Project Lead: Bill Schindel and Bruce Beihoff
Project Abstract: Innovation is critical to viability in changing environments. In living ecosystems, innovation adapts to changes by predators, prey, and the rest of the environment. For engineered systems, innovation exploits market interests in new capabilities, develops competitive advantage, and adapts to changes in technologies, infrastructure, regulations, and environment.
In all these domains, the process of innovation may itself be described as a system—the System of Innovation, and studied by natural scientists, engineers, and technologists. The relative effectiveness of different systems of innovation impacts the competitive viability of the resulting series of innovated systems.
The modeling of pathologies improves understanding of healthy systems and ability to prevent or correct pathologies. "System pathologists" are found in medicine, field support and maintenance organizations, agriculture, the natural sciences, and other domains. This project is concerned with modeling health and pathology in Systems of Innovation.
Planned Deliverables: Model of abstract General System of Innovation, including its health and pathologies, and its specialization to (1) Human-Performed System of Innovation and (2) Biologically-Performed System of Innovation.
Related Projects, Schedule, and Events: This project (initiated at IW2011 by Bill Schindel and Bruce Beihoff) is stimulated by the broader System Pathologies Project (o-System Pathologies, also initiated at IW2011 by Len Troncale). Based on initial work, an IS2012 paper was submitted with the above abstract. A related SSWG work session is planned at the IW2012 SSWG meeting. This project will continue well into 2012.