Systems of Systems

Conclusion ¹

 

Introduction

Some authors, whose names we will politely omit, mix human beings, organizations and technical systems in hurried concepts, without marking the difference between their specific characteristics, within a rationale close to syncretism in which everything is linked, everything is in everything and vice versa. On the contrary, the 12 chapters of this book have demonstrated the richness, even the polysemy, of the notion of system. Such richness, such complexity, takes us all the farther from a basic definition.

Let us keep in mind a few important, structuring points which will have to be studied in depth to offer the systems of systems the proper concepts, methods and tools.

Evolutions and stakes

We have seen the characteristics of systems of systems, their constitutive systems, their organization in terms of architecture, and their operation modes.

If, at first, systems engineering treated the systems mostly, sometimes exclusively, in terms of product, recent evolutions, partly linked to the development of systems of systems, lead to the apprehension of systems in terms of service. These evolutions are not without consequence. As a service, the system modifies the contracting models, the processes and activities which must be implemented. In this way, we try to contractualize quality of service through time, in terms of performance, availability, absence of anomaly. Validation is not only performed before the operational use of the system, but during all ...