Model-Based Fault Management Engineering Tool Suite

NASA's successful development of next generation space vehicles, habitats, and robotic systems will rely on effective Fault Management Engineering. Our proposed innovation aims at developing a method and associated tool suite to support Model-Based Fault Management Engineering (MBFME) for these upcoming projects. Our goal is to leverage Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) concepts, and adapt them to Fault Management (FM). Model-Based Fault Management Engineering is proposed to be the formalized application of modeling to support Fault Management Engineering activities. Traditional approaches to fault management are costly, difficult to execute, and are largely decoupled from the main system engineering activities which aim to capture the system requirements and transform them into a robust and safe design. Our concept will enable the integration of fault management early in the system engineering lifecycle, facilitating the discovery of design weaknesses and enhancing the capability to produce safe, hazard-free systems. This tool suite will enable safety engineers to use system models captured by system engineers to evaluate designs for potential faults, perform safety analyses, and contribute to the overall system models by adding specific faults and associated safety related knowledge.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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