supports its reasonable application. Therefore, in this paper a modeling language is presented whose language elements are specifically adapted to the motego method. With the help of this domain specific language, the user is guided through method-compliant modeling.

Customer-centric and function-oriented development of mechatronic systems

Successful products at least precisely meet the customers’ expectations and, in the best case, exceed them. To develop successful products, customer expectations must be translated into requirements. With the increasing functionalities of products in recent years, the customers’ expectations regarding product interaction and its behavior in different environmental conditions have also become more extensive. Current approaches of model-based systems engineering (MBSE) enable developing complex mechatronic products seamlessly from requirements to functions and solutions on a parameter level. However, there is a lack of approaches that systematically translate complex customer expectations into functional and design requirements as a starting point for further development.In this contribution we present a method and a corresponding meta-model that allows to systematically formalize the dependencies of different stakeholders and their expectations as well as different environmental conditions and constraints. From these dependencies, operating states are elicited that represent a set of simultaneously valid stakeholder expectations with their corresponding constraints. From these operating states, functional and design requirements are systematically derived as a basis for the model-based design of the system under development. Our meta-model is compatible to the established modeling language SysML, thus, existing approaches for the function-oriented model-based system development can benefit directly from these formally modeled requirements.Our publication signposts the potential for systematic and formal translation of customer expectations into operating states as well as requirements and thus enables a targeted, customer-centric and function-oriented development of mechatronic systems. We applied our method in an interdisciplinary, industrial project using the example of a thermal management system of a battery electric vehicle.

Ensuring the Compatibility of Autonomous Electric Vehicles Components Through a Formal Approach Based on Interaction Protocols

In the context of automotive applications, complex tasks such as automatic driving of electric vehicles are handled through the composition of several components, each offering a different service. Such component composition is not straightforward and is often subject to bugs that might stem mainly from the incompatibility of services. In other words, in this context, which includes critical services and in which people's life is at stake, detecting and eliminating bugs early at the design stage is crucial and even mandatory. To remedy this issue, we propose in this paper a formal approach for modeling and verifying the reliability of electric self-driving vehicles that are continuously communicating with off-road infrastructures. First, for the modeling phase, SysML language is used to model the system architecture and to specify the connections between its embedded components. Second, we present a formal verification approach based on the extended interface automata formalism to verify the compatibility between the interacting components, and to check whether this set of components achieve their required tasks. This formalism allows to specify component interfaces that exhibit component protocols and system non-functional constraints. The proposed approach permits an algorithmic verification to decide whether a set of components, when assembled together, fulfill compatibility conditions. Results in this paper show, on one hand, that SysML and extended interface automata formalism are relevant to model and capture component features in the context of automotive systems, on the other hand, that our methodology allows to develop autonomous electric vehicle systems correct-by-design, regarding to component compatibility.

Integrated Approach of Model-Based Systems Engineering and Augmented Reality for the Development of Rail Vehicles with Alternative Drives

In order to contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions, rail vehicles are increasingly being equipped with alternative drives. Multi-system vehicles in particular are becoming very complex as a result. This results in elaborate testing as well as complex training for production, operation and maintenance. This publication is intended to contribute to the systematic and targeted development of new rail vehicles for passenger transport. Using model-based systems engineering and the modelling language SysML, harmonised requirements are documented, assigned to the new systems and targeted test cases are developed. Augmented reality experiences are then created to support the execution of the test cases during validation runs, commissioning and maintenance activities. The augmented reality experiences allow virtual information and the real environment to be linked and displayed on a mobile device. The aim of this publication is to present an end-to-end process that already takes the requirements of training into account during product development, so that it is easy to implement training using augmented reality technologies.

Smart System Modeling and Simulation design of Hemodialysis Machine by SysML with SystemC-AMS

The corrections of the large and complex systems have become an issue of great importance recently due to the system development process. The device technology is quite complex and encompasses various disciplines of engineering, medicine, biology, and critical patient-machine interfaces. In this paper, we proposed a simulation approach to the verification and validation of the system of the hemodialysis machine (HD machine) specified by the SysML language. The simulation is carried out through intelligent translation based on the specifications of SysML into SystemC-AMS models. To evaluate and validate the system design, they are translated into a set of formulas and requirements verified when run on the available tools, COSE DA technologies, the WSN simulator developed by SystemC-AMS.

Towards an Interoperable Approach for Modelling and Managing Smart Building Data: The Case of the CESI Smart Building Demonstrator

Buildings have a significant impact on energy consumption and carbon emissions. Smart buildings are deemed to play a crucial role in improving the energy performance of buildings and cities. Managing a smart building requires the modelling of data concerning smart systems and components. While there is a significant amount of research on optimising building energy using the smart building concept, there is a dearth of studies investigating the modelling and management of smart systems’ data, which is the starting point for establishing the necessary digital environment for representing a smart building. This study aimed to develop and test a solution for modelling and managing smart building information using an industry foundation classes (IFCs)-based BIM process. A conceptual model expressed in the SysML language was proposed to define a smart building. Five BIM approaches were identified as potential ‘prototypes’ for representing and exchanging smart building information. The fidelity of each approach is checked through a BIM-based validation process using an open-source visualisation platform. The different prototypes were also assessed using a multi-criteria comparison method to identify the preferred approach for modelling and managing smart building information. The preferred approach was prototyped and tested in a use case focused on building energy consumption monitoring to evaluate its ability to manage and visualise the smart building data. The use case was applied in a real case study using a full-scale demonstrator, namely, the ‘Nanterre 3’ (N3) smart building located at the CESI campus in Paris-Nanterre. The findings demonstrated that an open BIM format in the form of IFCs could achieve adequate modelling of smart building data without information loss. Future extensions of the proposed approach were finally outlined.

Integrated Conceptual Mechatronic Design of a Delta Robot

In this paper, a conceptual design of a Delta robot is developed by means of a mechatronic design methodology. A fully integrated conceptual design, clarifying the recurrence of the conceptual design process using black-box/white-box analysis, is presented using the Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) paradigm and the SysML language as the formal modeling tool. Multiple designs proposals are then evaluated by the non-linear Choquet integral in order to choose the most appropriate according to a multicriteria requirement. For a preliminary conceptual design, structural parameters for the Delta robot are determined by defining and solving a nonlinear constrained optimization problem, which considers the kinematic model of the robot maximizing its workspace. Both the decision making and the optimization problem are integrated and automated into a common software framework for the design process, by using a standard genetic algorithm and Monte Carlo method to set the optimized conceptual design to be rendered in Computer Aided Design (CAD) software and in a physical prototype, satisfying the technical specifications.

SysML-based compositional verification and safety analysis for safety-critical cyber-physical systems

Safety-critical cyber-physical systems (SC-CPS) have the characteristics of distributed, heterogeneous, strong coupling of computing resources and physical resources. With the increased acceptance of Model-Driven Development (MDD) in the safety-critical domain, the SysML language has been broadly used. Increasing complexity results in the formal verification of the SysML models of SC-CPS often faces the so-called state-explosion problem. Moreover, safety analysis is also an important step to ensure the quality of SC-CPS. Thus, this article proposes an integrated SysML modelling and verification approach to cover specification of nominal behaviour and safety. First, an extension of SysML is presented, in which the contract information (i.e. Assume and Guarantee) is extended for SysML block diagrams and a Safety Profile is proposed to describe safety-related concepts. Second, the transformation from SysML to the compositional verification tool OCRA is given. Third, the safety analysis is achieved by translating the Safety Profile model into FTA (Fault Tree Analysis). Finally, the prototype tools including SysML2OCRA and SafetyProfile2FTA are represented, and the effectiveness of the method proposed in this paper is verified through actual industrial cases.

Integrating Model-Based Systems and Digital Engineering for Crewed Mars Mission Planning

With technological advances in the 21st century and the rise of the commercial space industry, crewed Mars missions to land humans on our red neighbor have become increasingly feasible. One of the key challenges in accomplishing this goal is determining whether model-based systems engineering training is necessary for space systems engineers to adopt digital engineering. This paper reviews model-based systems engineering benefits and limitations, as well as historically significant crewed Mars missions that planned to land on the surface. Models are presented for a Mars transit habitat developed in the modeling language SysML using Cameo Systems Modeler. These models leverage Cameo’s simulation capabilities to execute MATLAB scripts integrating digital engineering software Systems Tool Kit into the modeling process, demonstrating a reusable interoperability methodology for Mars mission planning not yet existing in this domain’s literature. It can be concluded that integrating model-based systems engineering with digital engineering for crewed Mars landing mission planning can lead to multiple benefits for space systems digital engineering, including 1) greater system simulation capabilities, 2) enhanced model fidelity, and 3) improved system understanding. Future research to further enhance these benefits includes adding cybersecurity considerations and greater system detail to the models.

Operational Scenario Analysis Method for Civil Aircraft Based on Requirement Capture

Scenario analysis is an accepted method in civil aircraft requirements capture and validation.This paper introduces the operation scenario analysis method for requirement capture, including stakeholder identification, interaction activity analysis, design requirement capture, etc.Based on SysML language, the modeling and analysis of operation scenarios were carried out.Taking the push/tow scenario of civil aircraft as an example, the structure diagram, use case diagram, activity diagram and requirement diagram are formed by modeling. The design requirements in this scenario are captured through the interaction analysis between the different stakeholders and the aircraft.

Information system planning process design based on clause 8 iso 20000-1:2018 using sysml language

information systems have become inseparable from current products and services. Improving information systems will add value to the quality of products and services. Some references can be used to produce a good information system. One reference that can be used is ISO 20000-1: 2018. Because of the new standards, there are not many studies that guide the implementation. This paper aims to contribute in providing references for application in aspects of information system planning based on clause 8 ISO 20000-1: 2018. The modelling process uses SysML modelling language. We find the guidance to implementation of this standard and the example of Model Based System Engineering using Block Definition Diagram.

Digital twin technology as a modern approach to quality management

The concept of a digital twin and its types are discussed in this paper. The essence of the development of digital twins in the SysML language, the use of AnyLogic (simulation software) and the use of MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems) software for communication with production systems are described. The functions of neural technologies that can be integrated into a modern QMS (quality management system) are considered. The use of digital twins in the quality management system allows monitoring inconsistencies in the technological component of production and quickly eliminating them, and also offers solutions to the identified problem. Companies are now finding a competitive advantage in digital technologies, especially digital twins, whose economic benefits are undeniable. The quality management system of enterprises with high-tech industries is more and more moving into the analysis of big data and in interaction with the digital environment. Thus, it is so important to pay attention to technologies directly related to the analysis of the quality of the product and the processes of its creation. As a result of the study, a clear connection between advanced information technologies and the development of the quality management system of enterprises was revealed.

Integration of model based system engineering into the digital twin concept

For some years now, digitalization has made its way into all phases of the product life cycle. With the help of the modeling language SysML, Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) represents a modern approach in product development. At the same time, the technologies of Industrie 4.0 and digital twin are opening up a new level of efficiency to producing companies. But entertainment technology is also finding its way into business: Virtual Reality (VR) provides an immersive and cost-effective way to perceive products in the early stages of product development. In order to provide these with quickly available data for display and simulation, it is worthwhile to expand the MBSE approach. This work describes how a product model can be extended by a simulative function structure. On the one hand, this work describes how the Cameo System Modeler can be used to extend a product model with a simulative functional structure. On the other hand, it explains how to extend an existing product model by modeling the information required to efficiently and consistently translate an Engineering Bill of Materials (EBOM) into a Manufacturing Bill of Materials (MBOM).

New intelligent network approach for monitoring physiological parameters: the case of Benin

Benin health system is facing many challenges as: (i) affordable high-quality health care to a growing population providing need, (ii) patients’ hospitalization time reduction, (iii) and presence time of the nursing staff optimization. Such challenges can be solved by remote monitoring of patients. To achieve this, five steps were followed. 1) Identification of the Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) systems’ characteristics and the patient physiological parameters’ monitoring. 2) The national Integrated Patient Monitoring Network (RIMP) architecture modeling in a cloud of Technocenters. 3) Cross-analysis between the characteristics and the functional requirements identified. 4) Each Technocenter’s functionality simulation through: a) the design approach choice inspired by the life cycle of V systems; b) functional modeling through SysML Language; c) the communication technology and different architectures of sensor networks choice studying. 5) An estimate of the material resources of the national RIMP according to physiological parameters. A National Integrated Network for Patient Monitoring (RNIMP) remotely, ambulatory or not, was designed for Beninese health system. The implementation of the RNIMP will contribute to improve patients’ care in Benin. The proposed network is supported by a repository that can be used for its implementation, monitoring and evaluation. It is a table of 36 characteristic elements each of which must satisfy 5 requirements relating to: medical application, design factors, safety, performance indicators and materiovigilance.