Multi-disciplinary system engineering and the compatibility modeling language (U)CML

Over time, technical systems such as automobiles or spacecraft have grown more complex due to the incorporation of increasingly more and different components. The integration of these components, which are frequently designed and constructed within separate departments and companies may lead to malfunctioning systems as their interplay cannot be tested within the earlier phases of development. This paper introduces compatibility management as one solution to the problems of late component integration. Compatibility management is carried out on a common cross-domain model of the system and therefore allows to test compatibility early on. We show how compatibility management can be embedded into the phased development of ECSS-M-30A and present the (Unified) Compatibility Modeling Language ((U)CML), which is used for the underlying cross-domain model. A case study demonstrates the application of (U)CML in the development of a small satellite and explains different degrees of compatibility.