Formal methods for object-oriented software engineering

Abstract

Object-Oriented (OO) methodologies are prevalent for developing software. The main tenet of OO software engineering methodologies is the development of three distinct, yet integrated, models of software: the object, dynamic, and functional models. The main problems associated with OO methodologies are weak semantics and lack of integration. Weak semantics allow ambiguous interpretations of behavior, while the lack of integration makes it difficult to establish consistency between and across the models. An important solution to rectify this semantic weakness in current OO methodologies is to use formal methods to specify the critical behavior of objects. Formal methods facilitate a precise description of the behavior of objects, and allow reasoning to ensure consistency and completeness. This paper presents the state-of-the-art in using formal methods for OO software engineering.