Conceptual Framework for Refining Influence Knowledge in Cyber-Physical Systems

A new conceptual framework has been proposed to refine influence knowledge from simulation evidence in cyber-physical systems (CPS). The framework leverages the novel concept of 'Influences' to support iterative analysis of simulation results, addressing the challenge of unmodelled environment-mediated interactions. CPS are developed by multiple stakeholders, each producing domain-specific artefacts, and their behaviour emerges from interactions between these artefacts and the operational environment. Simulation and co-simulation are essential for analysing CPS behaviour, allowing developers to explore system responses under changing conditions. However, the lack of understanding of certain environment-mediated interactions, which remain unmodelled due to complexity, time constraints, or lack of domain experience, hinders proper comprehension and exploitation of simulation results. The proposed framework aims to fill this gap by providing a structured approach to capturing and refining influence knowledge. The framework is described in a paper available on arXiv (ID: 2608.11221), with the abstract outlining its objectives and methodology.