Systems Engineering Research Center (SERC)
Overview Briefing
August 2012
www.SERCuarc.org
This material is based upon work supported, in whole or in part, by the U.S. Department of Defense through the Systems Engineering Research
Center (SERC) under Contract H98230-08-D-0171. The SERC is a federally funded University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) managed by
Stevens Institute of Technology consisting of a collaborative network of over 20 universities. More information is available at www.SERCuarc.org
Material supported by a SERC research activity
August 2012
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A Brief History
• In 2008, the DoD released a full and open competitive RFP for a University
Affiliated Research Center (UARC) on systems engineering research
• Stevens led a team that brought together much of the best systems
engineering research talent in the nation to form a stable and enduring
collaboration to the benefit of the DoD
• Stevens was awarded the SERC in September 2008
―Vested through a 5-year renewable task-order IDIQ contract with DoD
• SERC has been awarded more than $22M for research tasks
• SERC is expanding to offer collaborative research to other government
agencies, such as a new strategic relationship with the FAA to perform systems
engineering research
• ASD(R&E) is primary sponsor
Material supported by a SERC research activity
August 2012
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SERC Vision
The Networked
National Resource
to further
systems research and
its impact on
issues of
national and global
significance
The systems research and impact network
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Mission
• Harness community of research talent through collaboration
• Build tomorrow’s community through research & education
• Transition systems research to people, practice and impact
• Influence affordable timely solutions through systems thinking
• Enhance security and prosperity in the whole of the nation
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Vision & Strategy
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Network of over 20 Collaborators
SERC leverages expertise of over 300 researchers across the nation
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Core Competencies
Ability to conduct long-term, comprehensive SE research focused on DoD acquisition, including
• Enable integrated development and management
• New ways to link requirements to design
• Leverage modeling and simulation
• Link technical baselines to architectures
• Apply SE to acquisition of services
Ability to leverage developments in systems architecting, complex systems theory, systems thinking,
systems science, knowledge management and SwE to perform research to advance the design and
development of complex systems across all DoD domains, including
•
•
•
•
System and open systems architecture/analysis
SE in complex SoS and FoS environments
Enterprise SE
SW-unique extensions and modern SW-development
technology
• Flexible SE environment
• Knowledge management
• Undergraduate/Graduate SE education
needs
Ability to leverage developments in open systems standards, organizational theory, program
management, SE management, and IT to provide needed integration of program/technical
management MPTs, including
•
•
•
•
Integrate TPMs with EVM
Maturity reviews
SE team structures, etc. for improvement
Improved SE information sharing
Material supported by a SERC research activity
•
•
•
•
August 2012
Rationale and way ahead for standards
Toolsets throughout the life cycle
Analyzing SE costs, accounts, and ROI
SE metrics and leading indicators
7
Research Priorities
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SERC Research Programs and Outcomes
Principles, Methods,
and Techniques
Analysis Tools
Agile System
Systemic
Engineering
Security
Tradespace
& Affordability
Concept
Engineering
SoS
Modeling
Simulation
Experience
Acceleration
Knowledge Transfer
Material supported by a SERC research activity
SE Technical
Leadership
Evolving
Body of
Knowledge
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SERC Research Activities
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Management
SERC Advisory Board





SERC Research Council
Mr. Mike Wynne, 21st AF Secretary (CHAIR)

Dr. Barry Boehm, USC (NAE)
Dr. Ruth David, President and CEO, ANSER

Dr. Barry Horowitz, UVA (NAE)
Mr. Al Grasso, President and CEO, MITRE

Dr. Jon Wade, Stevens
Mr. John Grimes, ASD NII/DoD CIO (Retired)

Dr. Abhi Deshmukh, Purdue
Dr. Mike Griffin, Eminent Scholar and Professor,
UAH (NASA Administrator, 2005-09)

Dr. Bill Rouse, Georgia Tech (NAE)

Dr. Mike Griffin, UAH (NAE)
SERC Management

Dr. Dinesh Verma, Stevens (Executive Director)

Dr. Art Pyster, Stevens (Deputy Executive Director)

Dr. Barry Boehm, USC (Director of Research/Chair of Research Council)

Ms. Debra Facktor Lepore, Stevens (Director of Strategic Programs)

Dr. Stan Rifkin, Stevens (Director of Technical Programs)

Ms. Doris Schultz, Stevens (Director, Business Operations)
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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Early Milestones in SERC History
• September 2008
SERC begins operation
• January 2009
Naval Postgraduate School joins SERC
• August 2009
1st Air Force sponsored task; strategic
relationship with Defense Acquisition
University
• September 2009
First two tasks completed
• November 2009
1st Navy sponsored task
• December 2009
Georgia Tech joins SERC
• March 2010
Purdue joins SERC
• July 2010
5th publication
• September 2010
Research Council formed; 20th project
launched; $10+M in total awards
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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2011 Accomplishments
1.
Strengthened ties to ASD(R&E) by transfer of primary sponsorship to DASD(SE)
2.
Shifted from primarily short one-time tasks to several longer-term multi-phase tasks;
e.g., Technical Leadership, Experience Accelerator, and Rapid CONOPs all received
follow on rounds of funding – although longer-term funding of individual tasks
remains erratic and requires extensive outreach to accomplish
3.
Expanded strategic sponsorship to include U.S. Army RDECOM and SAF/AQR
4.
Strengthened ties to FAA – scoped additional research aligned with SERC
5.
Awarded $7.5M in new research tasks – stayed even with 2010 funding despite many
DoD budget challenges
6.
Contract ceiling raised from $25M to $35M reflecting greater success receiving
awards than government originally anticipated
7.
More than two dozen papers in journals and conferences
8.
Integrated SERC research into most SERC collaborator curricula (e.g., RT-19)
9.
16 society fellows and members of National Academies participated in research
10. 1st PhD awarded to student funded by SERC research
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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Examples of SERC Research Progress
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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RT-16: Experience Accelerator
Prototype Feedback Loop
Overall System
Schedule:
Confidence Level to Achieve Program Schedule Goals
Actions to address issues:
Nothing Required
Call in external audit team
Add senior/junior design staff
Add development equipment
Add facilities
Reduce capabilities
Anticipate schedule extension by xx months
<H,M,L>
⃝
⃝
Sr⃝/Jr⃝
⃝
⃝
⃝
<xx>
Learner Recommendations
Systems Dynamics Simulations
Project Impact
Material supported by a SERC research activity
An interactive video
game to simulate
activities and decisions
in a “day in the life” of
a systems engineer
NPC Dialog
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RT-19: Integrate Systems Engineering into the
Education of all Engineers
SE woven
into senior
design or
other project
capstone
courses
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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RT-30: Graphical Concept of Operations
(CONOPS) Facilitates Early Concept Engineering
Now we take those
composed systems,
and integrate them
into a scenario
fragment
bdd [SysML Block Definition] Logical Design Elements [Logical Design Elements]
«logical»
Vehicle
«logical»
Mobility
Platform
«logical»
Power Train
«logical»
Carriage
«logical»
Control Systems
«logical»
Software
«logical»
Energy Storage
«logical»
Direction
Control
«logical»
Platform
Interface
«logical»
Refueling Mgr
«logical»
Data Storage
Mgr
«logical»
Energy
Conversion
«logical»
Deceleration
«logical»
Occupant
Access
«logical»
Central
Processing Mgr
«logical»
Data Processing
Mgr
«logical»
Torque
Conversion
«logical»
Ride Control
«logical»
Cargo Access
«block»
Vehicle Metrics
Interface
«logical»
Data Display
Mgr
«logical»
Road Interface
«logical»
Occupant
Position Mgr
«logical»
Communication
Mgr
ibd [SysML Internal Block] Logical Design Detail [Logical Design Detail]
«logical»
Display Mgr
Electric Vehicle
Control Systems
Driver
Controls
In
In
Environmental
Controls
Accessory
Controls
Programing
Software
In
In
Progamming
Input
Control
Sensor Data
Cmds
Input
Computer Sys
Cmds
Safety Sys
Cmds
Sensor
Cmds
In
In
In
Battery
Charge
Station
In
Energy
Electric
Roadway
Charge Energy
Display
Data
Data
Storage
Communication
System
In
Control
Signals
Battery
Charging
Gear
Selection
Acceleration
Control
Sensor
Power Train
In
Torque
Mobility Platform
«logical»
Small Cargo
Mgr
In
In
Road «logical»
Visual Access
Interface
In
Signals
Power
Supply
«logical»
Engine Access
Sensor
Signals
Control
SignalsDeceleration
Control
Direction
Control
In
«logical»
Passenger
Safety Mgr
act [Activity] Activity (Battery Swap at Station) [Battery Swap at Station]
In
Environmental
Conditioning
Control
Signals
Sensor
Signals
«logical»
:Vehicle Driver
Diagnostics Mgr
Decision to Swap
Battery
:Robot
:Station Attendant
Pull Battery from Inv entory
Download Battery
Metrics Data
«logical» Make Appointment
Interconnections
Mgr
Driv e to Station
In
Enter Station
In
Verify Subscription
In
Ride
Control
In
Carriage
In
Sw ap Battery
Pay for Serv ice
Vehicle
Occupants
Perform Other
Maintenance as Required
Cargo
Exit Station
Collaborators are able
to execute the
scenario, and make
adjustments
Battery Swap
Complete
Results are fed back
to the model,
updated, and run
again
Material supported by a SERC research activity
August 2012
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SERC Doctoral Fellows Program
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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SERC Doctoral Fellows Program:
Build tomorrow’s community through research and education
• Doctoral program focused on systems-related research that is in
alignment with the SERC’s vision
• Facilitates workforce development for systems engineering and
creates research transition opportunities with practitioners in
US industry, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers
(FFRDCs), national laboratories, and government
• Unique opportunity for future systems engineers to develop their
abilities and establish one-on-one relationships with thought
leaders who serve as mentors during the Doctoral process
• Link the SERC collaborators with employees who are interested in
pursuing research related to complex systems issues
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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Primary Tenants of the Program
• Participating organizations will select high potential employees
worthy of pursuing doctoral studies in systems-related research in
alignment with the SERC’s vision
―Minimum number of students sponsored as a function of size
• Organizations implement this commitment through their normal
internal tuition reimbursement programs and supplement this with
20% release time (1 day / week), allowing the employee to dedicate
time to the doctoral studies and research in close collaboration with
SERC collaborator university faculty members
―No exchange of funds with the SERC
• The participants will have an explicit association with the SERC
(e.g., SERC Boeing Fellow; SERC Honeywell Fellow), and will become
part of the systems research community engaged with the SERC
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Responsibilities of the Fellow
• Apply and proceed with the admissions process at the selected
SERC university
• Once admitted, comply with the host university’s doctoral studies
requirements and expectations
―At least one member of the participant’s doctoral committee must be or
have been a SERC research task Principal Investigator or co-PI
―At least one member of the participant’s doctoral committee must be from a
SERC collaborator university other than the host university
• Participate in an annual meeting with the other SERC Doctoral
Fellows
• Graduate! And become an active contributor to the systems
research and practitioner community
Material supported by a SERC research activity
August 2012
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Leveraging the Fellows Program
• The Boeing Company is the first SERC Fellows Program Participant
• Other participants welcome!
• The program is a good mechanism for the SERC and program
participants to address evolving research challenges
Material supported by a SERC research activity
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