By Dale Tutt, Global Vice President of Industries at Siemens Digital Industries Software
The Apollo program led to some of the greatest achievements known to humankind, landing astronauts on the Moon and returning them to Earth safely. There was all kinds of technology that came out of the Apollo program that is now part of our daily life: wireless headsets, integrated circuits, email, and cordless tools to name a few.
Yet there is something else that the program led to that engineers often forget. The rockets that NASA built were the most complex machines at the time, utilizing multiple, complicated systems at scales never seen before. NASA engineers realized they needed a new methodology of engineering to ensure every system in a rocket worked well together, and so systems engineering was born.
Systems engineering broke down the complexity of the Apollo rockets, guaranteeing the proper integration of rocket systems for successful launches. Since then, systems engineering has been an invaluable part of not just space, but all sectors of the A&D industry, driving innovation and leading to the creation of new kinds of aircraft and spacecraft.
Despite helping reduce product complexity, however, systems engineering itself is quite complex. Engineering domains may not be as tightly integrated as a company may think. Some companies may not even realize how integrated they truly are until a problem occurs during the interface of two engineering domains. This problem has always existed, even as traditional, document-based methodologies gave way to model-based systems engineering.
Such lack of integration can lead to errors in design and increased risks of missing deadlines. The chances only increase with how new aircraft and spacecraft today are being fit with new electronics and software systems, increasing their complexity tenfold. Unless something changes, today’s approaches to systems engineering are unlikely to tackle this rising complexity in aerospace.
It is imperative, then, that systems engineering evolve to become more holistic, allowing for more interoperability and collaboration between engineering domains. This can be done by investing in one’s digital transformation journey, leveraging key technologies such as SysML v2, artificial intelligence (AI), and the comprehensive digital twin to train engineers in new processes that accelerate innovation.
A new kind of aerospace
Simply put, the aircraft and spacecraft being produced today are nothing like what was built in the time of the Apollo program. Everything from commercial aircraft and jets to rockets and satellites are becoming increasingly software-defined, integrating not only advanced mechanical and electrical systems, but also new electronics and software.
These cutting edge systems add significantly more complexity to their respective vehicles than their predecessors, especially with how many interactions they have with the rest of the craft’s systems. For example, engineers twenty years ago may have only needed to worry about a hundred interactions for a mechanical system, all of which could be easily mapped out on a spreadsheet. Today, a single semiconductor chip can have tens or even hundreds of thousands of different interactions alone.
A&D is already an industry where integrating engineering domains is essential. If a change is made in one domain, further changes will likely need to be made in the rest to accommodate. With the rise of electronics and software, however, the scale of those potential changes can quickly become exacerbated. Therefore, systems engineering approaches must become more holistic to identify and rectify gaps in domain integration.
Bridging the gaps with SysML v2
Creating holistic systems engineering strategies will require tools that enable new, collaborative processes between engineers. Fortunately, SysML v2 can fulfill such a role.
Its predecessor, SysML v1, gave engineers new ways to model and describe their work in an efficient manner, but was very rigorous in how to build and manage models, with little room for interoperability. SysML v2, meanwhile, is a more intuitive modeling approach that enables companies to leverage multiple different modeling methodologies, making the exchange of data much easier.
As a result, SysML v2 creates a standard framework that enables companies to openly share information across engineering domains, granting more data consistency and the ability to develop integrated system architectures.
Of course, the use of SysML v2 matters little without training people in how to use it. Thankfully its ability to incorporate a variety of modeling methodologies is a key factor to making this happen, lowering the barrier to entry and making it easier for engineers to learn and contribute to new systems engineering strategies. This not only makes systems engineering more holistic, but also democratizes it as well.
Exploring new paths with AI
Another key technology that holds great potential to transform systems engineering is AI. As SysML v2 standardizes processes and workflows, A&D companies will be in a better position to introduce AI into their strategies.
As the technology continues to develop in sophistication, the complexity of the tasks it automates can steadily increase. Companies can begin exploring what AI can do with relatively simple tasks, such as data transfers, before one day taking on more complex tasks, such as model generation. SysML v2, in turn, can provide the standards, frameworks, and workflows to base the models on, increasing the AI’s fidelity.
By delegating these more mundane tasks to AI, engineers can devote more time to tasks that require more critical thinking while accelerating time-to-market, effectively multiplying the impact of new systems engineering strategies.
Building a foundation for digital transformation
While SysML v2 and AI will no doubt be valuable in the future of systems engineering, any foundation in digital transformation would be incomplete without the comprehensive digital twin and open ecosystems to tie all these tools together.
The comprehensive digital twin is the virtual, multi-domain representation of a product across its lifecycle from the earliest design phase to operation, including the various processes and systems that make up its whole. This vital tool bridges the gaps between engineering domains by building end-to-end data traceability between all stakeholders involved in a program. Engineers, for example, can access real-time data from multiple domains to simulate models of their systems, ensuring higher accuracy and granting key insights into how their product would perform.
Furthermore, the comprehensive digital twin can easily fit into open data environments and ecosystems that can integrate it with other tools and leverage their capabilities together. Building such ecosystems enables companies to bridge tools such as SysML v2 and AI together with the digital twin and leverage all their best capabilities to improve each other.
Building new, holistic strategies for systems engineering will take a lot of time and effort, but the tools and processes to achieve them are out there. SysML v2 and the comprehensive digital twin offer ways to integrate engineering domains and model aerospace systems like never before, while AI’s automation capabilities offer to accelerate existing processes.
The impact of these strategies is further multiplied when used together. By connecting these tools through digital ecosystems, A&D companies can crush increasing product complexity, innovate faster, and stay competitive in an industry that is seeing extensive growth and transformation.
For more insight about Digital Transformation, Industrial Artificial Intelligence, Software-Defined Everything and much more, listen to new and archived episodes of The Industry Forward Podcast with Dale Tutt, exclusively on the Siemens Software Podcast Network.
About the Author
Dale Tutt is the Global Vice President of Industries at Siemens Digital Industries Software. Tutt leads a team of experts to develop and execute industry-specific product and marketing strategies in collaboration with the global product, sales, and business development teams. With over 5 years of experience in this role combined with extensive experience in the aerospace and defense industry, Tutt has a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing companies as they embark on their digital transformation journeys.
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