Software Engineering

235
13.2 
Design resolution
13.2 
Design resolution
Design resolution encompasses the identification of the fundamental structural 
design elements and configuration alternatives to investigate the characteristics of 
each structural design solution. Utilizing the nearly complete functional architec-
ture, structural units and components must be identified and specified. Structural 
units provide the “material” or building blocks necessary to perform specified func-
tional behaviors and form a structural design solution.
13.2.1 
Identify fundamental structural elements
The fundamental structural design elements must be identified to establish the bot-
tom tier of the structural design solution. The fundamental structural design ele-
ments include structural units and components that are depicted in 
Figure 13.2
 
within the bottom tier of the software structural design paradigm. Structural units 
are established and synthesized by grouping and combining similar, compatible, or 
complementary functional units into a single structural design element. Structural 
components identified within the bottommost tier represent more complex func-
tional units of which the behavioral solution was understood and required no fur-
ther decomposition. These structural components may need to be decomposed into 
two or more structural units to provide an efficient, effective design solution.
This task results in the identification of the bottom-tier structural design ele-
ments. It is desirable for the bottom tier to involve no more than two level of  
elements, with the lower level consisting of structural units and the upper level 
organizing structural components. These fundamental structural elements represent 
the software modules—procedures or objects that will be specified and conveyed to 
the software implementation team for programming (detailed design, coding, test-
ing, and integrating).
Structural units are distinguished by sorting, correlating, and combining func-
tional units into a cohesive, synthesized design element. This is accomplished by
●
  Unifying the functional unit specifications into a single structural unit 
specification.
●
  Resolving contradictory, incongruous characteristics within the unified 
specification.
●
  Refining the performance attributes against which the structural unit will be 
implemented.
●
  Incorporating any necessary supervisory or administrative behavior into the 
specification.
The resulting structural unit specification should entail the requirements that address 
the cohesive behaviors for the structural unit.
Structural components are resolved by analyzing the functional component 
specification and ascertaining the prerequisite structural mechanisms necessary to 
satisfy functional component behaviors. This should result in the identification of 

---