EngMeta: metadata for computational engineering

Abstract

Computational engineering generates knowledge through the analysis and interpretation of research data, which is produced by computer simulation. Supercomputers produce huge amounts of research data. To address a research question, a lot of simulations are run over a large parameter space. Therefore, handling this data and keeping an overview becomes a challenge. Data documentation is mostly handled by file and folder names in inflexible file systems, making it almost impossible for data to be findable, accessible, interopable and hence reusable. To enable and improve a structured documentation of research data from computational engineering, we developed EngMeta as a metadata model. We built this model by incorporating existing standards for general descriptive and technical information and adding metadata fields for disciplinespecific information like the components and parameters of the simulated target system and information about the research process like the used methods, software and computational environment. EngMeta functions, in practical use, as the descriptive core for an institutional repository. In order to reduce the burden of description on scientists, we have developed an approach for automatically extracting metadata information from the output and log files of computer simulations. Through a qualitative analysis, we show that EngMeta fulfills the criteria of a good metadata model. Through a quantitative survey, we can show that it meets the needs of engineering scientists.