Architecture and algorithms of the SOPHIE choreography framework

Abstract

Services communicate with each other by exchanging self-contained messages, enabling them to make or to respond to requests. Depending on the specific application requirements a number of mismatches affecting the semantics, sequence, cardinality and structure of messages can occur, which prevent interoperation among a prior compatible services. Current technologies present an “ad-hoc” approach for overcoming mismatches. Initiatives to overcome mismatches based on semantic descriptions and mediators, i.e. choreography service, are envisioned as promising in solving these problems. The SOPHIE framework tackles precisely these objectives. It supports the conceptualization and mediation of ontology-based choreographies among interacting services, as a realization of a fully fledged Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). This paper provides an overview of the architecture and algorithms behind SOPHIE. In detail, the service topologies that define the different ways in which parties can be linked and the structure they define are depicted. The operational algorithms that model the mechanisms to generate mediators for overcoming heterogeneity among the Message Exchange Patterns (MEP) of interacting parties are presented. Finally, the correlation algorithms that put in place the required logic to link the messages sent by one party to the ones expected by another are described.