Uniform-modelling in graph grammar specifications

Abstract

Building Integrated Environments in the context of Software Development /Na 94a/, Data Specification/Sc91/, and Computer Integrated Manufacturing/EWM92,SW92/ we ideally proceed as follows: (1) We specify the internal behavior of tools by graph grammars, (2) we edit, analyze, and (in the near future) execute such specifications thereby verifying and prototyping them, (3) we derive efficient components for specified ones by a generator machinery, and (4) we put them into a framework architecture providing for the invariant part of the environment. This paper sketches the experiences we have got by specifying tools of various environments. Doing so we have received modelling knowledge which is not only useful for one example but seems to be generally applicable. This knowledge is on three levels, namely finding reuseable spec portions, learning how to write spec portions, and structuring a spec consisting of different components. We call such a generally applicable approach ’uniform modelling’. The paper sketches three ways of uniform modelling in graph grammar specs. Whereas in the first approach we are directly dealing with a gra gra spec, in the second and third approach we are only arguing about structuring gra gra specs. At the end of the paper we give a summary and list some open problems.