Model transformations to bridge concrete and abstract syntax of web rule languages

This paper presents a solution to bridging the abstract and concrete syntax of a Web rule languages by using model transformations. Current specifications of Web rule languages such as Semantic Web Rule Language (SWRL) or RuleML define their abstract syntax (e.g., metamodel) and concrete syntax (e.g., XML schema) separately. Although the recent research in the area of Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) demonstrates that such a separation of two types of syntax is a good practice (due to the complexity of languages), one should also have tools that check validity of rules written in a concrete syntax with respect to the abstract syntax of the rule language. In this study, we use the REWERSE I1 Rule Markup Language (R2ML), SWRL, and Object Constraint Language (OCL), whose abstract syntax is defined by using metamodeling, while their textual concrete syntax is defined by using either XML/RDF schema or Extended Backus-Naur Form (EBNF) syntax. We bridge this gap by a bi-directional transformation defined in a model transformation language (ATLAS Transformation Language, ATL). This transformation allowed us to discover a number of issues in both web rule language metamodels and their corresponding concrete syntax, and thus make them fully compatible. This solution also enables for sharing web rules between different web rule languages.

[1]  Anneke Kleppe,et al.  The Object Constraint Language: Getting Your Models Ready for MDA , 2003 .

[2]  Pascal Hitzler,et al.  A Metamodel and UML Profile for Rule-Extended OWL DL Ontologies , 2006, ESWC.

[3]  Christopher J. Matheus.  SWRLp: An XML-Based SWRL Presentation Syntax , 2004, RuleML.

[4]  Dan Brickley,et al.  Resource Description Framework (RDF) Model and Syntax Specification , 2002 .

[5]  Peter F. Patel-Schneider,et al.  OWL Web Ontology Language XML Presentation Syntax , 2003 .

[6]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  TCS:: a DSL for the specification of textual concrete syntaxes in model engineering , 2006, GPCE '06.

[7]  Ed Seidewitz,et al.  What Models Mean , 2003, IEEE Softw..

[8]  Timothy W. Finin,et al.  SweetJess: Translating DAMLRuleML to JESS , 2002, RuleML.

[9]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  From Object Composition to Model Transformation with the MDA , 2001, TOOLS.

[10]  Gerd Wagner,et al.  The Abstract Syntax of RuleML - Towards a General Web Rule Language Framework , 2004, IEEE/WIC/ACM International Conference on Web Intelligence (WI'04).

[11]  Patrick Valduriez,et al.  Semi-automatic model integration using matching transformations and weaving models , 2007, SAC '07.

[12]  Dragan Gasevic,et al.  Achieving knowledge interoperability: An XML/XSLT approach , 2005, Expert Syst. Appl..

[13]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  Technological Spaces: An Initial Appraisal , 2002 .

[14]  Jean-Marc Jézéquel,et al.  Model-Driven analysis and synthesis of concrete syntax , 2006, MoDELS'06.

[15]  Harold Boley,et al.  The Rule Markup Language: RDF-XML Data Model, XML Schema Hierarchy, and XSL Transformations , 2001, INAP.

[16]  Adrian Giurca,et al.  On Interchanging Between OWL / SWRL and UML / OCL , 2006 .

[17]  Shane Sendall,et al.  Model Transformation: The Heart and Soul of Model-Driven Software Development , 2003, IEEE Softw..

[18]  Jim Steel,et al.  Model transformation: a declarative, reusable patterns approach , 2003, Seventh IEEE International Enterprise Distributed Object Computing Conference, 2003. Proceedings..

[19]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  On the unification power of models , 2005, Software & Systems Modeling.

[20]  Stefan Decker,et al.  TRIPLE - A Query, Inference, and Transformation Language for the Semantic Web , 2002, SEMWEB.

[21]  Michael Kifer,et al.  Logical foundations of object-oriented and frame-based languages , 1995, JACM.

[22]  Martin Gogolla,et al.  Model transformations? transformation models! , 2006, MoDELS'06.

[23]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  Model-based Technology Integration with the Technical Space Concept , 2006 .

[24]  H. Lan,et al.  SWRL : A semantic Web rule language combining OWL and ruleML , 2004 .

[25]  Vladan Devedzic,et al.  Bridging MDA and OWL Ontologies , 2005, J. Web Eng..

[26]  John Mylopoulos,et al.  Constructing Complex Semantic Mappings Between XML Data and Ontologies , 2005, SEMWEB.

[27]  Vladan Devedzic,et al.  Model driven architecture and ontology development , 2006 .

[28]  Brian McBride,et al.  Jena: A Semantic Web Toolkit , 2002, IEEE Internet Comput..

[29]  Gerd Wagner,et al.  Towards a general web rule language , 2005, Int. J. Web Eng. Technol..

[30]  Thomas Baar,et al.  Making Metamodels Aware of Concrete Syntax , 2005, ECMDA-FA.

[31]  Stuart Kent,et al.  A Relational Approach to Defining Transformations in a Metamodel , 2002, UML.

[32]  Krzysztof Czarnecki,et al.  Feature-based survey of model transformation approaches , 2006, IBM Syst. J..

[33]  Harold Boley,et al.  Implementing RuleML Using Schemas, Translators, and Bidirectional Interpreters , 2005, Rule Languages for Interoperability.

[34]  Conrad Bock.  UML 2 Composition Model , 2004, J. Object Technol..

[35]  Dan Brickley,et al.  Rdf vocabulary description language 1.0 : Rdf schema , 2004 .

[36]  Jean-Marie Favre,et al.  Towards a Basic Theory to Model Model Driven Engineering , 2004 .