Communication Sequence Graphs for Mutation-Oriented Integration Testing

Integration testing (IT) plays an important role for validation of the communication between different software components to ensure their optimal cooperation. In this paper we (i) introduce communication sequence graphs (CSG) for integration testing representing the communication between software components on a meta-level, (ii) define coverage criteria based on these graphs, and (iii) give hints how to extend CSG notion by Boolean algebra in order to represent complex data structures of data exchanged between components to be integrated. A case study borrowed from a robot controlling system illustrates CSG as a new integration testing approach.