DoDAF Viewpoints and Models
Operational Viewpoint
OV-3: Operational Resource Flow Matrix
The OV-3 addresses operational Resource Flows exchanged between Operational Activities and locations.
Resource Flows provide further detail of the interoperability requirements associated with the operational capability of interest. The focus is on Resource Flows that cross the capability boundary.
The intended usage of the OV-3 includes:
. Definition of interoperability requirements.
Detailed Description:
The OV-3 identifies the resource transfers that are necessary to support operations to achieve a specific operational task. This model is initially constructed from the information contained in the OV-2 Operational Resource Flow Description model. But the OV-3 provides a more detailed definition of the Resource Flows for operations within a community of anticipated users.
The Operational Resource Flow Matrix details Resource Flow exchanges by identifying which Operational Activity and locations exchange what resources, with whom, why the resource is necessary, and the key attributes of the associated resources. The OV-3 identifies resource elements and relevant attributes of the Resource Flows and associates the exchange to the producing and consuming Operational Activities and locations and to the Needline that the Resource Flow satisfies. OV-3 is one of a suite of operational models that address the resource content of the operational architecture (the others being OV-2 Operational Resource Flow Description, OV-5b Operational Activity Model, and DIV-2 Logical Data Model). Needlines are logical requirements-based collaboration relationships between Operational Activities and locations (as shown in OV-2 Operational Resource Flow Description). A Needline can be uni-directional.
A resource element (see DIV-2 Logical Data Model) is a formalized representation of Resource Flows subject to an operational process. Resource elements may mediate activity flows and dependencies (see OV-5b Operational Activity Model). Hence they may also be carried by Needlines that express collaboration relationships. The same resource element may be used in one or more Resource Flows.
The emphasis in this model is on the logical and operational characteristics of the Resource Flows being exchanged, with focus on the Resource Flows crossing the capability boundary. It is important to note that OV-3 is not intended to be an exhaustive listing of all the details contained in every Resource Flow of every Operational Activity and location associated with the Architectural Description in question. Rather, this model is intended to capture the most important aspects of selected Resource Flows.
The aspects of the Resource Flow that are crucial to the operational mission will be tracked as attributes in OV-3. For example, if the subject Architectural Description concerns tactical battlefield targeting, then the timeliness of the enemy target information is a significant attribute of the Resource Flow. To support the needs of security architecture, Resource Flows should also address criticality and classification. There is an important caveat on use of OV-3 for security architectures. In that context, it is important to identify every possible and required exchange.
There is not always a one-to-one mapping of OV-3 Resource Flows to OV-2 Operational Resource Flow Description Needlines; rather, many individual Resource Flows may be associated with one Needline.
The OV-3 information can be presented in tabular form. DoDAF V2.0 does not prescribe the column headings in an OV-3 Matrix.
OV-1: High-Level Operational Concept Graphic
OV-2: Operational Resource Flow Description
OV-3: Operational Resource Flow Matrix
OV-4: Organizational Relationships Chart
OV-5a: Operational Activity Decomposition Tree
OV-5b: Operational Activity Model
OV-6a, 6b, 6c: Introduction
OV-6a: Operational Rules Model
OV-6b: State Transition Description
OV-6c: Event-Trace Description