A 21ST CENTURY

CYBER-PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

EDUCATION

Committee on 21st Century Cyber-Physical Systems Education

Computer Science and Telecommunications Board

Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences

A Report of

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This activity was supported by Award No. CNS-1341078 from the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-45163-5
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-45163-9
Digital Object Identifier: 10.17226/23686

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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. A 21st Century Cyber-Physical Systems Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi:10.17226/23686.

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COMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY CYBER-PHYSICAL SYSTEMS EDUCATION

JOHN A. (JACK) STANKOVIC, University of Virginia, Co-Chair

JAMES (JIM) STURGES, Lockheed Martin Corporation (retired), Co-Chair

ALEXANDRE BAYEN, University of California, Berkeley

CHARLES R. FARRAR, Los Alamos National Laboratory

MARYE ANNE FOX, NAS,¹ University of California, San Diego

SANTIAGO GRIJALVA, Georgia Institute of Technology

HIMANSHU KHURANA, Honeywell International, Inc.

P.R. KUMAR, NAE,² Texas A&M University, College Station

INSUP LEE, University of Pennsylvania

WILLIAM MILAM, Ford Motor Company

SANJOY K. MITTER, NAE, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

JOSÉ M.F. MOURA, NAE, Carnegie Mellon University

GEORGE J. PAPPAS, University of Pennsylvania

PAULO TABUADA, University of California, Los Angeles

MANUELA M. VELOSO, Carnegie Mellon University

Staff

JON EISENBERG, Director, Computer Science and Telecommunications Board

VIRGINIA BACON TALATI, Program Officer

SHENAE BRADLEY, Administrative Assistant

CHRISTOPHER JONES, Associate Program Officer

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¹ NAS, National Academy of Sciences.

² NAE, National Academy of Engineering.

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS BOARD

FARNAM JAHANIAN, Carnegie Mellon University, Chair

LUIZ ANDRE BARROSO, Google, Inc.

STEVEN M. BELLOVIN, NAE, Columbia University

ROBERT F. BRAMMER, Brammer Technology, LLC

EDWARD FRANK, Cloud Parity, Inc.

LAURA HAAS, NAE, IBM Corporation

MARK HOROWITZ, NAE, Stanford University

ERIC HORVITZ, NAE, Microsoft Research

VIJAY KUMAR, NAE, University of Pennsylvania

BETH MYNATT, Georgia Institute of Technology

CRAIG PARTRIDGE, Raytheon BBN Technologies

DANIELA RUS, NAE, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

FRED B. SCHNEIDER, NAE, Cornell University

MARGO SELTZER, Harvard University

JOHN STANKOVIC, University of Virginia

MOSCHE VARDI, NAS/NAE, Rice University

KATHERINE YELICK, University of California, Berkeley

Staff

JON EISENBERG, Director

LYNETTE I. MILLETT, Associate Director

VIRGINIA BACON TALATI, Program Officer

SHENAE BRADLEY, Administrative Assistant

JANEL DEAR, Senior Program Assistant

EMILY GRUMBLING, Program Officer

RENEE HAWKINS, Financial and Administrative Manager

CHRISTOPHER JONES, Associate Program Officer

KATIRIA ORTIZ, Research Associate

For more information on CSTB, see its website at http://www.cstb.org, write to CSTB, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001, call (202) 334-2605, or e-mail the CSTB at cstb@nas.edu.

Preface

Cyber-physical systems (CPS) are “engineered systems that are built from, and depend upon, the seamless integration of computational algorithms and physical components.”¹ CPS are increasingly relied on to provide the functionality and value of products, systems, and infrastructure in sectors such as transportation (aviation, automotive, rail, and marine), health care, manufacturing, and energy networks. Advances in CPS could yield systems that can communicate and respond faster than humans (e.g., autonomous collision avoidance for automobiles) or more precisely (e.g., robotic surgery); enable better control and coordination of large-scale systems, such as the electrical grid or traffic controls; improve the efficiency of systems (e.g., smart buildings); and enable advances in many areas of science (e.g. autonomous telescopes that capture astronomical transients). Cyber-physical systems have the potential to provide much richer functionality—including efficiency, flexibility, autonomy, and reliability—than systems that are loosely coupled, discrete, or manually operated, but CPS also can create vulnerability related to security and reliability.

Building on its research program in CPS, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has begun to explore requirements for education and training for CPS. As part of that exploration, NSF asked the National Acad-

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¹ Definition from National Science Foundation, 2016, “Cyber-Physical Systems,” program solicitation 16-549, NSF document number nsf16549, March 4. https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf16549.

emies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to study the topic, organize workshops, and prepare interim and final reports examining the need for and content of a CPS education (Box P-1). The results of this study are intended to inform those who might support efforts to develop curricula and materials (including but not limited to NSF); faculty and university administrators; industries with needs for CPS workers; and current and potential students about intellectual foundations, workforce requirements, employment opportunities, and curricular needs.

The report examines the intellectual content of the emerging field of CPS and its implications for engineering and computer science education. Other National Academies reports have examined broader related topics such as the future of engineering education more generally² and how to overcome barriers to completing 2- and 4-year science, technology, engineering, and mathematics degrees.³

To gather perspectives on these topics, the Committee on 21st Century Cyber-Physical Systems Education (committee biographical informa-

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² National Academy of Engineering, 2005, Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century, The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C.

³ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Barriers and Opportunities for 2-Year and 4-Year STEM Degrees: Systemic Change to Support Diverse Student Pathways (S. Malcom and M. Feder, eds.), The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C., 2016, doi: 10.17226/21739.

tion is provided in Appendix A) convened two workshops and received briefings from additional experts (all presenters and briefers are listed in Appendix B, and the workshop agendas are provided in Appendix C). The committee’s interim report,⁴ released in 2015, summarizes many of those presentations and discussions. This final report also draws on an additional set of briefings (listed in Appendix B) obtained since the interim report was issued. Informed by these inputs as well as a review of current CPS courses, course materials, and curricula and other information compiled for this study, the committee’s findings and recommendations are based on the committee’s collective judgment.

The key messages of the reports and the committee’s findings and recommendations are presented in the Summary. Chapter 1 of this report explores the need for CPS education, and Chapter 2 highlights the essential knowledge and skills needed by a person developing CPS. Chapter 3 provides examples of how these foundations in CPS education might be integrated into various curricula, and Chapter 4 discusses how such curricula might be developed and institutionalized.

Jack Stankovic and Jim Sturges, Co-Chairs

Committee on 21st Century Cyber-Physical Systems Education

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⁴ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Interim Report on 21st Century Cyber-Physical Systems Education, The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C., 2015.

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Acknowledgment of Reviewers

This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

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¹ NAE, National Academy of Engineering.

Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Philip M. Neches, Teradata Corporation, and Samuel H. Fuller, Analog Devices, Inc., who were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.

Contents

SUMMARY

1 THE TRANSFORMATIVE NATURE OF CPS AND WORKFORCE NEEDS

The Transformative Nature of CPS

Building a CPS Workforce

CPS: An Emerging Engineering Discipline

2 CPS PRINCIPLES, FOUNDATIONS, SYSTEM CHARACTERISTICS, AND COMPLEMENTARY SKILLS

Principles: Integrating the Physical and Cyber

Foundations of CPS

System Characteristics

Complementary Skills

3 PATHS TO CPS KNOWLEDGE

Overview of Relevant Existing Paths and Programs to CPS Expertise

K-12 Education Programs

Vocational and Community Colleges

Undergraduate Courses, Concentrations, and Programs

Graduate Degree Programs

4 DEVELOPING AND INSTITUTIONALIZING CPS CURRICULA

Drawing Students to CPS

Recruiting, Retaining, and Developing the Needed Faculty

Curriculum Development and Resources

Fostering Development of the CPS Discipline and CPS Education

APPENDIXES

A Biographies of Committee Members and Staff

B Briefers to the Study Committee

C Workshop Agendas