[SysML-Evaluators] Model-Based Engineering vs. Model-Driven Design?

[Jeffrey A Estefan]

SysML Evaluators,

 

It is my understanding that a member of this esteemed group had made a clear distinction between the disciplines of model-based engineering (MBE) and model-driven design (MDD).  My colleagues and I would very much appreciate a statement or two differentiating the two, and any reference to a publication that calls out this distinction should one exist.

 

Respectufully...

 

 - Jeff

[Dandashi, Fatma]

Dear SysML Evaluators,

I have not found one publication that calls out the distinction between model-based engineering (MBE) and model-driven design (MDD). The two paragraphs below are paraphrased from a couple of sources I found.

A system of systems has emergent behaviors that result due to the interactions of the components. Such behaviors only occur if components are working together; they do not occur when operating any single component alone.  Logical modeling and simulation of the entire system, operating within its environment, is needed to understand emergent behavior.  The purpose is not to predict the exact future but to explore future possibilities and gain computer-aided insight from simulations based on these models.  Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE), attempts to accomplish this by establishing a set of operational scenarios that cover the various possible future environments.

Further, with traditional SE development, the requirements and specifications are document-based, which can be incomplete, ambiguous, and easily misunderstood.  The team who receives these specifications must typically build physical prototypes of the system to validate their designs. The expense and complexity of developing these prototypes often limit the number of iterations designers can perform to refine the design to meet the specifications.  MBSE helps engineers and designers overcome the difficulties of traditional development approaches by building comprehensive, system-level mathematical models that serve as executable specifications, replacing ambiguous text documents, and eliminating the need for physical prototypes before a particular design has been chosen. Designers can simulate and iterate as many times as necessary to refine the model to meet the constraints of the target environment, and to validate the system behavior against the requirements. Engineers can also ensure quality throughout the development process by integrating tests into the models at any stage. This continuous verification and simulation helps identify errors early, when they are easier and less expensive to fix.

 

This is all done before any physical prototypes are modeled and created. I believe SysML is defined for MBSE, not for building and manufacturing physical systems, although model interchange mechanisms are to be defined so that these models can be seamlessly imported into physical design tools, further refined, and then fed to manufacturing tools.

 

Best Regards,

Fatma Dandashi, Ph.D.

Lead, Software Systems Engineer

703.983.7914

The MITRE Corporation

"Working in the Public Interest"

 

 

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From: SysML-Ev...@googlegroups.com [mailto:SysML-Ev...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Jeffrey A Estefan
Sent: Thursday, December 29, 2005 11:41 AM
To: SysML-Ev...@googlegroups.com
Subject: [SysML-Evaluators] Model-Based Engineering vs. Model-Driven Design?