Use of ontology in identifying missing artefact links

The techniques of requirement traceability have evolved over recent years. However, as much as they have contributed to the software engineering field, significant ambiguity remains in many software engineering processes. This paper reports on an investigation of requirement traceability artefacts, stakeholders, and SDLC development models. Data were collected to gather evidence of artefacts and their properties from previous studies. The aim was to find the missing link between artefacts and their relationship to one another, the stakeholders, and SDLC models. This paper undertakes the first phase of the main research project, which aims to develop a framework for guiding software developers to actively manage traceability. After inquiring into and examining previous research on this topic, the links between artefacts and their functions were identified. The analysis resulted in the development of a new model for requirement traceability, defined in the form of an ontology portraying the contributively relations between software artefacts using common properties with the aid of Protégé Software. This study thus provides an important insight into the future of the requirement artefacts relation, and thereby lays an important foundation towards increasing our understanding of their potential and limitations

Assessing traceability — practical experiences and lessons learned

Most existing software systems that lack explicit traceability links between artefacts, or if implemented, are often not leveraged to take advantage of the information it can provide to a development or validation team. Within the medical device domain, as in other safety critical domains, regulation normally requires such systems that are certified before entering service. This involves submission of a safety case (a reasoned argument that the system is acceptably safe) to the regulator. A safety case should include evidence that the organisation has established effective software development processes. At the heart of such processes, they must incorporate traceability. However, numerous barriers such as a lack of awareness of traceability and a lack of guidance as to how to implement traceability hamper its effective implementation. In this paper, we address the lack of guidance on traceability implementation by presenting our experience of developing and trialling a traceability assessment model in two medical device organisations. We show that the assessment model was successful in identifying strengths and weaknesses in both organisations' implementation of traceability. Through experience of trialling the model, we propose an idea to improve it by automation, using the Open Services for Lifecycle Collaboration initiative