CoDeF: A web-based education platform for system-level design of unmanned vehicles

As the demand for unmanned vehicle (UV) systems continues to grow across a wide range of industries, there is an increasing need for professionals equipped to carry out mission-specific, system-level design. However, traditional engineering education often lacks structured methods for system-level design and does not provide adequate environments for hands-on, collaborative design experiences. To address this gap, we present the Comprehensive Design Framework for Advanced Mobility (CoDeF)—a web-based collaborative platform tailored for early-stage UV system design and education. Built on systems engineering principles, CoDeF provides a structured design process and supports synchronized collaboration among multiple users through shared data and workflows. The platform offers high extensibility and configurability, allowing instructors to flexibly modify design stages and deliverables to meet specific educational objectives. CoDeF has been successfully implemented in multiple university courses, demonstrating its potential as a practical tool for bridging the gap between academic training and industry-oriented system design practice.