Synthetic instrument COSSI - an architectural approach to technology insertion in legacy systems

Specifying a test system that covers a single weapons system usually involves deriving required capabilities and parametric performance characteristics from the numerous device specifications. Developing a specification that covers multiple test systems, multiple weapon systems, and multiple services is an even more involved process. The synthetic instrument COSSI has been tasked to do exactly that. The charter for the effort is to develop a common suite of analog measurement capabilities to insert into legacy test equipment currently in use by the US Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. This paper discusses the techniques used to synthesize a common performance specification across multiple systems.