Application of Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) to compare legacy and future forces in Mine Warfare (MIW) missions

Abstract

This capstone report describes the expected mine countermeasures (MCM) performance of the Avenger class MCM ship (MCM 1), landing helicopter deck (LHD) support ship, and MH-53E helicopter legacy systems and Increment 1 of the littoral combat ship (LCS) and MH-60S helicopter future systems. The study focused on two measures of effec-tiveness (MOEs): area coverage rate sustained (ACRS) and percent clearance of mines. The systems engineering (SE) approach used to address stakeholder needs identified foundational requirements and developed functional and physi-cal architectures for simulation in conducting the comparative technical analysis. A design of experiments (DOE) methodology was used to determine which factors have the greatest influence on the MOEs. The significant factors’ values were varied to develop a set of recommended improvements to the future MCM systems. The study found that maintaining a constant search speed of 10 knots, improving the stream and recover time to 15 minutes, and improving the sortie time to 24 hours for the remote minehunting system (RMS) would provide a future ACRS performance greater than that provided by the legacy systems. When factoring in risk and operating and sustainment (O&S) costs, the future capability and recommended improvements provide better performance per cost than the legacy capability.