Feature Nets: behavioural modelling of software product lines

Software product lines (SPL) are diverse systems that are developed using a dual engineering process: (a)family engineering defines the commonality and variability among all members of the SPL, and (b) application engineering derives specific products based on the common foundation combined with a variable selection of features. The number of derivable products in an SPL can thus be exponential in the number of features. This inherent complexity poses two main challenges when it comes to modelling: Firstly, the formalism used for modelling SPLs needs to be modular and scalable. Secondly, it should ensure that all products behave correctly by providing the ability to analyse and verify complex models efficiently. In this paper we propose to integrate an established modelling formalism (Petri nets) with the domain of software product line engineering. To this end we extend Petri nets to Feature Nets. While Petri nets provide a framework for formally modelling and verifying single software systems, Feature Nets offer the same sort of benefits for software product lines. We show how SPLs can be modelled in an incremental, modular fashion using Feature Nets, provide a Feature Nets variant that supports modelling dynamic SPLs, and propose an analysis method for SPL modelled as Feature Nets. By facilitating the construction of a single model that includes the various behaviours exhibited by the products in an SPL, we make a significant step towards efficient and practical quality assurance methods for software product lines

A hazard analysis via an improved timed colored petri net with time–space coupling safety constraint

AbstractPetri nets are graphical and mathematical tools that are applicable to many systems for modeling, simulation, and analysis. With the emergence of the concept of partitioning in time and space domains proposed in avionics application standard software interface (ARINC 653), it has become difficult to analyze time–space coupling hazards resulting from resource partitioning using classical or advanced Petri nets. In this paper, we propose a time–space coupling safety constraint and an improved timed colored Petri net with imposed time–space coupling safety constraints (TCCP-NET) to fill this requirement gap. Time–space coupling hazard analysis is conducted in three steps: specification modeling, simulation execution, and results analysis. A TCCP-NET is employed to model and analyze integrated modular avionics (IMA), a real-time, safety-critical system. The analysis results are used to verify whether there exist time–space coupling hazards at runtime. The method we propose demonstrates superior modeling of safety-critical real-time systems as it can specify resource allocations in both time and space domains. TCCP-NETs can effectively detect underlying time–space coupling hazards

Guidelines for modelling reactive systems with coloured Petri nets

This paper focus on the modelling of reactive systems, more particularly, control systems. A set of guidelines is proposed in order to build models that support analysis, simulation and prototyping. The guidelines are split in two parts; the analysis of a problem is addressed first, followed by the design with Coloured Petri Nets (CPNs). A smart library example is used as case study. The models developed under this approach turn out to be modular, parameterisable, configurable and executable.FC

A structured approach for the engineering of biochemical network models, illustrated for signalling pathways

http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbn026Quantitative models of biochemical networks (signal transduction cascades, metabolic pathways, gene regulatory circuits) are a central component of modern systems biology. Building and managing these complex models is a major challenge that can benefit from the application of formal methods adopted from theoretical computing science. Here we provide a general introduction to the field of formal modelling, which emphasizes the intuitive biochemical basis of the modelling process, but is also accessible for an audience with a background in computing science and/or model engineering. We show how signal transduction cascades can be modelled in a modular fashion, using both a qualitative approach { Qualitative Petri nets, and quantitative approaches { Continuous Petri Nets and Ordinary Differential Equations. We review the major elementary building blocks of a cellular signalling model, discuss which critical design decisions have to be made during model building, and present ..