Title :
Intelligent support for specifications transformation
Author :
Tsai, J.J.-P. ; Ridge, Joel C.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. Eng. & Comput. Sci., Illinois Univ., Chicago, IL, USA
Abstract :
The authors describe an expert system, the Specification-Transformation Expert System (STES), which is to translate requirements specifications into design specifications automatically during the development phase of the software life cycle. STES accepts as input a software-requirements specification expressed in terms of dataflow diagrams. Using rules that embody a structured design methodology, STES translates this specification into a template describing a structure chart. STES consist of a knowledge base and an inference engine. The knowledge base contains information on the structured-design methodology and heuristic guidelines to help determine when certain methods should be applied. Given a target software system´s requirements specification, the STES inference engine can perform intelligent decision-making and determine a suitable architectural design specification for the software system being designed. STES was originally implemented in OPS5 on a VAX11/780 computer. It has since been ported to an Apollo DN 3000 workstation and integrated with a commercial CASE tool.<>
Keywords :
expert systems; formal specification; inference mechanisms; software tools; Apollo DN 3000; CASE tool; OPS5; STES; Specification-Transformation Expert System; VAX11/780; dataflow diagrams; design specifications; expert system; heuristic guidelines; inference engine; intelligent decision-making; knowledge base; requirements specifications; software life cycle; specifications transformation; Computer aided software engineering; Decision making; Design methodology; Engines; Expert systems; Guidelines; Software design; Software performance; Software systems; Workstations;
Journal_Title :
Software, IEEE
