Hierarchical and functional architecture for control systems

An approach to automated system specification is described. It is shown that the introduction of general concepts, including typical constraints of automated systems (e.g. operating modes, topology, and coordination), helps the designer to understand the user requirements, giving a global view of them. The refinement of this first model, with the use of an elementary notion, allows the designer to organize user functions and information precisely and helps the verification of completeness and consistency. To build up this model, the use of criteria adapted to automated system constraints is the key to a successful and well-suited specification model. The internal specification of an elementary notion in terms of generic functions and information introduces a way of specification validation and generalizes the proposed model, which is then adapted to any type of system.<>