System (glossary)
(1) "A System is a set of elements and a set of inter-relationships between the elements such that they form a bounded whole relative to the elements around them." (von Bertalanffy 1968)
(2) “(A system is a)combination of interacting system elements organized to achieve one or more stated purposes.” (ISO/IEC/IEEE.).
(3) “A system is a value-delivering object” (Dori 2002).
Source
(1) von Bertalanffy, L. 1968. "General System Theory: Foundations, Development, Applications." Revised ed. New York, NY, USA: George Braziller, Inc.
(2) ISO/IEC/IEEE. 2008. Systems and Software Engineering - System Life Cycle Processes. Geneva, Switzerland: International Organization for Standardization (ISO)/International Electronical Commission (IEC), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. ISO/IEC/IEEE 15288:2008 (E). The second definition is an expanded version of the ISO/IEC/IEEE version.
Discussion
Definition (1) is the System Science definition and applies to all systems: natural, social or technical.
Definition (2) is the recognized definition for Systems Engineers, elements in this sense may include hardware, software, firmware, people, information, techniques, facilities, services, related natural artifacts and other support elements. This definition should be restricted to engineered systems
See What is a System? for a full discussion of the nature of systems in general and the scope of Engineered Systems of particular interest to Systems Engineering.
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