SEIP
SOLVE THE RIGHT
PROBLEM – CONTEXT
Dr David Harvey
Presentation Outline
• Recap of “Systems Approach to Engineering”
• Solve the right problem – Context
• Key points
The University of Adelaide
Slide 2
Learning Objectives Addressed
1. Communicate professionally and effectively through written, oral, and graphical means with others in the
engineering profession and broader community, including conveying deep discipline knowledge to a generalist
audience
2. Demonstrate an ability for self-appraisal of strengths and weaknesses in cognitive and affective domains
3. Judiciously apply interpersonal skills in team-based communication, including active listening, negotiation,
problem solving, conflict management and leadership
4. Apply a systems engineering approach to formulating and solving engineering problems
5. Analyse a given problem and develop an appropriate problem specification
6. Define, compare and select from coherent feasible solutions
7. Recognise and apply the Engineers Australia Code of Ethics
8. Explain workplace health, safety, welfare and environmental issues relevant to the industry
9. Demonstrate awareness of the importance of career planning
The
UniversityofofAdelaide
Adelaide
The
University
Slide
Slide
33
Recap and which system?
Recap – Systems Approach
to Engineering
Why should you take a systems
approach to engineering?
• Teams of engineers
• Complex problems
• Complex environment
• Complex solutions
Recap – Systems Approach
to Engineering
What is systems engineering?
The University of Adelaide
Slide 6
Why Does Systems Engineering Help?
• Recognise connected nature of systems, team nature of design
• Solve the right problem
• Solve the problem right
• Consider the design holistically
-
Not just the physical or software elements
Not just individual specialities
Concept
The University of Adelaide
Design
Production
Utilisation &
Support
Retirement
Slide 7
From “What is a System” to “Which
System”
But when we talk about systems engineering, there is a key question – which
system?
To address that, we are going to look at the Seven Samurai of Systems
Engineering which identifies 7 interconnected systems that need to be
considered during design
8
Seven Samurai of SE: Context and Problem
S1 Example
• A major city
P1 Example
• Individuals need to get
around
• Context system holds and defines the problem
• Things to consider include:
- Existing “solutions”
- Physical environment
- Regulatory environment
- Information environment
- Stakeholders
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
9
Seven Samurai of SE: Intervention system
S2 Example
• Private electric
vehicle –
Tesla Model 3
• Engineers think of a way to address / fix the problem
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
10
Seven Samurai of SE: Realisation system
S2 Example
• Private electric
vehicle –
Tesla Model 3
• The intervention system needs
to be conceived, designed,
developed, tested, verified,
manufactured, commissioned,
validated, etc.
S3 Examples
• Tesla and its suppliers
• Vehicle standards
organisations
• Government
• Solar, autonomous car
tech, etc.
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
11
Seven Samurai of SE: Deployed system+
S4 Examples
• Tesla Model 3
MY2017,
VIN xyz
• Tesla Model 3
MY2017,
VIN yzx
• Deployed system is often
different to the “designed”
system (can range from minor
to major differences)
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
12
Seven Samurai of SE: Collaborating systems
S5 Examples
• Charging stations
• Electricity grid
• Mass transit
• Car parks
• Roads
• Tolls
• Tow trucks
• Collaborating systems have a physical
connection to the deployed system
and / or flow of people, information,
material, etc. across the interface
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
13
Seven Samurai of SE: Modified problem
P2 Examples
• Charging stations
needed
• Need for special
materials
• Autonomous
control of car can
cause issues
(following rules,
inattentive drivers,
social issues, etc…)
• Deployed system can also
create new problems
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
14
Seven Samurai of SE: Sustainment system
S6 Examples
• Electric vehicle
mechanics
• Electric vehicle
maintenance
facilities
• Maintenance
schedule
• Parts suppliers
• Beyond the system itself, what is
needed to sustain it? Parts,
maintenance, supplies, etc.
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
15
Seven Samurai of SE: Competing systems
S7 Examples
• Other electric
vehicles
• Mass transit + last
kilometre solutions
(e.g. scooters)
• Traditional
combustion engine
cars
• Bikes
• …
• The rest of the world does not
stay still and has other (often
competing) interests
Martin, James N., The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE IS, June 2004
16
Seven Samurai of SE: Summary
ID
System
Example
S1
Context system
A major city which individuals need to move around in
S2
Intervention system
Private electric vehicle – Tesla Model 3
S3
Realisation system
Tesla and its suppliers, Vehicle standards organisations,
Government, Solar, autonomous car tech, etc.
S4
Deployed system
Tesla Model 3 MY2017, VIN xyz
S5
Collaborating system
Charging stations, Electricity grid, Mass transit, Car parks,
Roads, Tolls, Tow trucks
S6
Sustainment system
Electric vehicle mechanics, Electric vehicle maintenance
facilities, Maintenance schedule, Parts suppliers
S7
Competing system
Other electric vehicles, Mass transit + last kilometre solutions
(e.g. scooters), Traditional combustion engine cars, Bikes
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Seven Samurai of SE: Summary
Classically engineers focus on the Intervention System (S2), and the Context System (S1)
The Seven Samurai of SE provides a broader viewpoint
• Solutions can create new problems (and this should be considered before implementation)
• Deployed systems need sustainment and to collaborate with other systems
• Systems define and create systems (and can be similarly considered as the system of interest)
• It all depends on your
point of view…
Solving the Right Problem
Make your engineering work useful…
Lecture Focus
What problem
are you
solving?
Technical
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business or mission analysis
Stakeholder needs and
requirements definition
System requirements
definition
Architecture definition
Design definition
System analysis
Implementation
Integration
Verification
Transition
Validation
Operation
Maintenance
Disposal
The University of Adelaide
Technical management
•
•
•
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Project planning
Project assessment and control
Decision management
Risk management
Configuration management
Information management
Measurement
Quality assurance
Slide 20
How Much Effort to Spend Defining the
Problem?
Some years ago the head of the Industrial Engineering Department of Yale University
said, “If I had only one hour to solve a problem, I would spend up to two-thirds of that
hour in attempting to define what the problem is.”
(Finley and Ziobro in Markle, 1966)
The University of Adelaide
Slide 21
Problem Definition Questions about Your
System
Why does it do what it does?
goal and objectives => mission
Who uses it? Who is impacted by it?
organisation elements and relationships
Where is it used?
locations, logical and / or physical
When is it used?
time, sequence, major events, cycles
How is it used?
Problem Definition
Operational
Analysis
“Black Box” context
analysis
processes and procedures, behavior
What is in it & what does it do?
Solution Concept
HOW is this achieved?
Solution Design
Slide 22
Solution at One Level is the Problem
at the Next…
The University of Adelaide
Slide 23
Business or Mission
Process Analysis
Business or Mission Analysis
What is it?
Examine the expected context
Defines the business aspects of the
problem space and characterises possible
solutions
Defines possible missions
Why do it?
Very first layer of problem definition
Understand what is possible
Scope the problem
Identify who cares about your system
The University of Adelaide
Inputs
Business constraints / requirements
Business strategy
Outputs
Preliminary problem definition
(stakeholders, context, strategic needs,
measures)
Business requirements
Preliminary plan for project execution
Slide 25
Business or Mission Analysis
Techniques
Stakeholder influence map
System context map
Outcomes, resources, boundaries heuristic
Brainstorming
Stakeholder workshops
Other business analysis techniques such as business case
development
• Mission analysis / definition
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•
The University of Adelaide
Slide 26
Stakeholders (1)
•
A stakeholder is “any group or individual who can affect or is affected by
the achievement of the organisation / project’s objectives”
(Kossiakoff & Sweet, 2011)
•
Key to successful system engineering design is to:
-
Identify the stakeholders of your project
-
Define the impact that each stakeholder will have on the project and the impact the project
will have on each stakeholder
This is generally done at the start of a project, as it helps to:
•
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Define the problem appropriately
-
Develop an execution plan
-
Develop a communications plan
The University of Adelaide
Slide 27
Stakeholders (2)
•
Stakeholder analysis is
usually revisited
throughout the project
•
Often divides
stakeholders into groups
with common interests, or
those with common
attributes, such as power
or involvement (see
example from Do et al,
2011)
The University of Adelaide
Slide 28
Determine stakeholders – Robotic
lawnmower
•
•
•
•
Brainstorm using sticky notes – anyone impacted in
any way by the system
Group notes together
Add additional stakeholders to the groups
Start with the “design” group and consider what
influence each stakeholder has on others
Stakeholder influence map – Robotic
lawnmower
• Use information
from
stakeholder
determination
• Consider how
they are
connected
Develop a Stakeholder Influence Map
System: Control station for an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to help fight
bushfires
Instructions
• Write down all the stakeholders involved with the UAV control station
you can think of
• Group them together and create categories to cover them
• Be prepared to add extra stakeholders as you gain greater understanding
(iterative work, as always)
• Consider how the stakeholders influence one another
Example Brainstorm
Result (Sticky Notes)
Example ‘Stakeholder
Influence Map’
Stakeholder Analysis… So What??
• You now understand the people involved in the project…so
what? Use this understanding to guide development of elements
including:
-
Communication planning
What design approach you take
The timing of your design and implementation execution
The goal of your project
The people you involve directly in the design process
The University of Adelaide
Slide 34
System Context Diagram
•
Simple diagram to explore the context of your system (collective
understanding, in a reviewable, debateable form)
•
Represents all the external entities with which the system may need to
interact
•
Focuses on the external interactions that drive your system design, not the
internal structure of your system
•
Helps determine the:
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behaviour required of your system
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external interfaces your system will need
-
which systems will put constraints on your system and those which you will constrain
The University of Adelaide
Slide 35
Context Diagram – Ambulance Dispatch
System description – an ambulance dispatch centre that provides advice to
callers and coordinates ambulance attendance and patient delivery to hospital
Context Diagram – Passenger Airliner
(from Kossiakoff and Sweet, 2011)
Context Diagram… So What??
You now understand the entities with which your system will
interact…so what? Use this understanding to guide the
development of elements including:
- Definition of key interfaces
- Definition of key expected inputs and key desired outputs (start to
understand required functionality of the system)
- Who and what needs to be involved in exploring how your system will
operate
- Who and what might need to be included of evaluation to check you have
built the system right and built the right system
The University of Adelaide
Slide 38
Mission Analysis / Definition
•
Having understood the context (people / system), what do you want your
system to help you achieve?
•
Need to define the mission(s) of the system
- Top level function, synthesises transformation of all inputs into all desired outputs
•
Examples
- Ambulance dispatch centre – provide advice to callers and coordinates ambulance
attendance and patient delivery to hospital
- UAV control station – help CFS fight bushfires by receiving, fusing and displaying
information from airborne sensing systems
The University of Adelaide
Slide 39
Exploring What Your Systems Needs to
Do…
• Once you understand:
- The people involved with your system (stakeholders)
- The things which will interact with your system (system context)
- What your system aims to achieve (mission)
• …how can you explore what your system actually needs to do to
achieve its defined mission in the context? The next step is Needs
analysis
The University of Adelaide
Slide 40
Key Points
Key Points
Solving the right problem is important to ensure your work is useful,
effective and efficient
Discussed a number of steps and use a number of techniques to help
make sure any detailed design you do is useful
- Understanding stakeholder environment
- Understanding the system context
- Defining the system mission
- Next up…Understanding how the system will be used
The University of Adelaide
Slide 42
References
Do, Q, Cook, S., Campbell, P., Robinson, K, Power, W., Tramoundanis, D., 2011,
Stakeholder Information Needs Analysis for Large Defence Projects: an MBSE
Perspective, Proceedings of the 5th Asia-Pacific Conference on Systems
Engineering (APCOSE 2011) Seoul, Korea. October 19-21
Kossiakoff, A & Sweet W. N., 2011, Systems Engineering: Principles and Practices,
Wiley ISBN 0-471-23443-5
Markle, W.H., 1966, The Manufacturing Manager’s Skills, American Management
Association Inc., New York
Martin, James N., 2004, The Seven Samurai of Systems Engineering: Dealing with
the Complexity of 7 Interrelated Systems, INCOSE International Symposium
The University of Adelaide
Slide 44