Feature interaction detection in the context of systems that are highly integrated into their environment, such as embedded or software-intensive systems, is different from classical feature interaction detection. The physical environment may be “the source of additional interactions” as interactions may be caused by, and occur in, the system's physical environment.

We thus propose an approach for automated detection of feature interactions in the environment which is based on feature diagrams capturing variability, problem diagrams describing the system in its context and event calculus formulae allowing for automated reasoning. Feasibility of the approach is demonstrated through a proof-of-concept tool implementation and an in-depth illustration.