Title: Flow-based systems modelling: application in airport system description

Authors: Sabah Al-Fedaghi; Ahmed Abdullah

Addresses: Computer Engineering Department, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 5969 Safat 13060, Kuwait ' Kuwait Airport, P.O. Box 17, Safat, 13001, Kuwait

Abstract: With increasing scale and complexity of emerging networked applications, the concept of system of systems has emerged recently as a new way to address complex problems in a systematic manner. A key problem in this context is lack of a unifying framework for development and management of these systems. To avoid potential failures in building these systems, new methods, models, and techniques have been proposed. A more methodological approach is the model-based process. Systems modelling language (SysML) was created to implement this process; nevertheless, an underlying tool for expressing the unified totality of a system's processes and concepts is lacking. This paper proposes a new approach to a basic framework in this domain. As a case study, this paper applies a flow-based methodology to model physical actualisation of mechanics, electronics, information, actions, and control at an international airport. The resultant conceptual specification demonstrates that the methodology is capable of modelling various types of processes.

Keywords: conceptual modelling; system development; systems modelling language; SysML; model driven engineering; requirements specification; airport system description; international airports; system of systems; SoS; flow-based methodology; process modelling.

DOI: 10.1504/IJISE.2017.081916

International Journal of Industrial and Systems Engineering, 2017 Vol.25 No.3, pp.318 - 334

Received: 18 Oct 2014
Accepted: 27 Jan 2015
Published online: 31 Jan 2017 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article