Large-Scale Information Systems

[摘要] Large enterprises are ever more dependent on their Large-Scale Information Systems (LSLS), computer systems that are distinguished architecturally by distributed components--data sources, networks, computing engines, simulations, human-in-the-loop control and remote access stations. These systems provide such capabilities as workflow, data fusion and distributed database access. The Nuclear Weapons Complex (NWC) contains many examples of LSIS components, a fact that motivates this research. However, most LSIS in use grew up from collections of separate subsystems that were not designed to be components of an integrated system. For this reason, they are often difficult to analyze and control. The problem is made more difficult by the size of a typical system, its diversity of information sources, and the institutional complexities associated with its geographic distribution across the enterprise. Moreover, there is no integrated approach for analyzing or managing such systems. Indeed, integrated development of LSIS is an active area of academic research. This work developed such an approach by simulating the various components of the LSIS and allowing the simulated components to interact with real LSIS subsystems. This research demonstrated two benefits. First, applying it to a particular LSIS provided a thorough understanding of the interfaces between the system's components. Second, it demonstrated how more rapid and detailed answers could be obtained to questions significant to the enterprise by interacting with the relevant LSIS subsystems through simulated components designed with those questions in mind. In a final, added phase of the project, investigations were made on extending this research to wireless communication networks in support of telemetry applications.

[发布日期] 2000-12-01 [发布机构] Sandia National Laboratories

[关键词] Information Systems;Computers;Engines;Telemetry;Communications