Collaborative Research: Delegated Decision Making in Value-Driven Systems Engineering

这个合作奖的研究目标是描绘的好处和局限性的价值驱动的决策权力委托在大型系统工程项目相比，更传统的授权方法，通过需求流程。基于概率论、决策论和博弈论的数学基础，定义了一种新的、实用的价值驱动的决策委托方法。使用严格的数学分析，调查将描述这种新的方法，并将其与需求驱动的方法进行比较。新的方法将得出（1）子系统工程师可以沟通他们的信念，技术能力的系统工程师和（2）系统工程师可以激励子系统工程师寻求设计，最大限度地提高系统级的预期效用。调查将开始检查的情况下，一个单一的子系统，并将最终与决策授权的分析，在一般情况下的并发子系统design.If成功的，这项研究将产生重大影响的发展，大型复杂的工程系统的利益，私营企业，政府和公众。对决策授权的更好理解将使工程师能够以更高效和更有效的方式构建工程项目，从而以更低的成本和更短的时间构建更好的系统。此外，在这项研究中发现的基本见解将为未来的计算和实证研究提供方向。最后，在这项研究中取得的发现将被纳入新的系统工程课程，这将导致更好地准备下一代系统工程师。

The research objective of this collaborative award is to delineate the benefits and limitations of value-driven decision authority delegation in large systems engineering projects as compared to the more traditional approach of delegating authority through a requirements flow-down process. A new and practical value-driven decision delegation approach will be defined based on the mathematical foundations of probability theory, decision theory, and game theory. Using rigorous mathematical analysis, the investigation will characterize this new approach and compare it to a requirements-driven approach. New methods will be derived (1) by which subsystem engineers can communicate their beliefs about technical capabilities to systems engineers and (2) by which systems engineers can incentivize subsystem engineers to seek designs that maximize system-level expected utility. The investigation will start by examining the case of a single subsystem and will culminate with the analysis of decision delegation in the general case of concurrent subsystem design.If successful, this research will have a significant impact on the development of large-scale complex engineered systems of interest to private industry, the government, and the public at large. An improved understanding of decision delegation will enable engineers to structure engineering projects in a more efficient and effective matter, resulting in better systems, at lower cost, and within less time. Furthermore, fundamental insights discovered in this research will provide direction to future computational and empirical studies. Finally, the discoveries made in this research will be incorporated into new systems engineering curricula, which will lead to a better-prepared next generation of systems engineers.