This course provides a framework for the interdisciplinary systems engineering program. It outlines the design process for an engineering product or service. The systems approach is used to give students an understanding of how to integrate the technical engineering disciplines required to solve complex problems. This approach is traditionally applied to highly technical engineering problems. However, students will also see how sustainable design principles can be introduced to the design process in order to accommodate environmental considerations.

Specific topics include:

• Systems engineering definitions and classifications; life-cycle engineering
• Conceptual system design: including problem definition, technical performance measures, quality function deployment (QFD), trade-off analyses, and system specification
• Preliminary system design: subsystem design requirements, design review
• Detailed design and development: Detailed design requirements and design engineering activities; review and feedback, and incorporation of design changes
• Design testing, evaluation and validation
• Design for sustainability: approaches that integrate sustainability principles into the design process

Upon completion of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to

Knowledge Base:

1. Specify what constitutes a system;
2. Understand the importance of having a diverse team of people working on a complex system design;
3. Undertake a systems engineering design process for a relatively complex system;
4. Use a systems approach to complex problems, and to design and operational performance;
5. Proficiently design engineering systems and/or processes in accordance with specified and agreed performance criteria;
6. Understand the importance and relevance of sustainable practices and where they are most effectively applied in an engineered system.

Engineering ability:

1. Understand the importance of, and generate appropriate, documentation in a systems engineering design context; in particular the generation and use of engineering specification documents;
2. Understand the use of the QFD process and be able to apply it to the design of a complex engineering system;
3. Understand the place and use of prototypes and mock-ups, as well as engineering drawings in the systems engineering design process.

Practical skills:

1. Gather a list of appropriate and meaningful customer needs and undertake appropriate analyses to turn these needs meaningful engineering requirements;
2. Establish technical performance measures for generated engineering requirements;
3. Break down a system with a defined top-level function into a number of appropriate sub-functions for further engineering development;
4. Understand the importance of the testing, validation and verification process from the very beginning of a systems engineering design process.

Individual Assignment #1 (15%) Individual Assignment #2 (20%) Quiz (10%) Design Project (55%) (Preparatory Report - 5%, Final Report 50%)

ENGN1211

Suggested Reading (also used in ENGN2226)

Blanchard, Benjamin S. & Fabrycky, Wolter J. Systems Engineering and Analysis (5th Edition), Prentice Hall International, 2011.

Course page http://eng.anu.edu.au/study/currentstudents/courses