System (glossary)

(1) "A System is a set of related elements that form an integrated whole." A system exists in an Environment which contains related systems and conditions:

• Closed Systems, has no relationships with the environment.
• Open Systems, shares Inputs and Outputs with its environment across the boundary .

System elements may be conceptual organizations of ideals in symbolic form or real objects, e.g. people, data, physical artifacts, etc.

• Abstract system contains only conceptual elements.
• Concrete system contains at least two elements which are objects.

This simply idea is then further ellaborated through a set of system principles and concepts. (von Bertalanffy 1968)

(2) An abstract organization of related concepts, rules, or ideas. Some examples of such systems are the natural number system and political systems. (SEBoK Definition)

(3) “An interacting combination of elements to accomplish a defined objective. These include hardware, software, firmware, people, information, techniques, facilities, services, and other support elements.” (INCOSE 2011).

Source

(1) von Bertalanffy, L. 1968. "General System Theory: Foundations, Development, Applications." Revised ed. New York, NY, USA: George Braziller, Inc.

(2) This definition has been produced for the SEBoK.

(3) INCOSE 2011, INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook Issue 3.2.1. INCOSE-TP-2003-002-03.2.1. Seattle, WA, USA: International Council on Systems Engineering.

Discussion

Definition (1) is the System Science definition and applies to all systems: natural, social or technical.

Definition (2) There is currently no discussion for this term. This will be completed for SEBoK version 1.0.

Definition (3) is the recognized definition for Systems Engineers. This definition should be restricted to engineered systems