Overview
IEC SRD 63235:2021 - Smart city system: Methodology for concepts building provides a systems-oriented methodology for developing and aligning smart city concepts, terminology and concept systems. Published as an IEC Systems Reference Deliverable (Edition 1.0, 2021-03), the document does not define what a smart city system is; instead it supplies a holistic, repeatable methodology - including views, framework, principles, processes, rules and evaluation criteria - to coordinate terminology and concept development across IEC, ISO and ITU sources and to support the future IEC 60050-831 work on smart city vocabulary.
Key topics and technical requirements
- System-of-systems view: Treats a city as an integrated whole composed of vertical domains (transport, health, education, etc.) and three cross-cutting systems - social, digital, and physical - to enable coordinated capability that individual domains cannot deliver alone.
- Methodology framework: Structured approach supporting multi-dimensional, multi-domain, multi-layer and lifecycle analysis, including high-, intermediate- and low-level considerations for coordination, cooperation and lifecycle connectivity.
- Core components required in the methodology:
- System of systems view (stakeholder concerns and cross-domain interaction)
- Methodology framework (constructs and structure)
- Principles (scope, relevance and positioning for electrotechnical/digital/system concerns)
- Processes (procedural guidance for concept-building and taxonomy)
- Rules (what to avoid in concept construction)
- Evaluation criteria (assessment of concept quality, domain relevance, stakeholder relevance and matrix relevance)
- Terminology and concept-system constructs: Uses ISO/IEC terminology principles (concept, characteristic, domain, property, concept system) as the basis for building coherent concept systems.
- Informative annex: Example of concept building across three standards development organizations (SDOs) and a domain/stakeholders matrix to assess relevance.
Practical applications - who uses this standard
- Standards developers and SDO working groups coordinating smart city vocabulary and taxonomies (e.g., contributors to IEC 60050-831).
- City planners, smart city program managers and policymakers seeking a structured approach to align technical, social and governance concepts.
- System architects, solution integrators and digital transformation teams designing interoperable, cross-domain smart city solutions.
- Researchers and consultants working on lifecycle, governance and multi-domain evaluations of smart city systems.
Related standards and references
- Intended to support future IEC 60050-831 (IEV - Smart city systems)
- Cross-referenced standards and guides cited include ISO/IEC 30182, ISO/IEC TR 38502, ISO/IEC/IEEE 24748-1, ISO/IEC/IEEE 24765, and terminology sources like ISO 1087 and IEC Electropedia.
IEC SRD 63235:2021 is primarily a methodology and coordination tool for building consistent, multi-dimensional smart city concept systems to support sustainable, interoperable smart city deployments and international standardization.