Taming the interoperability challenges of complex IoT systems

of communication protocols and data formats; hence ensuring diverse devices can interoperate with one another remains a significant challenge. Model-driven development and testing solutions have been proposed as methods to aid software developers achieve interoperability compliance in the face of this increasing complexity. However, current approaches often involve complicated and domain specific models (e.g. web services described by WSDL). In this paper, we explore a lightweight, middleware independent, model-driven development framework to help developers tame the challenges of composing IoT services that interoperate with one another. The framework is based upon two key contributions: i) patterns of interoperability behaviour, and ii) a software framework to monitor and reason about interoperability success or failure. We show using a case-study from the FI-WARE Future Internet Service domain that this interoperability framework can support non-expert developers address interoperability challenges. We also deployed tools built atop the framework and made them available in the XIFI large-scale FI-PPP test environment

The Role of User Guidance in the Industrial Adoption of MDE Approach

Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) has emerged as an actively researched and established approach for next generation control application development. Technology transfer to the industry is a topical research problem. Since most professional factory process control engineers do not have computer science backgrounds, there is an urgent need for studies of the role of user guidance in the professional learning, and thus, of industrial adoption of MDE approaches. In this study professionals were invited to a hands-on assessment of the AUKOTON MDE approach for factory process control engineering. Qualitative empirical material was collected and analyzed to identify the role of user guidance in the context of other factors impacting industrial adoption. Challenges in adoption that could be solved by user guidance were identified with the theory of organizational knowledge creation (SECI) model

Using a Triple Graph Grammar for State Machine Implementations

Typical techniques of model-driven development use graph transformations to manipulate models and use generators to produce source code. In this contribution we suggest to use graph transformations instead of generators in order to get a closer connection between model and code. We define a Triple Graph Grammar for the mapping from a modeling tool data format to source code and derive a sample set of transformation rules from this. Thereby both truly simultaneous manipulation of model and code is enabled as well as virtually simultaneous manipulation by direct propagation of changes from code to model and back again

Mod4J: A Qualitative Case Study of Model-Driven Software Development

Model-driven software development (MDSD) has been on the rise over the past few years and is becoming more and more mature. However, evaluation in real-life industrial context is still scarce. In this paper, we present a case-study evaluating the applicability of a state-of-the-art MDSD tool, Mod4J, a suite of domain specific languages (DSLs) for developing administrative enterprise applications. Mod4J was used to partially rebuild an industrially representative application. This implementation was then compared to a base implementation based on elicited success criteria. Our evaluation leads to a number of recommendations to improve Mod4J. We conclude that having extension points for hand-written code is a good feature for a model driven software development environment

On the Industrial Adoption of Model Driven Engineering. Is your company ready for MDE?

Model Driven Engineering (MDE) is an approach to software development where models play a central role in all software engineering processes. Conceived to provide significant gains in productivity, portability, maintainability and interoperability, MDE is now starting to be effec- tively used in industry. Thus, companies are beginning to evaluate their possibilities for adopting it. This paper examines the current state of MDE in industry, summarizes the current obstacles for adoption, and discusses the advantages that it should bring to businesses and its limitations. Finally, some ideas for a smoother transition towards a wider adoption of MDE are outlinedModel Driven Engineering (MDE) – Ingeniería Basada en Modelos en español – es un enfoque del desarrollo del software, donde los modelos tienen un papel central en todos los procesos de ingeniería de software. Este enfoque se concibe para aportar importantes ganancias en la productividad, portabilidad, el mantenimiento, y la interoperabilidad. Además, ahora el MDE está comenzando a ser usado de forma efectiva en la industria. Por ello, las empresas están empezando a evaluar sus posibilidades para adoptarlo. Este artículo examina el actual estado del MDE en la industria, resume los presentes obstáculos para su adopción, y debate las ventajas que debería de aportar a las empresas, y sus limitaciones. Finalmente, se destacan algunas ideas para una fácil transición hacia una amplia adopción del MDE

Approaching Collaborative Modeling as an Uncertainty Reduction Process

ABSTRACT Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) technologies aim to support the growing complexity of software systems. Models are increasingly becoming large and unmanageable, and hence difficult to be understood by humans and processed by machines. As a consequence, multi-user environments are necessary to enable designers to create and refine large models in a collaborative manner enabling the engineering, modularization and reuse. In this paper, we propose a model-driven approach to represent, manage and manipulate models edited in a collaborative manner. In particular, we propose to represent the solutions space (i.e, model versions) in an intensional manner by adopting a model with uncertainty. We define a plan to manage the uncertainty by selecting the desired design, to manipulate their collaborative models in manually or automatic way, and to exploit a collaborative environment for real time multi-user editing. The approach is showed by means of a motivating example that involves business models demonstrating the advantages of the proposed approach

Model-Driven Engineering for Software Migration in a Large Industrial Context

International audienceAs development techniques, paradigms and platforms evolve far more quickly than domain applications, software modernization and migration, is a constant challenge to software engineers. For more than ten years now, the Sodifrance company has been intensively using Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) for both development and migration projects. In this paper we report on the use of MDE as an efficient, flexible and reliable approach for a migration process (reverse-engineering, transformation and code generation). Moreover, we discuss how MDE is economically profitable and is cost-effective over the migration through out-sourced manual re-development. The paper is illustrated with the migration of a large-scale banking system from Mainframe to J2EE

A cloud-based integration platform for enterprise application integration: A Model-Driven Engineering approach

This article addresses major information systems integration problems, approaches, technologies, and tools within the context of Model-Driven Software Engineering. The Guaraná integration platform is introduced as an innovative platform amongst state-of-the-art technologies available for enterprises to design and implement integration solutions. In this article, we present its domain-specificmodeling language and its industrial cloud-based web development platform, which supports the design and implementation of integration solutions. A real-world case study is described and analyzed; then, we delve into its design and implementation, to finally disclose ten measures that empirically help estimating the amount of effort involved in the development of integration solutions

Model-driven engineering for software migration in a large industrial context

Abstract. As development techniques, paradigms and platforms evolve far more quickly than domain applications, software modernization and migration, is a constant challenge to software engineers. For more than ten years now, the Sodifrance company has been intensively using ModelDriven Engineering (MDE) for both development and migration projects. In this paper we report on the use of MDE as an efficient, flexible and reliable approach for a migration process (reverse-engineering, transformation and code generation). Moreover, we discuss how MDE is economically profitable and is cost-effective over the migration through out-sourced manual re-development. The paper is illustrated with the migration of a large-scale banking system from Mainframe to J2EE