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A system of systems flexibility framework: A method for evaluating designs that are subjected to disruptions

As systems become more interconnected, the focus of engineering design must shift
to include consideration for systems of systems (SoS) e ects. As the focus shifts from
singular systems to systems of systems, so too must the focus shift from performance
based analysis to an evaluation method that accounts for the tendency of such large
scale systems to far outlive their original operational environments and continually
evolve in order to adapt to the changes. It is nearly impossible to predict the nature
of these changes, therefore the rst focus of this thesis is the measurement of
the
exibility of the SoS and its ability to evolve and adapt. Flexibility is measured
using a combination of network theory and a discrete event simulation, therefore,
the second focus is the development of a simulation environment that can also measure
the system's performance for baseline comparisons. The results indicate that
simulated
exibility is related to the performance and cost of the SoS and is worth
measuring during the design process. The third focus of this thesis is to reduce the
computational costs of SoS design evaluation by developing heuristics for
exibility.
This was done by developing a network model to correspond with the discrete event
simulation and evaluating network properties using graph theory. It was shown that
the network properties can correlate with simulated
exibility. In such cases it was
shown that the heuristics could be used in connection with an evolutionary algorithm
to rapidly search the design space for good solutions. The entire methodology was
demonstrated on a multi-platform maintenance planning problem in connection with
the Navy Hardware Open System Technologies initiative.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:GATECH/oai:smartech.gatech.edu:1853/54277
Date07 January 2016
CreatorsWarshawsky, David
ContributorsMavris, Dimitri
PublisherGeorgia Institute of Technology
Source SetsGeorgia Tech Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Archive
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeDissertation
Formatapplication/pdf

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