Systems Engineering for Aerospace

Chapter 1

Introduction

Abstract

This chapter gives a brief overview of systems engineering (SE) and system thinking, including definitions, concepts and principles, as applied to aerospace engineering. Systems engineering can be viewed as a collective effort employing a large group of engineering techniques that directly transform the objective world through use of system thinking, an approach that is needed now more than ever due to the recent rapid development of highly complex systems and the continuous expansion of production scales. As discussed in this chapter, systems engineering is both an emerging science that studies systems and an engineering technique for designing and building complex products. The scope of SE research has expanded ...