Combining SysML and AADL for the design, validation and implementation of critical systems

The realization of critical systems goes through multiple phases of specification, design, integration, validation, and testing. It starts from high-level sketches down to the final product. Model-Based Design has been acknowledged as a good conveyor to capture these steps. Yet, there is no universal solution to represent all activities. Two candidates are the OMG-based SysML to perform high-level modeling tasks, and the SAE AADL to perform lower-level ones, down to the implementation. The paper shares an experience on the seamless use of SysML and the AADL to model, validate/verify and implement a flight management system

Literate modelling: capturing business knowledge with the UML

At British Airways, we have found during several large OO projects documented using the UML that non-technical end-users, managers and business domain experts find it difficult to understand UML visual models. This leads to problems in requirement capture and review. To solve this problem, we have developed the technique of Literate Modelling. Literate Models are UML diagrams that are embedded in texts explaining the models. In that way end-users, managers and domain experts gain useful understanding of the models, whilst object-oriented analysts see exactly and precisely how the models define business requirements and imperatives. We discuss some early experiences with Literate Modelling at British Airways where it was used extensively in their Enterprise Object Modelling initiative.We explain why Literate Modelling is viewed as one of the critical success factors for this significant project. Finally, we propose that Literate Modelling may be a valuable extension to many other object-oriented and non object-oriented visual modelling languages

A design recording framework to facilitate knowledge sharing in collaborative software engineering

This paper describes an environment that allows a development team to share knowledge about software artefacts by recording decisions and rationales as well as supporting the team in formulating and maintaining design constraints. It explores the use of multi-dimensional design spaces for capturing various issues arising during development and presenting this meta-information using a network of views. It describes a framework to underlie the collaborative environment and shows the supporting architecture and its implementation. It addresses how the artefacts and their meta-information are captured in a non-invasive way and shows how an artefact repository is embedded to store and manage the artefacts

Requirements analysis for decision-support system design: evidence from the automotive industry

The purpose of this paper is to outline the requirements analysis that was carried out to support the development of a system that allows engineers to view real-time data integrated from multiple silos such as Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and Warranty systems, in a single and visual environment. The outcome of this study provides a clear understanding of how engineers working in different phases of the product-lifecycle could utilise such information to improve the decision making process and as a result design better products. This study uses data collected via in-depth semi-structured interviews and workshops that includes people working in various roles within the automotive sector. In order to demonstrate the applicability this approach, SysML diagrams are also provided

Making formal verification amenable to real-time UML practitioners

TTool, a real-time UML toolkit, offers user-friendly interfaces to formal verification techniques such as reachability analysis, observer-based analysis and automatic generation of traceability matrices. Those techniques are surveyed in the paper

TURTLE: Four Weddings and a Tutorial

The paper discusses an educational case study of protocol modelling in TURTLE, a real-time UML profile supported by the open source toolkit TTool. The method associated with TURTLE is step by step illustrated with the connection set up and handover procedures defined for the Future Air navigation Systems. The paper covers the following methodological stages: requirement modeling, use-case driven and scenario based analysis, object-oriented design and rapid prototyping in Java. Emphasis is laid on the formal verification of analysis and design diagrams