Model-Based Systems Engineering Interfaces for Human-Systems Integration

Kavitha Chandra
University of Massachusetts Lowell, USA

Classical systems engineering (SE) has supported the design of complex systems in automotive, defense, and space applications for decades. The V-model, for example, structures a hierarchy of document-based requirements across system design, validation, and verification.

More recently, model-based systems engineering (MBSE) has emerged, replacing the document thread with a single connected model as the authoritative source of truth. Whereas traditional SE has been a relatively siloed process across responsible units, MBSE is expected to improve communication between systems engineers on the left side of the V-model and the integrators, validators, and quality-control personnel on its right side.

A case study is presented in which a digital twin, driven by data from a neuromorphic vision sensor, is developed to validate the dynamics of a pendulum. TheMagicGridmethodologythat helps structure the modeling across problem, solution, and implementation domains is discussed. Its black-box stage elicits the needs of a system validator, a stakeholder outside the traditional engineering role, and traces those needs through system context, use case, and effectiveness models before any technical solution is built. This illustrates a concrete pathway for MBSE interfaces to engage non-expert, human stakeholders earlier in design, addressing a persistent barrier to cross-domain collaboration in digital engineering adoption.

Kavitha Chandra is Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. She served as Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs at the Francis College of Engineering from 2018-2026. As founding director of the Research, Academics and Mentoring Pathways (RAMP) summer bridge to engineering degree programs, she has engaged nearly two hundred aspiring engineering students in early research and technical communication skills with support from a consortium of industry partners. She directs research, education, community engagement, and inter-disciplinaryprograms at the intersection of engineering and health sciences in the Center for Advanced Computation and Telecommunications. Chandra co-created and teaches with practitioners from industry, a 12-credit Graduate Certificate in Digital Engineering. Her other interests include traveling the world, building minimalist passive homes and Japanese style landscapes.

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