An integrated framework for automated simulation of SysML models using DEVS

Abstract

System models are constructed to design, study, and understand complex systems. According to the systems modeling language (SysML) that is a standard for model-based system engineering, all engineering activities should be performed using a common model. To validate complex system models defined in SysML, simulation is usually employed. There are numerous efforts to simulate SysML models using different simulation methods and tools. However, the efficient support of automated generation of executable simulation code is still an issue tangled by the research community. This paper introduces DEVSys, an integrated framework for utilizing existing SysML models and automatically producing executable discrete event simulation code, according to model driven architecture (MDA) concepts. Although this approach is not simulation-specific, discrete event system specification (DEVS) was employed, due to the similarities between SysML and DEVS, mainly in system structure description, and the mature, yet ongoing research on expressing executable DEVS models in a simulator-neutral manner. DEVSys framework elements include (a) a SysML profile for DEVS, enabling integration of simulation capabilities into SysML models, (b) a meta-model for DEVS, allowing the utilization of MDA concepts and tools, (c) a transformation of SysML models to DEVS models, using a standard model transformation language as query/view/transform (QVT), and (d) the generation of DEVS executable code for a DEVS simulation environment with an extensible markup language (XML) interface. The definition and implementation of DEVSys elements, as well as the process for its application are demonstrated and discussed, with the aid of a simple working example.

Simulating simulation-agnostic SysML models for enterprise information systems via DEVS

“…Motivated by the advances in model-based approaches for DEVS, the wide range of domains of application and the structural similarities between SysML and DEVS, an integrated framework for automated simulation of SysML models using DEVS (DEVSys) has been proposed in [4] . In this approach, the system model should be enriched with DEVS-specific information, mainly related to systems behavior, according to a proposed SysML profile.…”

“…No simulation-capabilities are integrated within the profile. The proposed approach targets at standards-based integration of a DEVS simulation environment with the profile, based on the experience obtained by the development of DEVSys approach, presented in [4] . As stated in [24] , since system behavior is difficult to model, our approach uses simulation tool-specific library components.…”

“…This is commonly achieved through external development and execution of simulation models, which is a manual or semi-automated procedure. An alternate approach is the enrichment of the system model with detailed simulation properties, enabling simulation code generation [4,15] . Both approaches require extensive post-processing of the system model, either in external analysis environments or within the modeling tool.…”

“…A common way for deriving such estimations is simulation. Thus, there is currently strong interest in generating simulation models from SysML models [3,4] .…”

“…The EIS profile is examined and utilized to develop a framework that extracts information, necessary to derive executable DEVS simulation models, based on DEVS library components. DEVS was chosen, since (a) system structure is defined in both SysML and DEVS in a similar fashion, making the transformation conventional, and (b) existing tools facilitated standardized DEVS meta-model representation and enhanced simulation code generation process [4] . SysML-to-simulation model transformation needs to be defined only once for the pair of the Enterprise Information System (EIS) domain-specific SysML profile and the DEVS simulation environment, ensuring a seamless integration of SysML modeling environments and DEVS simulators for the domain of EIS.…”