Integrating Model-Based Systems Engineering and System Architecture Optimization

Concordia University’s Aircraft Systems Lab and the Institute of System Architectures in Aeronautics at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) will collaborate to develop innovative digital methodologies for aircraft system design. The project bridges two important aspects of engineering product development: model-based systems engineering (MBSE), which unifies complex system representations within a single computational platform, and system architecture optimization (SAO), which generates and evaluates thousands of design possibilities. While MBSE excels at describing and representing high-level characteristics, it lacks quantitative evaluation capabilities. Conversely, SAO efficiently compares many designs, but sometimes lacks the rigor and traceability of MBSE. This project will connect widely used and industry-proven MBSE platforms with state-of-the-art SAO tools from the DLR, enabling engineers to explore design alternatives within a proven framework using powerful optimization tools. A Concordia PhD student will spend three months in Hamburg collaborating with the DLR’s architecture experts, strengthening institutional relationships and enabling joint publications, academic exchanges, and tool development. Concordia will gain access to advanced optimization methodologies and international experience, while the DLR will benefit from developments in collaborative contexts and the Aircraft Systems Lab’s safety-centered architecture evaluation expertise. Both institutions will advance digital engineering practices for developing safer and more environmentally sustainable aircraft.

Faculty Supervisor:

Susan Liscouët-Hanke

Student:

Partner:

Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Aerospace

University:

Concordia University

Program: