Upcoming Courses

Register and pay 30 days prior to the course commencement date to receive a 10% early bird discount. Or register a group of 3+ for a 10% group discount. Available for corporate training worldwide.

Key Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, participants are expected to have learned:

• the overall concepts that are characteristic of MBSE;
• the overall process elements, and their relationships, that collectively constitute the process building blocks to
  which MBSE contributes;
• how to perform model-based requirements capture and validation, and model-based design, within the
  constraints of their technology knowledge and understanding of supporting systems engineering concepts.

Training Method and Materials

The course makes extensive use of course workshops to put into practice the techniques covered in theory sessions.

Some Key Questions

• What is MBSE?
• Where in a system lifecycle can MBSE be used, and to what benefit
• How can MBSE be used to ensure that we develop the right thing?
• What forms of modelling are valuable in requirements analysis, and why?
• How do we realize that value in requirements analysis?
• What forms of modelling are valuable in design, and why?
• What is architecture?
• Is architecture different to design?
• What is logical design, and what forms can it take, and why do we care?
• What is the timing relationship between logical and physical design within MBSE?
• What is model-based architecting? Model-based design? Are model-based and model-driven different?
• What languages and tools are applicable for model-based work?
• What is the significance of SysML V2 versus SysML V1?
• Where does Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) figure?
• What are the Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes (KSAs) conducive to success in using MBSE?

Who Should Attend This Course?

This MBSE course is designed for professionals who perform or manage the requirements definition and/or development of small to large technology-based systems, products, capabilities, etc. The course will be of particular value to people with job titles such as:

• Requirements Engineer
• System Architect
• Enterprise Architect
• Design Engineer
• Systems Engineer
• Business Analyst
• Systems Analyst
• Software Systems Engineer
• Software Engineer
• Specialty Engineer – reliability, safety, maintainability, producibility
• Hardware Engineer
• Research Engineer
• Project Engineer
• Logistic Support Analyst (LSA) Specialist
• Industrial Engineer
• Other engineering job titles
• Research and Development (R&D) Manager
• Engineering Manager

Introduction – MBSE Within Systems Engineering (1.5 hours)

• the business case for MBSE within the system lifecycle
• definition of terms
• requirements capture and design interactive exercise – basic
• MBSE within a systems engineering process model
• Requirements Analysis – context, purpose, inputs, outputs
• Logical Design – context, purpose, inputs, outputs and types of logic – functional and state-based

This short introduction presents the business case MBSE and a short overview role and benefits of MBSE throughout a system lifecycle and establishes its context within the bigger picture of systems engineering practice.

2. MBSE for Requirements Capture and Validation (5.5 hours)

• MBSE within requirements capture and validation
• workshop 1 – States and Modes Analysis
• workshop 2 – Functional Analysis

This module exposes in largely interactive and workshop format the two main tools for MBSE support to requirements capture and validation, namely states & modes analysis and functional analysis.

3. Concepts of Architecture and Detailed Design – Physical and Logical (1 hour)

• MBSE within design
• physical architecture (structural view) – basic concepts
• functional form of logical architecture – basic concepts
• functional architecture related to physical architecture
• model-based design in practice – Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)/Model-Based Architecting
  (MBA)/Model-Based Design (MBD)/Model-Driven Design (MDD) 

This module introduces the basic concepts of architectural and detailed design. The module identifies multiple forms of logical design representation used in MBSE and establishes the relationships between logical architecture/detailed design and physical architecture/detailed design.

4. Initial Physical Conceptualization (0.5 hours)

•  the role of technology and innovation
• design complexity trade-off
• interactive exercise – a simple physical design

This module identifies the initial conceptualization of solution alternatives, and their transformation into an initial set of system elements (typically destined to become configuration items).
The interactive exercise of a simple physical design then continues, the aim being to both illustrate and exercise the basics of physical design with a practical example, which then provides the context within which model- based techniques are used. This exercise uses the same system that was the focus of requirements workshops.

5. Functional Design (6.9 hours)

•  functional analysis in design – how to do it
  • functional analysis/architecture process
  • item flow and control flow
  • un-allocatable and allocatable functions
  • pitfalls in defining functions
  • common pitfalls in functional design
  • interactive exercise – a simple functional design
  • workshop 3 – physical and functional design, part A
  • workshop 3 – physical and functional design, part B (optional)
  • coupling, cohesion, connectivity
  • Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA)/Failure Modes, Effects and Criticality Analysis (FMECA) in
  design
  • executable functional design
  • performance thread analysis
• allocation of functionality between hardware and software
• MBSE languages – SysML 1, SysML 2, proprietary languages
• constructed simulations
• software tools supporting functional and physical design
• pitfalls in functional design

This module of the course delves into the critical detail of logical design (model-based architecting/design), always with reference to the corresponding physical design – as must be the case in the real world of engineering. The focus is on the most widely used – functional – form of logical design, with the exception of software for which state-based design is very widely used.
An overall, effective methodology for maximizing the value of functional design is explained, as are the important concepts of coupling, cohesion and connectivity. These concepts influence the selection of logical design alternatives and their alternative physical implementations.
The interactive exercise of a simple functional design then continues, the aim being to both illustrate and exercise the basics of logical design with a practical example.
A major, team-based workshop is then conducted. The workshop aims to give participants practical experience in exercising the basics of logical design. This workshop also uses the system that was the focus of previous requirements and design workshops.
Languages and the use of constructed simulation are then briefly overviewed.

6. State-Based Design (0.5 hours)

• state-based design – language concepts
• SysML, and alternative languages incorporating state-based modelling
• software tools supporting state-based design
• pitfalls in state-based design

State-based logic is one of the forms of logical architecture identified in Module 2. This module looks at the use of state charts as a technique for logical design that allows for concurrency of states and makes provision for hierarchy of states.

7. Summary and Key Points (0.1 hours)

• action plan