The SE process steps are based on the detailed steps of the Vee diagram.
Figure 10:Vee Process Steps
(Source: FHWA)
The following discussion provides a quick stroll through the steps in the diagram. Later in the chapter each step will be expanded upon.
Before ITS project deployment can begin, regional ITS operations planning occurs within the context of regional (or statewide) transportation planning. Two of the key outputs of the step are a Transportation System Management and Operations (TSMO) Plan and a Regional ITS Architecture.
Project identification and scoping covers studies for major deployments in a region, sometimes called feasibility study or concept exploration as well as the programming activity that identifies the projects that will receive funding in a region (or state).
Moving down the left side of the Vee, an ITS project is initiated and its progress is monitored with Decision Gates that represent milestones where project stakeholders and management determine that the results of the preceding process step are adequate and the project is ready to move on to the next step. The first Decision Gate represents the decision to proceed with the project. Like the process steps, the Decision Gates are also tailored based on the complexity of the project. Small projects may have informal documentation and reviews while larger and more complex projects will have formal documentation submittals and formal reviews and approvals to proceed.
For each ITS project under development, the project planning step begins the project development process by identifying the tasks, resources, schedule and risks of the project, and documenting them in a project management plan.
Concept of operations, which documents the user needs and corresponding objectives to be satisfied by the project, as well as the operational and support environments of the project is the first key SE output, which is then used as input to a complete system requirements analysis.
The system requirements state the functional, performance, and environmental requirements on the ITS project and are for the most part technology neutral.
Once the project ITS system requirements (functional, performance, and environmental) are defined, they can be used to select the technologies to be used in the ITS. The selection of specific implementation including the technologies for the project is the output of the design and specifications step.
The left side of the “Vee” is sometimes called the “decomposition” side, because it starts with a very high-level view of the ITS in the regional setting, then gets more and more detailed as each high level need is decomposed into system requirements, and then specific technology specifications resulting in a complete detailed design for the ITS. The base of the Vee, Software and Hardware Implementation, is the actual build or procurement of hardware and coding or procurement of software for the ITS, and then the right side of the Vee begins, sometimes called the “recomposition” side, where the individual hardware elements and software modules of the ITS are integrated and combined to result in the complete ITS system, and verified that all requirements have been satisfied (in the integration and system verification step).
After deployment and acceptance, the system can be validated that it meets all the needs/objectives originally intended. During operations and maintenance, the system may be updated as needs, requirements, and technology evolve. Eventually, this evolution either removes the need for the system or cannot be accommodated by the system and the system is retired or replaced.
