Ensuring thorough comparison of modeling and simulation (M&S) results with experimental and test observations

The Verification, Validation and Accreditation (VV&A) process is integral to M&S development. Robust Verification and Validation (V&V) provides the confidence in the estimate of system performance derived from the simulation. There are five fundamental steps in the VV&A process: Requirements Validation; Conceptual Model Validation; Design Verification; Implementation Verification; and Results Validation. This paper addresses issues associated with Results Validation which is a comparison of M&S predictions with experimental (test) observations (measurements) for the purpose of ensuring the fidelity of the M&S representations of the system. Comparison of model predictions with test observations (measurements) may or may not be a straightforward process. We discuss the comparison of the experimental results (e.g. a flight test) with the output of a model las represented by a simulation), we consider the elements of the "system" and "model," and directly address the impact of the model abstraction techniques employed.