ERI: Representations of Complex Engineering Systems via Technology Recursion and Renormalization Group

工程研究启动(ERI)项目旨在补充在大范围和极端规模下表示和管理工程设计问题所缺少的基本知识。受复杂物理系统和复杂工程系统之间惊人相似性的启发，我们将把原始技术视为形成组件、子系统、系统，并最终形成系统系统的基本构件，这类似于分层的物理世界，粒子形成原子，原子进而形成分子、细胞、有机体、行星和星系。这项研究将建立一个严格的数学基础，从而能够：(A)在给定的技术项目期间和之后，在时间维度上系统地调查技术涌现的统计模式；以及(B)动态的系统表示和重新评估，以解释现有技术池的潜在系统行为。这项研究建立了对设计过程中系统演化的基本动力学的新的理解，并提供了一个自下而上的视角来处理复杂工程系统中不可靠的系统模型表示和意外的设计结果。我们将使用阿波罗和阿耳特弥斯计划作为两个极端规模的应用程序来测试该框架，以调查每个项目期间和之后的技术演变和溢出效应。这项研究将产生新的知识，可以在技术和系统层面上加强我们对成本和进度超支的根本原因的理解。这种洞察力可以为未来的太空任务和各种行业的复杂工程项目的决策过程提供信息。这个项目还将致力于通过外展和多样性倡议，在K-12学生和公众中引起更广泛的对工程设计和空间探索的兴趣。这个项目的总体目标是通过将复杂的工程系统与最近在理解复杂物理系统方面的突破联系起来，创建一个新的系统表示框架。我们将把工程设计过程建模为重整化群(RG)变换，这是现代统计物理学中普遍存在的一种技术，它根据观察到的系统的尺度来模拟系统的行为。研究方法是：(1)在时间维度上理解技术递归过程；(2)在层次维度上创建一个重整化方案，以支持基于我们感兴趣的宏观设计特征的动态系统表示。这项研究将导致一种新的自下而上的方法，以解决复杂工程系统设计过程中因缺乏正确的系统建模方式、未来的设计决策和技术开发结果的知识而导致的认知不确定性。这项研究将技术递归和系统动力学的严格数学结构融入到复杂的系统设计中，从而将产生广泛的社会影响，以造福于遭受高开发成本和项目进度超支的广泛行业(例如，公共基础设施、医疗保健、国防和航空航天)。综合教育计划包括以工程为重点的外展计划，例如为K-12学生和代表性不足的少数族裔举办大学前讲习班，以培养人们对工程设计和太空探索的更广泛兴趣。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Engineering Research Initiation (ERI) project aims to supplement essential missing knowledge for representing and managing engineering design problems at large and extreme scales. Inspired by the striking similarities between complex physical systems and complex engineering systems, we will consider primitive technologies as fundamental building blocks that form components, subsystems, systems, and eventually, systems of systems, which is analogous to the hierarchical physical world, where particles form atoms, which in turn form molecules, cells, organisms, planets, and galaxies. This research will establish a rigorous mathematical foundation that enables: (a) systematic investigation of the statistical pattern of technology emergence in the time dimension during and after a given technical project; and (b) dynamic system representation and re-evaluation to interpret potential system behaviors with the existing technology pool. This research establishes a new understanding of the fundamental dynamics of system evolution during the design process and provides a bottom-up perspective to handle unreliable system model representations and unexpected design outcomes for complex engineering systems. We will test the framework using the Apollo and Artemis programs as two applications at extreme scales to investigate technology evolution and the spillover effect during and after each project. This research will generate new knowledge that can enhance our understanding of the underlying causes of cost and schedule overruns at both the technology and system levels. Such insights can inform decision-making processes for future space missions and complex engineering programs in various industries. This project will also strive to engage broader interest in engineering design and space exploration among K-12 students and the public through outreach and diversity initiatives.The overarching goal of this project is to create a novel system representation framework by connecting complex engineering systems with recent breakthroughs in understanding complex physical systems. We will model the engineering design process as the Renormalization Group (RG) transformation, a ubiquitous technique in modern statistic physics that models the behaviors of a system depending on the scale of which it is observed. The research approach is to (R1) understand the technology recursion process in the time dimension; and (R2) create a renormalization scheme in the hierarchy dimension to support dynamic system representation based on the macroscopic design features we are interested in. This research will lead to a new bottom-up approach to resolve epistemic uncertainties during complex engineering system design driven by the lack of knowledge of the correct way to model the system, future design decisions, and technology development outcomes. The research will have broad societal impact by incorporating the rigorous mathematical structure of technology recursion and system dynamics into complex system design to benefit a wide range of industries suffering from high development costs and project schedule overruns (e.g., public infrastructure, healthcare, defense, and aerospace). The integrated education plan involves engineering-focused outreach initiatives, such as pre-college workshops for K-12 students and under-represented minorities to develop broader interest in engineering design and space exploration.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.