UML Interactions Meet State Machines - An Institutional Approach

UML allows the multi-viewpoint modelling of systems. One important question is whether an interaction as specified by a sequence diagram can be actually realised in the system. Here, the latter is specified as a combination of several state machines (one for each lifeline in the interaction) by a composite structure diagram. In order to tackle this question, we formalise the involved UML diagram types as institutions, and their relations as institution (co)morphisms

Generic Methodology for Formal Verification of UML Models

This paper discusses a Unified Modelling Language (UML) based formal verification methodology for early error detection in the model-based software development cycle. Our approach proposes a UML-based formal verification process utilising functional and behavioural modelling artifacts of UML. It reinforces these artifacts with formal model transition and property verification. The main contribution is a UML to Labelled Transition System (LTS) Translator application that automatically converts UML Statecharts to formal models. Property specifications are derived from system requirements and corresponding Computational Tree Logic (CTL)/Linear Temporal Logic (LTL) model checking procedure verifies property entailment in LTS. With its ability to verify CTL and LTL specifications, the methodology becomes generic for verifying all types of embedded system behaviours. The steep learning curve associated with formal methods is avoided through the automatic formal model generation and thus reduces the reluctance of using formal methods in software development projects. A case study of an embedded controller used in military applications validates the methodology. It establishes how the methodology finds its use in verifying the correctness and consistency of UML models before implementation

Fundamental Approaches to Software Engineering

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Fundamental Approaches to Software Engineering, FASE 2020, which took place in Dublin, Ireland, in April 2020, and was held as Part of the European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software, ETAPS 2020. The 23 full papers, 1 tool paper and 6 testing competition papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 81 submissions. The papers cover topics such as requirements engineering, software architectures, specification, software quality, validation, verification of functional and non-functional properties, model-driven development and model transformation, software processes, security and software evolution