Using model views to assist with model conformance and extension

Abstract

Most literature in conceptual modelling focuses on the development of models. However, models, once created, must be used, which requires that the model is as usable as possible. Often, usage scenarios for a model are only vaguely clear at model creation time, so model usability should be considered as a relevant problem, especially in relation to conformance (creating instance models that conform to a base type model) and extension (creating extended models that build on a base one). In this paper, we propose a particular mechanism, model views, that allow model users to customise, to certain extent, what a model looks like, and thus adapt it to their usage scenario. Model views are fully described, and two case studies regarding very different situations are reported as a form of validation. The results obtained show that model views significantly add flexibility and customisation control during model conformance and extension efforts.