An adverbial approach for the formal specification of topological constraints involving regions with broad boundaries

Topological integrity constraints control the topological properties of spatial objects and the validity of their topological relationships in spatial databases. These constraints can be specified by using formal languages such as the spatial extension of the Object Constraint Language (OCL). Spatial OCL allows the expression of topological constraints involving crisp spatial objects. However, topological constraints involving spatial objects with vague shapes (e.g., regions with broad boundaries) are not supported by this language. Shape vagueness requires using appropriate topological operators (e.g., strongly Disjoint, fairly Meet) to specify valid relations between these objects; otherwise, the constraints cannot be respected. This paper addresses the problem of the lack of terminology to express topological constraints involving regions with broad boundaries. We propose an extension of Spatial OCL based on a geometric model for objects with vague shapes and an adverbial approach for topological relations between regions with broad boundaries. This extension of Spatial OCL is then tested on an agricultural database

An Introduction to Ontologies and Ontology Engineering

In the last decades, the use of ontologies in information systems has become more and more popular in various fields, such as web technologies, database integration, multi agent systems, natural language processing, etc. Artificial intelligent researchers have initially borrowed the word “ontology” from Philosophy, then the word spread in many scientific domain and ontologies are now used in several developments. The main goal of this chapter is to answer generic questions about ontologies, such as: Which are the different kinds of ontologies? What is the purpose of the use of ontologies in an application? Which methods can I use to build an ontology

An Access Control Model to Facilitate Healthcare Information Access in Context of Team Collaboration

The delivery of healthcare relies on the sharing of patients information among a group of healthcare professionals (so-called multidisciplinary teams (MDTs)). At present, electronic health records (EHRs) are widely utilized system to create, manage and share patient healthcare information among MDTs. While it is necessary to provide healthcare professionals with privileges to access patient health information, providing too many privileges may backfire when healthcare professionals accidentally or intentionally abuse their privileges. Hence, finding a middle ground, where the necessary privileges are provided and malicious usage are avoided, is necessary. This thesis highlights the access control matters in collaborative healthcare domain. Focus is mainly on the collaborative activities that are best accomplished by organized MDTs within or among healthcare organizations with an objective of accomplishing a specific task (patient treatment). Initially, we investigate the importance and challenges of effective MDTs treatment, the sharing of patient healthcare records in healthcare delivery, patient data confidentiality and the need for flexible access of the MDTs corresponding to the requirements to fulfill their duties. Also, we discuss access control requirements in the collaborative environment with respect to EHRs and usage scenario of MDTs collaboration. Additionally, we provide summary of existing access control models along with their pros and cons pertaining to collaborative health systems. Second, we present a detailed description of the proposed access control model. In this model, the MDTs is classified based on Belbin’s team role theory to ensure that privileges are provided to the actual needs of healthcare professionals and to guarantee confidentiality as well as protect the privacy of sensitive patient information. Finally, evaluation indicates that our access control model has a number of advantages including flexibility in terms of permission management, since roles and team roles can be updated without updating privilege for every user. Moreover, the level of fine-grained control of access to patient EHRs that can be authorized to healthcare providers is managed and controlled based on the job required to meet the minimum necessary standard and need-to-know principle. Additionally, the model does not add significant administrative and performance overhead.publishedVersio

Model-Based Engineering of Collaborative Embedded Systems

This Open Access book presents the results of the "Collaborative Embedded Systems" (CrESt) project, aimed at adapting and complementing the methodology underlying modeling techniques developed to cope with the challenges of the dynamic structures of collaborative embedded systems (CESs) based on the SPES development methodology. In order to manage the high complexity of the individual systems and the dynamically formed interaction structures at runtime, advanced and powerful development methods are required that extend the current state of the art in the development of embedded systems and cyber-physical systems. The methodological contributions of the project support the effective and efficient development of CESs in dynamic and uncertain contexts, with special emphasis on the reliability and variability of individual systems and the creation of networks of such systems at runtime. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and the case studies are therefore selected from areas that are highly relevant for Germany’s economy (automotive, industrial production, power generation, and robotics). It also supports the digitalization of complex and transformable industrial plants in the context of the German government's "Industry 4.0" initiative, and the project results provide a solid foundation for implementing the German government's high-tech strategy "Innovations for Germany" in the coming years