Strengths and Limitations of Existing STAMP Tools for Analyzing System of Systems Risks

Abstract

The System Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) considers safety as a dynamic problem by focusing on interactions among system components rather than on component failure. However, analyzing complex system risks with STAMP can be challenging due to manual processes. Therefore, software tools supporting STAMP analysis have been developed. An evaluation of five tools (ASTAH, STPA, Capella, XSTAMPP, STPA Master Lite, and Visio Pro) was conducted, focusing on systems of systems (SoS) risk analysis. While all tools demonstrated compliance with the STAMP risk analysis procedure, with some tools offering additional features, a shortcoming in scalability limits the support for risk analysis of SoS. This makes risk analysis with the available STAMP tools challenging for SoS. Recommended enhancements include mechanisms to address SoS characteristics, scalability, collaboration, and improved usability. The study contributes to research on SoS risk analysis and provides direction for advancement in risk analysis tool support.