This shows how to represent a person as an "external" block-based SysML «actor» in one lower context (meaning relatively external to a lower sub-system of interest) and as an internal participating «person» in another higher System context, with traceability. This tip is handy for modelling systems of systems in teams where a lower (sub)system is of primary interest to some modellers, and the higher full System context is of primary interest to other modellers.
Consider two different SysML modellers working on a (science fiction) space project, where a space character Zoltar plays both the roles of triggering space blaster antiproton beam shots (presumably at space enemies) via a BlasterControl
of a Spaceship
and of helping with the fuelling of the SpaceTank
.
From the point of view of one SysML modeller the Spaceship
provides a context for the BlasterControl
as a (sub)system of interest. For that modeller, Zoltar is an external «actor». (The BlasterControl
has the extra custom stereotype keyword «SoI» applied here just to help tracking in this illustration.)
From the perspective of another SysML modeller the Spaceship
is the System, and Zoltar is just an internal participant. Their interest in Zoltar is in his role in managing fuelling of the :SpaceTank
, not triggering the :BlasterControl
.
Two separate custom stereotypes are used for different representations of Zoltar, a SysML block-based «actor» and a block-based «person» (as customised keywords), and they have distinguishing icons. Note that:
So there is «actor» Zoltar:ext
and «person» Zoltar:ext
, with a Trace between them. Within Spaceship
there are corresponding part properties :Zoltar:ext
and :Zoltar:int
.
In the respective context IBDs for Spaceship
(as the context for Zoltar interacting with the BlasterControl
) and for SpaceContext
(where Zoltar is just an internal participant involved with the fuelling of the SpaceTank
), different versions of Zoltar are shown related to the parts relevant to the different contexts.
In case you wondered, a SpaceEngineer
would of course not normally eject SpaceFuel
, but it was a good excuse to show a block-based «actor» in the higher context. And yes, there should probably also be an «external» ServiceShip
or something like that.
Also, in case you wondered, this Zoltar is far more like the Zoltar from the anime series 'Battle of the Planets' than Zoltar the animatronic fortune teller.