In an increasingly networked world, a lot of information has to be processed quickly in order to control the “things” in the “Internet of Things” in a situation-specific manner. Such control tasks are beyond human capabilities and are a driver for the introduction of Artificial Intelligence and autonomous systems. In addition, the interactions of autonomous decisions will continue to increase: Decisions regarding the flow of materials in a driverless transport system, for example, are related to decisions made in the changeable factory, which in turn are related to the decisions of partially automated supply chain management.
Such dynamic semi-autonomous Systems of Systems (DynaSoS) hold enormous potential to solve the tension between pressing ecological, social, and economic challenges. However, DynaSoS require new systems and software engineering approaches in order to guarantee dependable and especially safe operation despite high system complexity. These approaches must be able to deal not only with the complex interactions among the technical subsystems, but also with the interactions between technology, humans, and the environment. For example, in a smart city, there are complex relationships between the technology and urban residents, or in smart farming between the technology and the ecosystem.
Some concrete use cases illustrate the relevance of this research project for business and society: