An Ameliorated Methodology for the Abstraction of Object Oriented Features from Software Requirements Specification

Abstract

The Business Process (BP) requirements is specified in the form of software requirements specification (SRS). This SRS serves as a base for software development. The software needs to be developed in a syllogized software development life cycle (SDLC) stages. The SRS which denote the requirements of BP is used as input to the analysis stage from which the paradigm dependent components are to be abstracted. Hither to the components are abstracted manually with the exception of hiatuses of semi-automated methods for few of the components. The SRS is construed with reference to the specific paradigm through which the design is to be developed. Unfortunately, no complete automated methodology exists for the abstraction of all paradigm dependent components. The automated methodology eliminates the possible human errors which would have ripple effect to damage the entire software. This paper develops an innovative, unique methodology to resurrect the SRS statements as modular statements. Further develops an automated methodology for abstraction of control and data flow graphs. Further it develops an automated methodology for abstraction of useful components required for the class diagram. The class diagram emphasizes both structural and behavioral aspects. This facility is effectively used to abstract object class attributes, object methods, visibility, signature, return type etc. Information systems are developed through software projects which use the specific software requirements specification (SRS) provided for them as the base. The SRS contains details of the information system through which appropriate software can be developed. The information systems are also viewed perceptively with different pragmatics like work, work process or usecase. The usecase is one of the prime perspective views whose sum forms the information system. In this paper, an attempt is made to abstract object class, object class attributes, object methods, interrelationships between object classes and starting with/ending with actor from unformatted, unstructured SRS text. This is achieved through our own developed classing and slicing techniques to identify respectively the class structure & object methods. Then usecase is developed through the interrelationships between object methods of different classes and start with or end with the actor. The stages involve moulding the SRS, designing control flow graph for the SRS & data flow table for the SRS statements, developing appropriate classing and slicing criteria, creating actor & actors’ interface attributes table, create slicing criteria for each usecase and then slice relevant statements for each usecase. Here, we have attempted to use Weiser modified algorithm1 to abstract exact usecase. The slicing criterion is obtained through the intersection of actor's interface attributes and the referenced/defined attributes present between two consecutive actors. Attempts have been made to resolve synonyms & heteronyms present in the SRS. The correctness & completeness of the proposed methodology depends on the realization of actor & actors’ interface attributes.