Use cases in an IV&V system reference model

As the complexity of software-intensive systems increases, it becomes more difficult for independent verification and validation (IV&V) agents to perform comprehensive requirements analysis early in the product lifecycle. In order to accelerate early-lifecycle IV&V, the NASA IV&V Program has explored a system reference model (SRM) approach using unified modeling language (UML) constructs to model key system behaviors. This paper describes the SRM concept and early results of its application.