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Defining the Functional Resonance Analysis space: combining Abstraction Hierarchy and FRAM

Patriarca, Riccardo ; Bergström, Johan LU and Di Gravo, Giulio (2017) In Reliability Engineering and System Safety 165. p.34-46
Abstract
System-thinking and related systemic methods enhance traditional risk and hazard assessments and accident analysis, as well as system design. The Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) is a recently developed method for systemic analysis. FRAM facilitates descriptions of the functional relations among system elements. In case of large systems (e.g. several agents, multiple procedures, many technical equipment), building a FRAM model may become a difficult task, moreover resulting in a complex model, with limited benefits for the purpose of the analysis.

Considering complexity as strictly dependent on the resolution of the representation, this paper explores the compatibility of the Hollnagel's FRAM with Rasmussen's... (More)
System-thinking and related systemic methods enhance traditional risk and hazard assessments and accident analysis, as well as system design. The Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) is a recently developed method for systemic analysis. FRAM facilitates descriptions of the functional relations among system elements. In case of large systems (e.g. several agents, multiple procedures, many technical equipment), building a FRAM model may become a difficult task, moreover resulting in a complex model, with limited benefits for the purpose of the analysis.

Considering complexity as strictly dependent on the resolution of the representation, this paper explores the compatibility of the Hollnagel's FRAM with Rasmussen's Abstraction Hierarchy (AH). Starting from the AH's traditional Abstraction/Decomposition division, this study conceptually explores the benefits arising from combining an Abstraction/Agency framework with system-thinking, in particular with FRAM. This combined approach, which allows systemic functional analysis at different levels of abstraction and among different agents, for the development of a systemic multi-layer functional structure, useful for intra-agent inter-level and intra-agent intra-level analyses. An application of the framework in the railway domain illustrates some conceptual outcomes of the approach, confirming the relevance of FRAM's fractality as well as the potential for enhanced knowledge representation associated with a multi-dimension approach. (Less)
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author
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Functional resonance, Knowledge representation, complexity, Systemic approach, Fractality
in
Reliability Engineering and System Safety
volume
165
pages
34 - 46
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85016136583
  • wos:000403993800004
ISSN
0951-8320
DOI
10.1016/j.ress.2017.03.032
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
ffcab49d-91e1-48eb-8b39-e0df33aad90a
date added to LUP
2017-03-27 15:57:38
date last changed
2022-03-09 01:59:57
@article{ffcab49d-91e1-48eb-8b39-e0df33aad90a,
  abstract     = {{System-thinking and related systemic methods enhance traditional risk and hazard assessments and accident analysis, as well as system design. The Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) is a recently developed method for systemic analysis. FRAM facilitates descriptions of the functional relations among system elements. In case of large systems (e.g. several agents, multiple procedures, many technical equipment), building a FRAM model may become a difficult task, moreover resulting in a complex model, with limited benefits for the purpose of the analysis.<br/><br/>Considering complexity as strictly dependent on the resolution of the representation, this paper explores the compatibility of the Hollnagel's FRAM with Rasmussen's Abstraction Hierarchy (AH). Starting from the AH's traditional Abstraction/Decomposition division, this study conceptually explores the benefits arising from combining an Abstraction/Agency framework with system-thinking, in particular with FRAM. This combined approach, which allows systemic functional analysis at different levels of abstraction and among different agents, for the development of a systemic multi-layer functional structure, useful for intra-agent inter-level and intra-agent intra-level analyses. An application of the framework in the railway domain illustrates some conceptual outcomes of the approach, confirming the relevance of FRAM's fractality as well as the potential for enhanced knowledge representation associated with a multi-dimension approach.}},
  author       = {{Patriarca, Riccardo and Bergström, Johan and Di Gravo, Giulio}},
  issn         = {{0951-8320}},
  keywords     = {{Functional resonance; Knowledge representation; complexity; Systemic approach; Fractality}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{34--46}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Reliability Engineering and System Safety}},
  title        = {{Defining the Functional Resonance Analysis space: combining Abstraction Hierarchy and FRAM}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ress.2017.03.032}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.ress.2017.03.032}},
  volume       = {{165}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}