Approach to simulation effectiveness

Abstract

Simulation is an important aspect of engineering complex systems. In the real world, numerous problems can prevent the effective use of simulation. This paper looks at the tough question: When is a simulation effective? How would we know? The context and purpose of simulation are important in answering the question. If the simulation is viewed as a system, it follows that it has stakeholders and requirements originating from the creating system. An important result is that measures of simulation effectiveness include fidelity, time-to-answer, and resource usage. The importance of a referent (codified knowledge) in defining fidelity and related pitfalls are discussed. Simulation effectiveness assessment enables simulation designers to trade simulation effectiveness against cost and risk subject to constraints. A brief overview of how abstraction and simulation method selection can be used for this trade-off is given. The impact of simulation effectiveness on risk is discussed. The benefits are balanced simulations with risk that is better matched to the problem at hand.