Model interchange and integration for web services

Abstract

Large distributed systems are normally developed by combining various nodes that are produced by different stakeholders, using different technologies, languages, and formalisms. An example of this situation is found when developing web services applications. However, the heterogeneity and diversity of existing languages to express behavioral specifications (models) of systems do not support integration, sharing and reuse of models between different validation tools. In this paper we present an XML-based behavioral model interchange format called OpenModel Modeling Language (OMML). OMML is a function rich procedural language in which the functionality and control of the models are expressed procedurally in terms of domain-specific function/object theories. OMML is composed of 5 different document types describing executable specification models of the services running at the nodes, information about connections between the various nodes, information about the (abstract) state of the services, and domain specific information to allow standardisation of the terminology used by model developers. We describe how OMML can be used to support interchange of models in web services applications. We present prototype tools that we have developed to support translation between models expressed in P-EBF, OMML, and SCR and evaluate our approach by validating a web service book finder application composed of models expressed in different languages in the GSTView validation tool.