When can we safely reuse systems, upgrade systems, or use COTS components?

A. Wayne Wymore and A. Terry Bahill

Systems Engineering, 2000, vol. 3, issue 2, 82-95

Abstract: In this article it is proven that two systems are I/O equivalent with respect to an initial state pair if and only if their minimizations are isomorphic images, which means that the minimizations are essentially the same systems with just a renaming of states, inputs, and outputs. The concept of homomorphic images is also defined: One system is a homomorphic image of the other if the one system is simpler than the other, but has essentially the same overall functionality. Two systems that are I/O equivalent with respect to an initial state pair are not necessarily homomorphic images. Hence, a system that implements the one may not implement the other. To assume otherwise can lead to disaster. It is the responsibility of systems engineers assigned to system functional analysis to consider the I/O requirement and the performance requirement (which may include reusability considerations) and to specify functional system designs for implementation. It is the responsibility of systems engineers assigned to system architecture to consider the technology requirement and the cost requirement and to specify buildable system designs to implement those exact functional system designs, not the requirements for I/O behavior. This paper shows that the equivalence of two systems cannot be proven by looking only at input and output behavior. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Syst Eng 3: 82–95, 2000

Date: 2000
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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