Context‐Based Systems Engineering

This paper proposes an innovative problem/system decomposition approach. Unlike the conventional method, where stakeholder requirements are transformed into system requirements for the system‐of‐interest (SOI), the new approach involves decomposing stakeholder requirements into specifications for modified context subsystems. These subsystems comprise elements from both the SOI and its surrounding context. The new approach offers two key strengths. Firstly, an enhanced contextual relationship. The approach naturally establishes a relationship between the SOI and its context across various abstraction levels. This contextual linkage fosters modularity and agility within the system. Secondly the new approach enables precise functionality definition. Unlike mere declarations, the new approach allows for explicit functionality definition at all levels. Consequently, we can formulate executable requirements, enabling system simulation across all system levels. Very early integration, verification, and validation become possible as a result.