A Method for Using Model-Based Systems Engineering to Drive Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Studies of Jet Engine Components

Abstract

The aerospace industry faces immense pressure to maintain efficient innovation due to increasing system complexity, strict environmental regulations and a very competitive market. To manage these conditions, organizations move increasingly towards exploring Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) as the potential new way of working to represent the decisions made during requirement breakdown for a novel system. Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO) is a mature method commonly implemented when performing a Design Space Exploration (DSE) and currently MBSE and MDO are implemented in complete digital isolation from one another. This thesis explores the potential benefits and challenges with of adopting MBSE into the designated way of working at GKN Aerospace and develops an integration scheme with a corresponding method to evaluate the possibilities of utilizing MBSE to drive MDO studies. The developed method was evaluated based on three success criteria: Traceability, automation and results reuse ability. Implementation and evaluation of the developed method revealed that MBSE enables the possibility of having a digital thread from the Product Breakdown (PB) to the MDO environment, however, the current available tools and methods do not satisfy the needs to achieve an efficient integration and there is currently no established way of working with MBSE at GKN.