ALCEA: The Architecture Life-Cycle Effect Analysis Method

This article describes the architecture life cycle effect analysis (ALCEA) method, a structured method for evaluating proposed new architectures for software-intensive systems. The method evaluates a proposed architecture by quantifying its effect on the performance of system life-cycle phases. The...

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Veröffentlicht in:IEEE Open Journal of Systems Engineering Jg. 2; S. 1 - 14
Hauptverfasser: Axelsson, Jakob, Bilic, Damir, Brahneborg, Daniel, Froberg, Joakim, Gustavsson, Henrik, Jongeling, Robbert, Sundmark, Daniel
Format: Journal Article
Sprache:Englisch
Veröffentlicht: IEEE 2024
Schlagworte:
Architecture analysis
Companies
Computer architecture
Costs
Embedded systems
Full life-cycle support
Investment
Large scale integration
Life cycle assessment
Performance evaluation
Systems architecture
Systems engineering
Systems engineering and theory
Unified modeling language
ISSN:2771-9987, 2771-9987
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Zusammenfassung:This article describes the architecture life cycle effect analysis (ALCEA) method, a structured method for evaluating proposed new architectures for software-intensive systems. The method evaluates a proposed architecture by quantifying its effect on the performance of system life-cycle phases. The method is instantiated by identifying the relevant life-cycle phases of the system under investigation and a set of evaluation functions that capture, in terms of basic factors, the effect of different architectural decisions on key life-cycle PAs, such as revenue, operating resources, and investments. The method results in a transparent cost and revenue structure, documented in a tabular form, based on quantifiable factors from the developing organization. The results of the method can be used directly as part of a business case, and their robustness can be estimated by sensitivity analysis. The ALCEA method is designed for system-level architectural analysis, covering both software and hardware aspects. In this article, we introduce the ALCEA method and provide a detailed example of how to apply it in the evolution of embedded systems. Moreover, we share early experiences of using the method in large-scale industrial settings.
ISSN:2771-9987
2771-9987
DOI:10.1109/OJSE.2024.3357243