Domain-specific Metamodel Research Articles

Mission-Oriented Electrified Aircraft Propulsion System Design and Verification Using Model-Based Systems Engineering

Abstract The concept of electrified aircraft propulsion (EAP) has garnered substantial attention and investigation due to its potential for mitigating fuel consumption, emissions, and noise. Present studies mainly concentrate on point design rather than systematic design space exploration. This paper considers the attainment of prescribed mission objectives as a paramount evaluation criterion and proposed a mission-oriented design and verification method based on model-based systems engineering (MBSE). Instead of using a general modeling language, this method develops a domain-specific metamodel library for EAP based on six meta-metamodels. A Mission-Operational-Functional-Logical-Physical (MOFLP) modeling methodology is provided to standardize EAP design process. Furthermore, the modeling process is integrated with the verification process by executable verification script. A case study about skydiving mission is conducted to verify the effectiveness of this method. The case results corroborate the utility of this method in the generation of an initial EAP solution. Such initial solution can serve as a fundamental benchmark for iterative design.

A visualization framework for product manufacturing data

Model-based systems engineering (MBSE) plays a vital role in complex product development. In order to make the system modeling processes consistent with the business processes of the industry, it is necessary to use the product lifecycle management (PLM) system to manage system models. In this paper a SysML-based domain specific meta-model is proposed to support a visualization framework that includes graphics and data synchronization, which enables PLM software to present the product manufacturing data and models under the practicing of MBSE. Product manufacturing process and data are described, and the allocation of resource is represented in the early design phase.

Comparing and classifying model transformation reuse approaches across metamodels

Model transformations are essential elements of model-driven engineering (MDE) solutions, as they enable the automatic manipulation of models. MDE promotes the creation of domain-specific metamodels, but without proper reuse mechanisms, model transformations need to be developed from scratch for each new metamodel. In this paper, our goal is to understand whether transformation reuse across metamodels is needed by the community, evaluate its current state, identify practical needs and propose promising lines for further research. For this purpose, we first report on a survey to understand the reuse approaches used currently in practice and the needs of the community. Then, we propose a classification of reuse techniques based on a feature model and compare a sample of specific approaches—model types, concepts, a-posteriori typing, multilevel modeling, typing requirement models, facet-oriented modeling, mapping operators, constraint-based model types, and design patterns for model transformations—based on this feature model and a common example. We discuss strengths and weaknesses of each approach, provide a reading grid used to compare their features, compare with community needs, identify gaps in current transformation reuse approaches in relation to these needs and propose future research directions.

Leveraging product line engineering for the development of domain-specific metamodeling languages

Abstract A domain-specific metamodeling language (DSM2L) enables language engineers to define a family of similar metamodel-based languages. In recent years, several DSM2Ls have been developed for various domains, e.g., traceability, variability management, process modeling, and metamodeling feature models. However, there is no consensus on an engineering approach for constructing a DSM2L. To address this problem, we consider a DSM2L as a software product line (SPL), in which the software products are the family of languages. Based on this assumption, we propose a roadmap to develop a DSM2L using an SPL engineering framework. To investigate the pros and cons of the roadmap, the MoDEBiTE metamodeling language is engineered in the domain of bidirectional transformations. In order to validate the proposal of engineering a DSM2L, an experiment with six transformation cases is performed on MoDEBiTE. The results of the experiment show the applicability, usefulness, and validity of MoDEBiTE, demonstrating the validity of the proposal.

Domain Specific MetaModeling for Deep Semantic Composability

Current simulation models are not only represented in the form of traditional data or formula for pure theory analysis but expanded to be simulation modeling assets that are featured with complicated structure, diverse behaviors, and abundant semantics. Semantic composability, therefore, receives a constantly growing attention in recent years. So far, one of the popular solutions to enhance semantic expressiveness is domain specific modeling based on general metamodeling (GMM) facilities. But for some particular domains, researchers identified the need of deeper semantic expressiveness therefore proposed domain specific metamodeling (DSMM). Hence, this paper aims to explore the underlying methodologies of DSMM for supporting deep semantic composability. Compared with several usual alternatives based on GMM, this paper applies the multi-level metamodeling architecture to create a set of metamodeling primitives using an example named SEvent. In fact, SEvent is a novel formalism that slightly extends Petri net to support continuous states transition and continuous event triggering. As a proof of concept, we concentrate on developing the textual syntax of SEvent and using it to represent torpedo’s behaviors.

A Metamodel Enabled Approach for Discovery of Coherent Topics in Short Text Microblogs

Comprehending social media discussions in short text microblogs is fundamental for knowledge-based applications like recommender systems. Twitter, for example, provides rich real-time information in keeping with its streaming nature. Making sense of such data without automated support is not feasible due to its vast size and nature. The problem becomes more complex when the data in question have a low variance in terms of topical diversity. Therefore, an automatic method for understanding textual patterns in such topically constrained data needs to be developed. A major challenge to building such a system is in its ability to comprehend the nature of the data with regard to diversity of word structure correlations, vocabulary sparsity, and distinguishing factors in the generated topics. In this paper, we present a novel semi-supervised approach called metamodel enabled latent Dirichlet allocation to address this challenge. Compared to state-of-the-art approaches, our model incorporates a domain-specific metamodel. The metamodel is defined as a set of topic label vectors derived from long texts to guide the learning process in shorter texts.

Assessing the impact of meta-model evolution: a measure and its automotive application

Background: Domain-specific meta-models play an important role in the design of large software systems by defining language for the architectural models. Such common modeling languages are particularly important if multiple actors are involved in the development process as they assure interoperability between modeling tools used by different actors. Objective: The main objective of this paper is to facilitate the adoption of new domain-specific meta-model versions, or a subset of the new architectural features they support, by the architectural modeling tools used by different actors in the development of large software systems. Method: We developed a simple measure of meta-model evolution (named NoC - Number of Changes) that captures atomic modification between different versions of the analyzed meta-model. We evaluated the NoC measure on the evolution of the AUTOSAR meta-model, a domain specific meta-model used in the design of automotive system architectures. The evaluation shows that the measure can be used as an indicator of effort needed to update meta-model-based tools to support different actors in modeling new architectural features. Results: We showed the impact of 14 new AUTOSAR features on the modeling tools used by the main actors in the automotive development process. We validated our results by finding a significant correlation between the results of the NoC measure and the actual effort needed to support these features in the modeling tools reported by the modeling practitioners from four AUTOSAR tool vendors and the AUTOSAR tooling team at Volvo Cars. Conclusions: Our study shows that quantitative analysis of domain-specific meta-model evolution using a simple measure such as NoC can be used as an indicator of the required updates in the meta-model-based tools that are needed to support new meta-model versions. However, our study also shows that qualitative analysis that may include an inspection of the actual meta-model changes is needed for more accurate assessment.

Safety framework and platform for functions of future automotive E/E systems

This paper proposes a new safety framework and platform for the functions of future electrical/electronic (E/E) systems. The framework aims to cope with the increasing complexity of the E/E systems, and to enhance their flexibility, but retain the safety properties and keep low engineering costs. A domain-specific meta-model is used to specify relevant aspects of the system such as component interface requirements and function descriptions. The meta-model is used in a tool that generates data structures, which are then used to configure the fault-management layer of the run-time environment. The fault-management layer preserves the safety properties of the system at run-time, by facilitating error detection and fault-handling mechanisms, and supporting controlled adaptation. By reusing already developed safety measures for different systems and functions, future development costs for non-functional qualities can be saved.

UMLS Semantic Network as a UML Metamodel for Improving Biomedical Ontology and Application Modeling

In the domain of biomedical and health informatics, ontologies are widely used to capture knowledge ranging from bioinformatics such as gene, protein, protein interactions, etc. to clinical/healthcare informatics knowledge such as diseases, symptoms, treatment, medication, etc. Currently, one medical knowledge source that encapsulates a broad spectrum of medical knowledge is the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS), which can be defined as a compendium of diverse medical ontological standards. The primary components of the UMLS are: Semantic Network (UMLS-SN) – designed by interconnecting well-defined semantic types with semantic relationships, and Metathesaurus (UMLS-META) – the base of UMLS system that is comprised of millions of medical concepts from diverse medical standards. However, within the biomedical and health informatics community, the concepts of software engineering and domain modeling (using meta-models such as ERD, UML, and XML) are very successful in designing and implementing biomedical/health domain application models. In the current status, the UMLS-SN is primarily employed for classification of medical concepts in UMLS-META, but UMLS-SN knowledge can't be viewed or employed as a modeling framework for designing ontological models and is restricted to the UMLS environment. Thus, the impact of the biomedical semantics captured by UMLS-SN might be minimal in medical facilities, research and healthcare organizations that are highly influenced by software engineering, meta-models and domain model-based practices. In order fill this gap, the authors propose a meta-modeling framework for UMLS-SN based on the UML Profile (built using UML meta-model) that will result in a customized domain specific meta-model. This specialized meta-model that encapsulates the medical knowledge semantics of UMLS-SN can then be employed for designing ontological models or relevant healthcare application models and simultaneously be coherent with software meta-models and domain modeling practices.

Towards a Model-based Software Mining Infrastructure

Software mining is concerned with two primary goals: the extraction of basic facts from software repositories and the derivation of knowledge resulting from the assessment of the basic facts. Facts extraction approaches rely on custom and task-specific infrastructures and tools. The resulting facts assets are usually represented in heterogeneous formats at a low level of abstraction. Due to this, facts extracted from different sources are also not well integrated, even if they are related. To manage this, existing infrastructures often aim at supporting an all-in-one information meta-structures which try to integrate all facts in one connected whole. We propose a generic infrastructure that translates extracted facts to homogeneous high-level representations conforming to domain-specific metamodels, and then transforms these high-level model instances to instances of domain-specific models related to a particular assessment task, which can be incrementally enriched with additional facts as these become available or necessary. This allows researchers and practitioners to focus on the assessment task at hand, without being concerned with low-level representation details or complex data models containing large amounts of often irrelevant data. We present an example scenario with a concrete instantiation of the proposed infrastructure targeting the assessment of developer behaviour.

A Metamodel and Graphical Syntax for NS-2 Programing

One of the most important issues, around the world, which manufacturers pay special attention to is to promote their activities in order to be able to give high quality products or services. Perhaps the first advice to achieve this goal is simulation idea. Therefore, simulation software packages with different properties have been made available. One of the most applicable simulators is NS-2 which suffers from internal complexity. On the other hand, Domain Specific Modeling Languages can make an abstraction level by which we can overcome the complexity of NS-2, increase the production speed, and promote efficiency. So, in this paper, we introduce a Domain Specific Metamodel for NS-2.This new metamodel paves the ways for introducing abstract syntax and modeling language syntax. In addition, created syntax in Domain Specific Modeling Language is supported by a graphical modeling tool.

Research on metamodels consistency verification based on formalization of domain-specific metamodeling language

Domain-specific metamodeling language (DSMML) defined by informal method cannot strictly represent its structural semantics, so its properties such as consistency cannot be holistically and systematically verified. In response, the paper proposes a formal representation of the structural semantics of DSMML named extensible markup language (XML) based metamodeling language (XMML) and its metamodels consistency verification method. Firstly, we describe our approach of formalization, based on this, the method of consistency verification of XMML and its metamodels based on first-order logical inference is presented; then, the formalization automatic mapping engine for metamodels is designed to show the feasibility of our formal method.

Using enterprise architecture and technology adoption models to predict application usage

Application usage is an important parameter to consider in application portfolio management. This paper presents an enterprise architecture analysis framework which can be used to assess application usage. The framework, in the form of an architecture metamodel, incorporates variables from the previously published Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Task-Technology Fit (TTF) model. The paper describes how the metamodel has been tailored for a specific domain, viz. industry maintenance management. The metamodel was tested in the maintenance management domain through a survey with 55 respondents at five companies. Data collected in the survey showed that the domain-specific metamodel is able to explain variations in maintenance management application usage. Integrating the TAM and TTF variables with an architecture metamodel allows architects to reuse research results smoothly, thereby aiding them in producing good application portfolio decision-support.

Formalizing Domain-Specific Metamodeling Language XMML Based on First-order Logic

Domain-Specific Modeling has been widely and successfully used in software system modeling of specific domains. In spite of its general important, due to its informal definition, Domain-Specific Metamodeling Language (DSMML) cannot strictly represent its structural semantics, so its properties such as consistency cannot be systematically verified. In response, the paper proposes a formal representation of the structural semantics of DSMML named XMML based on first-order logic. Firstly, XMML is introduced, secondly, we illustrate our approach by formalization of attachment relationship and refinement relationship and typed constraints of XMML based on first-order logic, based on this, the approach of consistency verification of XMML itself and metamodels built based on XMML is presented, finally, the formalization automatic mapping engine for metamodels is introduced to show the application of formalization of XMML.

Evaluating Domain-Specific Languages for the Development of OPC UA Based Applications

AbstractThe OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA) is becoming more and more important for industrial automation products. The development of OPC UA components is currently supported by the use of special SDKs for OPC UA. However, these SDKs provide only low level support for creating OPC UA based applications. This leads to higher efforts in developing such applications. The domain-specific metamodel that OPC UA defines could serve as a good basis for creating domain-specific languages on a higher abstraction level. This has the potential of significantly reducing development efforts. In this paper, we analyse the various use cases within the development of OPC UA applications for their potential to be supported by a domain-specific language.

Frameworks Generate Domain-Specific Languages: A Case Study in the Multimedia Domain

We present an approach to software framework development that includes the generation of domain-specific languages (DSLs) and pattern languages as goals for the process. Our model is made of three workflows-framework, metamodel, and patterns-and three phases-inception, construction, and formalization. The main conclusion is that when developing a framework, we can produce with minimal overhead-almost as a side effect-a metamodel with an associated DSL and a pattern language. Both outputs will not only help the framework evolve in the right direction, but will also be valuable in themselves. In order to illustrate these ideas, we present a case study in the multimedia domain. For several years, we have been developing a multimedia framework. The process has produced a full-fledged domain-specific metamodel for the multimedia domain, with an associated DSL and a pattern language.

A Formal Representation of Domain-Specific Metamodeling Language XMML Based on First-order Logic

Domain-Specific Modeling has been widely and successfully used in software system modeling of specific areas. Domain-Specific Metamodeling Language (DSMML) defined by informal method cannot strictly represent its structural semantics, so its properties such as consistency cannot be systematically and precisely verified. In response, the paper proposes a formal representation of the structural semantics of DSMML named XMML. We illustrate our approach by formalization of refinement relationship of XMML based on first-order logic. Based on this, the approach of consistency verification of metamodels built based on XMML is presented.

The DOPLER meta-tool for decision-oriented variability modeling: a multiple case study

The variability of a product line is typically defined in models. However, many existing variability modeling approaches are rigid and don't allow sufficient domain-specific adaptations. We have thus been developing a flexible and extensible approach for defining product line variability models. Its main purposes are to guide stakeholders through product derivation and to automatically generate product configurations. Our approach is supported by the DOPLER (Decision-Oriented Product Line Engineering for effective Reuse) meta-tool that allows modelers to specify the types of reusable assets, their attributes, and dependencies for their specific system and context. The aim of this paper is to investigate the suitability of our approach for different domains. More specifically, we explored two research questions regarding the implementation of variability and the utility of DOPLER for variability modeling in different domains. We conducted a multiple case study consisting of four cases in the domains of industrial automation systems and business software. In each of these case studies we analyzed variability implementation techniques. Experts from our industry partners then developed domain-specific meta-models, tool extensions, and variability models for their product lines using DOPLER. The four cases demonstrate the flexibility of the DOPLER approach and the extensibility and adaptability of the supporting meta tool.

Meta-environment and executable meta-language using smalltalk: an experience report

Object-oriented modelling languages such as EMOF are often used to specify domain specific meta-models. However, these modelling languages lack the ability to describe behavior or operational semantics. Several approaches have used a subset of Java mixed with OCL as executable meta-languages. In this experience report we show how we use Smalltalk as an executable meta-language in the context of the Moose reengineering environment. We present how we implemented EMOF and its behavioral aspects. Over the last decade we validated this approach through incrementally building a meta-described reengineering environment. Such an approach bridges the gap between a code-oriented view and a meta-model driven one. It avoids the creation of yet another language and reuses the infrastructure and run-time of the underlying implementation language. It offers an uniform way of letting developers focus on their tasks while at the same time allowing them to meta-describe their domain model. The advantage of our approach is that developers use the same tools and environment they use for their regular tasks. Still the approach is not Smalltalk specific but can be applied to language offering an introspective API such as Ruby, Python, CLOS, Java and C#.