A Generalized Options-based Approach to Mitigate Perturbations in a Maritime Security System-of-Systems

Due to the complex and highly dynamic contexts in which systems operate nowadays, it has become crucial that, early in the architecting phase, System Architects take into account options to be utilized throughout the system’s lifecycle to improve performance and lifecycle properties, such as flexibility. This paper introduces a preliminary approach that allows for the identification of relevant options, which are capable of mitigating perturbations negatively impacting a system of interest. The approach consists of the generation, evaluation and selection of relevant generalized options (enabling both changeability and robustness), and is demonstrated by application to a Maritime Security SoS case study. The inputs to the process are a list of desired design principles to implement in the system, and a list of perturbations that may affect the delivery of value to stakeholders (options are meant to mitigate perturbations). Four different metrics for option evaluation are proposed, together with techniques that can help during the process of selection of options.