An individual can be very powerful, but when you get many people working together to accomplish a task, the result can be much better than if each person solved the problem independently.  Clearly, the reason that the group is stronger than the sum of the parts is because each person can work on that portion of the problem that they are most suited for, and there can be an efficient division of labor.  Obviously, this group needs to be well organized so it can work together efficiently, and there must be frequent communication between the people. 

This example of people working together on a complicated task is not unlike “Systems of Systems (SoS) Engineering.”

When designing a very simple system, one could imagine doing the job by themselves, with very little need to consult a larger group, or enlist the services of other engineers.  This may not be the case, however, for a very large and complex system.

Although a simple System may be made of individual components, a complex system will likely be made up of a group of individual systems.  Designing a complex system made up of many simpler systems is referred to as System of Systems (SoS) Engineering.  To further complicate matters, each of the systems that make up a SOS may itself be a SOS ( mind blown ).

For example, we might consider an Air Traffic Control System to be a SoS.  This SoS would be comprised of many smaller systems; airport, airplanes, cars, traffic control systems, etc.  If we look at one of these systems, cars for example, we notice that it is actually its own SoS; brake system, motor, chassis, etc.  And, we could even drill down further as each of these systems might actually be a SoS.

To determine if a complex system qualifies as a SoS, it must have five characteristics; 

-Each of the Systems that comprise the SoS has to have operational independence.  If you removed the system from the SoS, it would still operate as a system, as designed.

-Each of the Systems that comprise the SoS has to be managed independently.  Each System has to manage its own operation, but no system should affect the management of the SoS.

-The SoS must perform a task that could not be accomplished alone by any individual system.  When Systems are combined into a SoS, there is an expectation that “Emergent Behaviors” will result, and the SoS will accomplish tasks that could not have been performed by any one of the systems by itself.  Of note, sometimes Emergent Behaviors can be undesired, and when that occurs, the engineer must address that issue.

-Each of the individual systems are geographically distributed

-Each of the systems are being constantly reviewed to ensure upgrades are not required to allow the system to continue to contribute positively to the SoS.

ATI is offering a class called System of Systems.    This two-day workshop presents detailed, useful techniques to develop effective systems of systems and to manage the engineering activities associated with them. You can learn more about this course, and register to attend here.  Time is running out to register for this course, so do not delay.