Interoperability has been a focus of attention over at least four decades,
with the emergence of several interoperability types (or levels), diverse
models, frameworks, and solutions, also as a result of a continuous effort from
different domains. The current heterogeneity in technologies such as
blockchain, IoT and new application domains such as Industry 4.0 brings not
only new interaction possibilities but also challenges for interoperability.
Moreover, confusion and ambiguity in the current understanding of
interoperability types exist, hampering stakeholders' communication and
decision making. This work presents an updated panorama of software-intensive
systems interoperability with particular attention to its types. For this, we
conducted a tertiary study that scrutinized 37 secondary studies published from
2012 to 2023, from which we found 36 interoperability types associated with 117
different definitions, besides 13 interoperability models and six frameworks in
various domains. This panorama reveals that the concern with interoperability
has migrated from technical to social-technical issues going beyond the
software systems' boundary and still requiring solving many open issues. We
also address the urgent actions and also potential research opportunities to
leverage interoperability as a multidisciplinary research field to achieve
low-coupled, cost-effective, and interoperable systems.Comment: 33 page