Towards an Extensible Architecture and Tool Support for Model-based Verification.

Abstract

Model-based software engineering (MBSE) brings models to the center of software and system design. Models are powerful abstractions used to support all phases of the software development life cycle of complex software. As these models grow larger and their complexity increases, they need to be verified and validated to preserve their correctness. One possible way to do so is by means of the use of formal methods. However, the availability of MBSE tools with support for validation and verification is limited, and they usually require the cumbersome deployment of software burdened by dependencies, preventing the adoption of these tools. This paper presents a web-based architecture designed to support the definition of domain models and provide translation capabilities to different verification formalisms. As a proof of concept for our architecture, we have developed a tool prototype that is light-weight, runs in the browser and supports: (i) definition of domain models represented as class diagrams and (ii) partial translation of class diagrams into the Alloy specification language, enabling verification of structural domain properties. We show how we have used this tool to verify properties for the public bus management system in the city of Málaga, Spain.