Systems architecting: a practical example of design space modeling and safety-based filtering within the AGILE4.0 project

The aerospace industry strives towards innovative aircraft concepts that feature increasing electrification to meet environmental and business targets. Advanced Multi-Disciplinary Analysis and Optimization (MDAO) frameworks have been developed to help evaluate these aircraft and their systems. However, the system architecting process still relies on a system architecture baseline from past aircraft programs or historical data, thereby precluding the exploration of a larger design space and identifying optimal solutions for further development. Furthermore, the evolution of system safety is a critical factor in establishing the feasibility of a system architecture solution. Therefore, there is a need to explore a large design space of system architectures for safety, certification, and performance requirements in an efficient manner. This paper presents a rule-based safety assessment approach within a systems architecting framework that demonstrates the ability to generate and filter a large design space based on safety heuristics. This approach is demonstrated using a case study for an aircraft landing gear braking system.