Enterprise model verification and validation : an approach

This article presents a verification and validation approach which is used here in order to complete the classical tool box the industrial user may utilize in enterprise modeling and integration domain. This approach, which has been defined independently from any application domain is based on several formal concepts and tools presented in this paper. These concepts are property concepts, property reference matrix, properties graphs, enterprise modeling domain ontology, conceptual graphs and formal reasoning mechanisms

Web Service Discovery in the FUSION Semantic Registry

The UDDI specification was developed as an attempt to address the key challenge of effective Web service discovery and has become a widely adopted standard. However, the text-based indexing and search mechanism that UDDI registries offer does not suffice for expressing unambiguous and semantically rich representations of service capabilities, and cannot support the logic-based inference capacity required for facilitating automated service matchmaking. This paper provides an overview of the approach put forward in the FUSION project for overcoming this important limitation. Our solution combines SAWSDL-based service descriptions with service capability profiling based on OWL-DL, and automated matchmaking through DL reasoning in a semantically extended UDDI registry

Towards the ontology-based consolidation of production-centric standards

Production-­centric international standards are intended to serve as an important route towards information sharing across manufacturing decision support systems. As a consequence of textual-­based definitions of concepts acknowledged within these standards, their inability to fully interoperate becomes an issue especially since a multitude of standards are required to cover the needs of extensive domains such as manufacturing industries. To help reinforce the current understanding to support the consolidation of production-­centric standards for improved information sharing, this article explores the specification of well-defined core concepts which can be used as a basis for capturing tailored semantic definitions. The potentials of two heavyweight ontological approaches, notably Common Logic (CL) and the Web Ontology Language (OWL) as candidates for the task, are also exposed. An important finding regarding these two methods is that while an OWL-­based approach shows capabilities towards applications which may require flexible hierarchies of concepts, a CL-­based method represents a favoured contender for scoped and facts-­driven manufacturing applications

Investigation of Leading Indicators for Systems Engineering Effectiveness in Model-Centric Programs

Acquisition Research Program Sponsored Report SeriesSponsored Acquisition Research & Technical ReportsThis technical report summarizes the research conducted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology under contract award HQ0034-19-1-0002 during July 22, 2019 – August 31, 2021. Involved research team members include: Dr. Donna H. Rhodes, Principal Investigator; Dr. Eric Rebentisch, Research Associate; and Mr. Allen Moulton, Research Scientist. Systems engineering practice is evolving under the digital engineering paradigm, including use of model-based systems engineering and newer approaches such as agile. This drives a need to re-examine the existing use of metrics and leading indicators. Early engineering metrics were primarily lagging measures, whereas more recent leading indicators draw on trend information to provide more predictive analysis of technical and programmatic performance of the engineering effort. The existing systems engineering leading indicators were developed under the assumption of paper-based (traditional) systems engineering practice. This research investigates the model-based implications relevant to the existing leading indicators. It aims to support program leaders, transitioning to model-based engineering on their programs, in continued use of leading indicators. It provides guiding insights for how current leading indicators can be adapted for model-based engineering. The study elicited knowledge from subject matter experts and performed literature review in identifying these implications. An illustrative case was used to investigate how four leading indicators could be generated directly from a model-based toolset. Several recommendations for future research are proposed extending from the study. A companion research study (“phase 2”) under contract HQ0034-20-1-0008 provides insights for the art of the possible for future systems engineering leading indicators and their use in decision-making on model-centric programs. For completeness, selected background information and illustrative case are included in the technical reports in both studies. This research aims to provide insights for current practice within programs transforming to digital engineering, for continued use of systems engineering leading indicators. Several recommendations for future research are proposed extending from results of the study.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Compliance flow: an intelligent workflow management system to support engineering processes

This work is about extending the scope of current workflow management systems to support engineering processes. On the one hand engineering processes are relatively dynamic, and on the other their specification and performance are constrained by industry standards and guidelines for the sake of product acceptability, such as IEC 61508 for safety and ISO 9001 for quality. A number of technologies have been proposed to increase the adaptability of current workflow systems to deal with dynamic situations. A primary concern is how to support open-ended processes that cannot be completely specified in detail prior to their execution. A survey of adaptive workflow systems is given and the enabling technologies are discussed. Engineering processes are studied and their characteristics are identified and discussed. Current workflow systems have been successfully used in managing "administrative" processes for some time, but they lack the flexibility to support dynamic, unpredictable, collaborative, and highly interdependent engineering processes. [Continues.

OntoEng: A design method for ontology engineering in information systems

This paper addresses the design problem relating to ontology engineering in the discipline of information systems. Ontology engineering is a realm that covers issues related to ontology development and use throughout its life span. Nowadays, ontology as a new innovation promises to improve the design, semantic integration, and utilization of information systems. Ontologies are the backbone of knowledge-based systems. In addition, they establish sharable and reusable common understanding of specific domains amongst people, information systems, and software agents. Notwithstanding, the ontology engineering literature does not provide adequate guidance on how to build, evaluate, and maintain ontologies. On the basis of the gathered experience during the development of V4 Telecoms Business Model Ontology as well as the conducted integration of the related literature from the design science paradigm, this paper introduces OntoEng and its application as a novel systematic design method for ontology engineering

Requirements modelling and formal analysis using graph operations

The increasing complexity of enterprise systems requires a more advanced analysis of the representation of services expected than is currently possible. Consequently, the specification stage, which could be facilitated by formal verification, becomes very important to the system life-cycle. This paper presents a formal modelling approach, which may be used in order to better represent the reality of the system and to verify the awaited or existing system’s properties, taking into account the environmental characteristics. For that, we firstly propose a formalization process based upon properties specification, and secondly we use Conceptual Graphs operations to develop reasoning mechanisms of verifying requirements statements. The graphic visualization of these reasoning enables us to correctly capture the system specifications by making it easier to determine if desired properties hold. It is applied to the field of Enterprise modelling