Presentation delivered at the 3rd IEEE Track on Collaborative Modeling & Simulation - CoMetS'12. Please see http://www.sel.uniroma2.it/comets12/ for further details.

1. AFIS
Association Française d’Ingénierie Système
(French INCOSE Chapter)
Alain Kerbrat (Alain.Kerbrat@collesys.com)
AFIS representative
Coordinator of the MBSE Technical Committee

2. Small and large systems
Integrated systems Control and command systems Communication systems
Air Traffic Management systems Civil engineering: Millau bridge Tomorrow: nanosystems…

3. SE: interdisciplinary
Mechanical Human
Marketing Finance
Engineering Factors
Electrical
Sustainability
Engineering
Computer
Science
Systems Security
Engineering:
Civil a true conductor Safety
Engineering
Chemical Maintenance
Engineering
Other
engineering Contracting Quality Production
specialties
Do not focus only on the technical dimension…

4. AFIS: association française d’ingénierie système
Organizations
≥ 500p AFIS
Non-profit organization:
SMEs - founded in 1998,
< 500p - composed of corporate
members (companies,
public organizations,
SMEs, Education and
Research organizations)
and individual members.
In 2012:
Recherche
Recherche
Research
40 corporate members
Enseignement
Enseignement
Teaching (22/5/13),
450 individual members
(including 300 free members
from the corporate
members).
Individual Members

5. Goals of AFIS
Promote Systems Engineering
presenting its principles aiming at delivering the right products to
customers.
Favor the use of SE within public and private organizations.
Promote education in SE within the corresponding communities:
students, teachers, training organizations, research labs…
Favor exchanges between end-users and enhance the knowledge
base of SE, while focusing on its adaptation to various application
domains.
Represent users within professional meetings at national,
European, international levels.

6. Technical Committees
– Global Processes. Coordinator: Alain Le Put
Definition, use, adaptation of processes throughout all lifecycle activities.
– Model Based Systems Engineering. Coordinator: Alain Kerbrat, David Lesens (EADS)
Methods, practices, tools (simulation, virtual integration) to design and validate a system.
– SE Management. Coordinator: Roland Mazzella (THALES), Gilles Meuriot (AREVA)
Methods, models, practices, tools used to manage SE within the global project management.
– Training and Skills. Coordinator: Eric Bonjour (ENSGSI), Patricia Pancher (THALES)
Identification of the skills to acquire, from student level to employee within a company; continuing training;
certifying/labeling professional skills.
– Emerging Technologies, Innovation and SE. Coordinator: Catherine Devic (EDF), Gérard
Morel (Univ. Nancy), Dominique Seguela (CNES), Bruno Vallespir (Univ. Bordeaux), Frédéric Kratz
(ENSI Bourges)
– Human Factors and SE. Coordinator: Régis Mollard et Marion Wolff (Univ. Paris Descartes)
– Systems-of-systems and services. Coordinator: Jean-Luc Garnier (Thales), Claude Pourcel
Architecture and engineering of SoS and Service-intensive systems.
– Safety, maintainability, validation of systems. Coordinator: Tony Hutinet (Dassault
Systèmes), Eric Levrat (Univ. Nancy), François Peres (ENIT)

7. AFIS Products and services (2/2): examples
Guidebook “Découvrir et comprendre
l’ingénierie système”(“Discover and understand
SE”): SE pedagogical and attractive guide.
White Paper “SE: the AFIS vision for the
2020s”.
REGAL (requirements engineering guide for all),
interactive data base on Requirement Mgt
Best Practices. INCOSE-AFIS collaboration.
Elected “Product of the 2009 year” by INCOSE. http://www.incose.org/REGAL
Technical Leaflets (SE processes and sub-
processes, systems-of-systems, etc.), developed by
AFIS working groups: over 200 documents.

8. Partnerships and on-going actions
CSDM’10 and ’11: sponsor of conference, invited talk.
ICSSEA’10 and ’11: sponsor of conference, invited talk.
ERGOIA’11: sponsor of conference, invited talk.
AFIA: sponsor of conference AFIA’11, joint thematic day ISIA’11 (Nov. 11).
SEE: joint thematic day “management & trust in complex systems” (Sep. 11).
SYNTEC : invited talk on AFIS.
Participation to BKCASE project (4th Workshop in Toulouse 2010).
Journal Génie Logiciel (special issue March 11, papers in other issues).
BNAé: working groups (open systems…).
AFNOR: active member, participation to standardization commissions.
Regional Chapters: Midi-Pyrénées (conference lunches, meeting students-
enterprises Dec. 10), Grand Est.
On-going: French-speaking chapters (Quebec Montréal; Morocco).

9. AFIS: access to a worldwide network
through the MOU with INCOSE
INCOSE:
– 7000 members,
– a worldwide coverage of over 100 countries.
AFIS and INCOSE:
– an exclusive MOU since 1999,
– every AFIS member is INCOSE “International Affiliate”.
Access to publications (Insight, System Engineering Journal), to
international exchange and working groups, and to unique services
such as the certification of system engineers.

10. Synthesis of the workshop “Modélisation”
AFIS seminar, Mont-Griffon, october 2011
SE MODELING TRENDS

11. Models and viewpoints
Objectives & Constraints
Input Flow Output Flow
System
Interface Interface
Resource
:Mon Système
Organic
Functional X:Utilisateur S1:System
Parent Foo
ChildA ChildB
Scenario Data model
Temporal
Projection /
allocations
System engineering requires thinking
flows with various, consistent viewpoints
Source: Alain FAISANDIER, MAP système - alain.faisandier@mapsysteme.com

12. Workshop « Modeling »
Which modeling approaches are needed
for the engineering of
future complex systems ?
Objective:
Identify trends and necessary improvements
in modeling techniques and tools
Attendance:
– 40 persons, 70% industry
25

13. Topics (1/4)
« One (model) to rule them all ?»
A universal/unified SE modeling language,
Or a combination of specialized languages ?
Modeling dimensions:
• Multi-disciplines,
• Multi-levels, concurrent engineering,
• Covering the whole system life-cycle
Combining specialized languages Common meta-model ?
How to manage changes coming from one viewpoint, and
impacting others ?
26

14. Synthesis (1/4)
A universal/unified SE modeling language,
Or a combination of specialized languages ?
Domain Specific languages for domain engineers
• A system level model can be considered as intrusive
• Any generic, universal language will end up being customized per domain
Transverse techniques for transverse disciplines
• Using safety, performances modeling in addition to functional modeling
Organising the consistency of multi-dimension modeling
• Simplified models for the communciation between domains
• Synthesis/abstraction for upper level modellng
• Requirements as the simplest, minimal exchange model ?
27

15. Topics (2/4)
Is the precise (formal) definition of language semantics
helping or hampering a wide usage of modeling ?
Plus:
– Better tools accuracy, interoperability, automation
– Formal proof, simulation and test generation while keeping the
exact semantics
– Now recognized as a credit for aeronautical certification
– ….
Minus:
– Accuracy and rigidity can hamper a creation process
– Limitation of the usage scope
– Higher cost (training, competences, tools)
– …
28

16. Synthesis(2/4)
Is the precise (formal) definition of language semantics
helping or hampering a wide usage of modeling ?
Two distinct class of needs
– Exchange with stakeholders, understand, negociate, « What »
Formalism shall be open, flexible, easy to understand
– Design, Verify& validate, « How »
Formalism shall be precise, simulation ready
Bridge between the two worlds « Contratualize »
– Two different viewpoints
– Synthesis/abstraction from the formal level, to communicate with
stakeholder using an appropriate formalism
– Manage traceability
29

17. Topics (3/4)
Is a standardized language like SysML appropriate
for an efficient modeling ?
Does « standardization » bring value ?
o E.g.: SDL standardized by ITU-T, but limited usage by the industry
A bridge between vairous industrial approaches:
o SysML and Architecture Frameworks,
o Scade-SysML, Matlab/SysML, SysML and Modélica ?
Is SysML still seen as an IT language ?
Should it be used in continuity with UML ?
30

18. Synthesis (3/4)
Is a standardized language like SysML appropriate
for an efficient modeling ?
SysML:
• SysML being a « standard » is a major reason for the growing interest
– Risk minimisation: « Being wrong alone » < « Being wrong together » <
« Being right alone »
SysML acceptance is variable
• For computer science people, it is a generic language
• For non IT people, it is a sowtware oriented language
• No standard methodology
– Need for CSEP/OCSMP engineers
Efficent use
• Reuse is a must (design patterns, products line modeling)
Standardized Domain Specific Languages ?
31

19. Topics (4/4)
What is missing for system-level validation
based on simulation ? Or formal proof ?
Level of details necessary for simulation
Simulation partial models, abstract models
Relationship with the real world
o Real-time, human factors, non-determinism, dysfunctionnal …
Modeling properties is an additional cost
o Learning an additional language
o Doubling the modeling effort
32

20. Synthèse(4/4)
What is missing for system-level validation
based on simulation ? Or formal proof ?
Not so many feedbacks for system-level simulation
o ROI hard to evaluate
o Large gap between a descriptive model and a simulated model
o Modeling transverse aspects is hard(eg: Human Factors)
Most of the simulation is done at sub-systems level, with domain specific languages
and tools
System-level simulation is applied when mandatory (e.g.: Safety)
Property verification
– Identification of emerging properties
• Dimension constraints, constraints on environment
– Some isolated exampels of projects using formal verification
33

21. To join AFIS:
Dominique Luzeaux: President of AFIS
dominique.luzeaux@polytechnique.org
Catherine Devic: Vice-President of AFIS
catherine.devic@edf.fr
Website: http://www.afis.fr/
Contact: afis@afis.fr

22. AFIS membership conditions
Corporate Members
Companies and public organizations ≥ 500 personnel
• 9800€ yearly fees with 10 free members
• Vote weight: 6
SMEs < 500 personnel
• 3000€ yearly fees with 5 free members
• Vote weight: 2
Education & Research
• Education : 1000€ yearly fees with 25 free members (23 students plus 2 professors)
• Vote weight: 1
• Research: 1000€ yearly fees with 10 free members
• Vote weight: 1
Individual Members
Regular: 150€ yearly fees
Retired: 50€ yearly fees
Student: 30€ yearly fees (not including INCOSE fee)