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Aspectual templates in UML

Enhancing the semantics of UML templates in OCL

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Abstract

UML Templates allow to capture reusable models through parameterization. The construct is general enough to be used in many ways, ranging from the representation of generic components (such as Java generics or C++ templates) to aspectual usage, including pattern-, aspect- and view-oriented modeling. We concentrate on this last usage and so-called aspectual templates which require that parameters must form a model of systems in which to inject new functionalities. Starting from this strict constraint, we derive an in-depth semantic enhancement of the standard. It is formalized as a fully UML-compliant interpretation in OCL of the template construct and its binding mechanism. In particular, this aspectual interpretation must be ensured in case of partial binding (not all parameters are valued). Partial binding of UML is a powerful technique which allows to obtain richer templates from the composition of other ones. As a major result, the present semantic enhancement is consistent with this capacity so that partial binding of aspectual templates produces aspectual templates. Finally, at an operational level, an algorithm for aspectual template (partial) binding operation is formulated and consequent reusable technology made available in EMF (Eclipse Modeling Framework) is presented.

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Notes

  1. See Sect. 9.1 for exhaustive lists of templateable and parameterable elements.

  2. In order to highlight parameter constituents in the template core, class boxes and association lines are dashed and names are bolded. Other constituents correspond to injected elements.

  3. To determine if a parameterable element is a formal template parameter, we use the standard UML query (see Templates Section in [43]): ParameterableElement::isTemplateParameter().

  4. This does not apply to primitive data types.

  5. In UML, the ownedParameter role for an operation covers in, out and return parameters.

  6. If all parameters are substituted, this property is implicitly guaranteed because they form a model by definition.

  7. The core functionalities and the CASE tool are available at http://www.cristal.univ-lille.fr/caramel/aspectualtemplates.

  8. Such registry of services can be found into component platforms like OSGI in order to facilitate a loose-coupling between components.

  9. Remind that they are not aspectualizable inside the strict standard.

  10. Note that Ecore has parameterized types but the offered capacities are very close to the generic part of the Java type system.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Prof. R. France, Prof. M. Chechik and the anonymous reviewers for their work, specifically for their remarks on the generalization of the results.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CRIStAL, UMR CNRS 9189, University of Lille, 59655, Villeneuve d’Ascq Cedex, France

    Gilles Vanwormhoudt, Olivier Caron & Bernard Carré

  2. Institut Mines-Telecom, Paris, France

    Gilles Vanwormhoudt

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  1. Gilles Vanwormhoudt
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  2. Olivier Caron
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Correspondence to Gilles Vanwormhoudt.

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Communicated by Prof. Joerg Kienzle.

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Vanwormhoudt, G., Caron, O. & Carré, B. Aspectual templates in UML. Softw Syst Model 16, 469–497 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10270-015-0463-3

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