=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-1239/paper5
|storemode=property
|title=Flexible and Scalable Modelling in the MONDO
Project: Industrial Case Studies
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1239/xm14_submission_5.pdf
|volume=Vol-1239
|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/models/BagnatoBSMTMC14
}}
==Flexible and Scalable Modelling in the MONDO
Project: Industrial Case Studies==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1239/xm14_submission_5.pdf
Flexible and Scalable Modelling in the MONDO
Project: Industrial Case Studies
Alessandra Bagnato1, Pedro Malo2, Salvador Trujillo3, Xabier Mendialdua3, Xabier de
Carlos3, Etienne Brosse1, Andrey Sadovykh1.
1
SOFTEAM, 8 Parc Ariane 78284 Guyancourt, France
{alessandra.bagnato, etienne.brosse, andrey.sadovykh}@softeam.fr,
2
UNINOVA, Pedro Maló, Campus da FCT/UNL, Caparica, Portugal
pmm@uninova.pt,
3
IKERLAN Paseo J.M. Arizmendiarrieta 2, 20500 Mondragon, Spain
{ STrujillo, XMendialdua, XDeCarlos}@ ikerlan.es
Abstract. Today, system designs and their management are crucial parts of
most systems development processes. To stay competitive engineers from
several expertise domains use Model-Based engineering (MBE) to design the
systems they intend to implement in order to specify, test, simulate, validate
and iterate their design as soon as possible. System designs are living and
evolving artefacts this imply to be able to manage them in an efficient and agile
way. The MONDO FP7 EU project aims to comprehensively tackle the
challenge of scalability in system design and management by developing the
theoretical foundations and an open-source implementation of a platform and
will offer to Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) users advanced flexibility in
their different modeling approaches. This paper describes three different
industrial demonstrators and three different modelling approaches that will be
utilised to evaluate the capabilities of the MONDO technologies. For each
demonstrator the interests of the industrial user partners are described along
with their current and desired improvements in technologies to support MBE in
a much more flexible way. Specific evaluation scenarios are specified for each
of the targeted industrial domains as well.
Keywords: scalable modelling, Model-Driven Engineering, software
engineering, qualitative evaluation..
1 Introduction
Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) has been shown to increase productivity and
reuse and it has significantly enhanced important aspects of software engineering
development such as consistency, maintainability and traceability [5]. MDE is
therefore increasingly applied to larger and more complex systems. However, the
current generation of modelling and model management technologies is being
stressed to their limits in terms of their capacity to accommodate, in an agile way,
collaborative development, efficient management and persistence of large models (
larger than a few hundreds of megabytes in size) . Thus, recent research has focused
on scalability and flexibility across the MDE technical space to enable MDE to
remain relevant and to continue delivering its widely recognized productivity, quality
and maintainability benefits. The MONDO [1] project proposes to look into the
scalability issues for MDE in order to give more flexibility in processes and to help
into the agile definition and management of large models. The purpose of this paper is
to provide a description of the challenges targeted by three of the industrial
demonstrators that will be utilised to evaluate the capabilities of the MONDO
technologies. The selected demonstrators are depicting typical MDE issues found in
industry and describe the the benefits to be achieved in the selected scenarios.
The Use Cases that will be described herewith are the following:
• Use Case for Modelling Tool domain.
• Use Case for the Offshore Wind Power domain.
• Use Case for Open-BIM Construction domain.
In the next sections we briefly outline the challenges tackled by the MONDO
project. We then describe three of the MONDO case studies and summarize the
general feedback received from the three industries on the expected benefits to be put
in place within the different contexts to achieve better flexibility during engineering
and storage of large models. Finally, the paper is concluded along with plans on our
future work.
2 The MONDO project
Typically, achieving scalability involves being able to construct large models and
associated DSLs or meta-models in a systematic manner; enabling large teams of
modellers to construct and refine large models in a collaborative manner; advancing
the state of the art in model querying and transformations tools so that they can cope
with large models (of the order millions of model elements); and providing an
infrastructure for efficient storage, indexing and retrieval of such models [5]. In
particular, the maintenance and manipulation of large models unique scenarios
addressed by a novel class of model transformations (MT) able to extend the
capabilities of traditional MT approaches is under study within the MONDO project
[13] and a prototype tool supporting scalable concrete visual syntax enabling the rapid
construction of Domain Specific Languages (DSLs) with built-in capabilities to
navigate, explore and abstract large models is foreseen and under study by the project.
The MONDO research roadmap towards achieving scalability in model driven
engineering is described in [4] and briefly summarized in Figure 1. The project builds
on MDE research issues aiming at dealing with industrial scale models that need to
be persisted in a way that allows for their seamless and efficient manipulation [6][7],
often by multiple stakeholders simultaneously and will tackle scalable queries and
transformations, scalable DSLs, scalable collaborative modelling [10][11][12] within
scalable model persistence [6]. All the project advances will be reported within the
main project web site at [1] for the whole project duration and all technologies
developed by research partners will be released as open-source software under EPL
[9]. As such, industrial partners within the project and outside it will be able develop
proprietary extensions on top of this infrastructure without having to open-source
them.
Fig. 1. Tackling the challenge of scalability in MDE
As part of the MONDO project, this paper looks closely into the needed efficient and
flexible engineering, storage, indexing and retrieval of large models within three
different industrial case studies selected to evaluate the project results.
2 The Modelling Tool domain case study
SOFTEAM aims at applying scalability in MDE technologies within the SOFTEAM
Modelio [2] modelling tool. Modelio is an open source modelling tool, providing
support for many kind of modelling e.g. UML2 modelling, Enterprise Architecture
modelling, Business Process modelling, and SOA modelling. The MONDO
technologies are expected to make possible to enhance Modelio capabilities in an
agile way and to allow it to manage very large models by gaining speed in the overall
design carried out. In particular the production chain that includes, the DSL
engineering, the DSL persistence, the model (conforms to a given DSL) engineering
and the model persistence, that is currently in place within Modelio and the Eclipse
Modeling Framework (EMF)[14] world is considered too much rigid and constrained
by MDE users e.g. modellers, architect and developers.
The MONDO research and results will be key to meet the increasing need from
SOFTEAM customers to support a more agile production chain that considers larger
and larger models, and larger teams of developers.
SOFTEAM will evaluate the MONDO improvements through an modelled
application called Voyages Discount. This modelled application uses TOGAF
modelling [3] which aims at improving business efficiency ensuring consistent
standards, methods, and communication among enterprise architecture professionals.
The model has been chosen since it provides an industrial business process that
required multiple stockholders communications to be completed where the modelling
flexibility provided within MONDO will be helpful.
Currently the Modelio Teamwork Manager feature endows Modelio with a
distributed collaborative modelling environment through a Subversion (SVN)
repository. The model fragments [8], composing the Modelio project, are managed
by Modelio Teamwork Manager and the enhancement of an improved collaboration
environment will be very helpful in increasing productivity.
In Table 1 we present and summarize the expected targeted flexibility benefits and
we consider in particular the need to reduce the time to complete the production chain
above mentioned by means of structured EMF modularity and collaborations.
Table 1. Overview of the scenarios within Modelling Tool use case of MONDO.
Scenario Purpose Specific expected
MONDO/Extreme Modelling
benefits
Scenario 1: This scenario focusses on the MONDO technology will
MONDO comparison of the query facilities and improve the Modelio querying
framework performances provided by both facilities to better meet end user’s
querying Modelio and MONDO frameworks. In needs in terms of performance
facility the MBE approach, queries are often (time and memory). A
defined and performed to extract methodology
specific and relevant information from whereby the performance of
model. Modelio store offers a set of model queries can be
predefined scripts among thus the systematically
“Simple Statistics Reporting” script evaluated, and relevant
provides model statistics on objects performance predictor metrics
present under selected element. This can be identified is under study
latter will be used as reference to within MONDO [15]. More
compare both technologies in terms of advances in this direction are also
querying. under study within [10][11][12].
Scenario 2: The actual model usage across several MONDO technology will
MONDO domains, several teams and several improve end users’ experience of
framework peoples implies to be able to modelling gaining speed in the
collaborating collaborate during the model overall design in large team and
modelling specification. This scenario aims at large model context. MONDO
integrating the MONDO technologies will provide management
within the Modelio modelling tool for techniques for collaborative
supporting large and complex models modelling adapted from version
and large collaborating teams. control systems including
locking, transaction handling
with commit, conflict
management and resolution
[10][11][12].
Scenario 3: Specification and execution of MONDO technology will
MONDO ModelToText transformations are the overcome the lack of
framework aim of this third evaluation scenario. documentation by improving the
support in Capability provided by both scalability and performances of
transforming environment (MONDO and Modelio Modelio ModelToText
model to text. tool ) will be evaluated in term of transformations in a large model
possibility, performance and easiness context. First results in this
to use. Modelio document publisher direction can be found at [13].
extension provides by default a set of
existing transformation including the
analysis and design one’s which will
be used as benchmark.
Scenario 4: The purpose of this scenario is to MONDO technology will
MONDO compare the ModelToModel improve the scalability and
framework transformation support by both performances of Modelio
support in frameworks. Among all existing ModelToModel transformations
transforming ModelToModel transformation in a large model context by
model to specified inside Modelio or its reducing the amount of needed
another extension, the performance analysis time and ressources . An EMF
model. will take EMF UML2 XMI Splitter with a structured
import/export facilities as reference. Approach to EMF modularity is
under study within the project to
bring more agility in the overall
production chain and will be
evaluated.
3 The Offshore Wind Power domain case study
MONDO technology is designed to support collaborative domain specific modelling
for offshore wind turbines. Modelling tools will enable engineers to specify
concurrently control systems of wind turbines and to share different specifications
(model versions). This is expected to raise productivity during the development and
customization of software for wind turbine control systems.
Wind turbines are complex systems composed by a set of physical subsystems.
Different subsystems must work in a coordinated manner to transform wind energy
into electrical energy. The purpose of a wind turbine control system is to supervise
and control all those subsystems for their correct operation.
The Wind Turbine Control System Modelling Tool is a tool that the engineers use
for specifying behaviour of the system that will control the wind turbine. Software
code responsible for turbine control will be generated automatically from models.
Control system development entails collaboration between engineers of different
disciplines. Engineers of each discipline have different skills and they develop
specific-parts of the wind turbine subsystems. Consequently, model specification
implies the use of collaborative modelling tools. Moreover, since wind turbines’
control models are large and complex, modelling tools should be scalable and provide
agile mechanisms for model development (i.e. advanced queries, load-on-demand,
partial load of models, etc.).
Wind Turbine Control System Modeling Tool has been developed based on
existing Open-source Eclipse modeling technology. Unfortunately, existing modeling
frameworks in which tools are based are not conceived to be used in an agile and
collaborative manner. This is the case of the design of a wind turbine in which several
engineers collaborate together step by step to define, integrate and validate models
incrementally that form subsystems and then complete systems.
In contrast to the work process described above, existing tools are conceived for a
single engineer to work on a complete specification, preventing collaboration beyond
the tool and the engineer. MONDO pursues to expand existing tools to support such
collaborative modeling of teams of engineers working together. MONDO
collaborative tools are expected to foster agility and collaboration in the modeling of
wind turbines.
Results obtained on the MONDO Project will be the key to provide collaborative
modelling tools enabling to turn the wind turbine design process into a more agile and
flexible process. MONDO Project will enable to add new features to the modelling
tools such as concurrent model edition, partial load of models, advanced querying
capabilities, etc. Additionally, technology developed within the MONDO Project will
support modelling from mobile devices. It will allow performing modelling activities
also in environments where the conditions are not bests (in-situ maintenance of the
wind turbine).
Table 2. Overview of the scenarios within Offshore Wind Power use case of MONDO.
Scenario Purpose Specific expected
MONDO/Extreme Modelling
benefits
Scenario 1: This scenario is focused on the design of Technology provided by
Wind turbine wind turbines’ control systems. Several MONDO will provide
control system system engineers participate at the same mechanisms that allow working
collaborative time on the specification of wind turbine concurrently on model
modelling control system. Generally, each system elements. This will provide the
engineer focuses in one subsystem and flexibility for different
specifies the control of the subsystem. modeling engineers to work at
All those parts together specify the the same time on different
behaviour of the control system that is subsystems or even on the
responsible to control and supervise the same subsystem. As a result,
wind turbine. this will ease teamwork when
modeling a complete system.
Apart from improving
communication among
engineers, it will favor an early
identification of potential
design flaws.
Scenario 2: This scenario is focused on the wind MONDO technology will allow
Partial load turbine commissioning process in which system engineers to work only
and load-on- different physical subsystems (or sets of with specific parts of the
demand of subsystems) are commissioned model, providing features that
models related separately. allow partial load and
to subsystems This entails a scenario that from the load/unload on demand of parts
view-point of system control, only a of the model where different
fragment of the whole model must be subsystems are specified.
taken into account. System engineer only MONDO will provide
needs the part of the model concerning technology to enable a team of
to the subsystem. engineers to work on parts of
Therefore, system engineers involved on models that can be validated
the subsystem commissioning must be partially. Enabling partial work
able to work with a partial view of the will make the process more
whole model, having the ability to load agile and flexible.
and unload models fragments concerning
to subsystems or parts of a subsystem.
Scenario 3: This scenario is located on the MONDO technology will
Modelling installation and maintenance activities provide engineers solutions to
from mobile performed within a wind farm. Often perform installation and
devices during these activities, wind turbine maintenance activities of the
control systems require small wind turbines within a wind
adjustments (i.e. modify parameters’ farm.
values or activation/deactivation of non- These solutions should support
critical control algorithms). These modelling from lightweight
adjustments will be performed using devices such as mobiles or
handy devices. However, these changes tablets. In this way, these
imply also (i) re-generate code for the solutions will facilitate
control system and (ii) add the new fieldwork where commonly
model version to the repository. conditions are not good.
Besides Offshore Wind Power domain, IKERLAN-IK4 also plans to use technology
developed within the MONDO Project on other domains such as transportation and
capital goods.
4 The Open-BIM Construction domain case study
A Building Information Model (BIM) is an instance of a populated data model of
buildings that contains multi-disciplinary data specific to a particular building, which
it describes unambiguously. BIM offers easier use of interoperable industry software
tools, fewer errors and omissions, and time and cost savings that can cumulatively
result in earlier building delivery. It can facilitate discussion, checking, analysis and
communication about a project much earlier and in much clearer and precise terms
than standard practice.
The IFC (Industry Foundation Classes aka Information For Construction) is the
neutral and freely available specification (model) to describe, exchange and share
information typically used within the building and facility management industry
sector. As such, the IFC provides an Open-BIM as any single vendor or group of
vendors does not control it, is openly accessible and used free of charge, and it is a
standard de facto (in industry) and de jure (ISO 16739). BIM is a key enabler for
Model-Based Engineering in construction-related ICT industries. ICT solutions for
construction industries take advantage of MBE methods and practices to properly
manage and exploit BIM models. The key solution to take advantage of MBE in BIM
is the so-called Model Servers. Model Servers are a technological concept that was
coined by the AECO software industry that designates a specialised ICT solution
capable of providing BIM capabilities and services. A Model Server provides
supports for modelling, storing, sharing, inspect, visualise, and operate BIM models.
Model Servers of today are generically using the Open-BIM IFC model. An Open-
BIM/IFC Model Server is thus a data repository/store with supporting services that
provide multi-user access, storage and management, and allow the use of the IFC data
model as the underlying representation structure (schema).
A BIM-IFC data model of a not-so-complex building comprehends a huge number
of modelling elements (to the millions scale). A comprehensive building information
model enclosing all the building disciplines can rapidly go from few millions to many
dozens of million modelling elements. Moreover, BIM-IFC data models are shared
(serialized) using the text-based ISO10303 STEP Part#21 representations that rapidly
escalate file sizes to many Megabytes to Gigabytes.
The trouble is that today’s breed of Model Servers exhibits problems in presence of
big-to-huge BIM data models. Tools considerably degrade performance in presence of
large-size BIM models (i.e. with some few millions of modelling elements) or simply
“break” in presence of huge-size BIM models (in the scale of tens of millions of
modelling elements). This led to very inefficient solutions for BIM-based
collaboration like sharing partial models done by construction project designers and
engineers that then requires time consuming model aggregation by some person
(“model coordinator”) and make it difficult for model users (model
designers/engineers but also model clients) to get a comprehensive integral view of
the model (building or set of buildings in a landscape).
The idea is for MONDO technologies to be able to take charge of addressing the
performance and scalability issues of BIM data models that are presently dealt
directly by its users (designers, engineers). The vision is that of a solution that enables
an efficient management and exploitation of BIM large-to-huge-scale data models by
both using best-of-breed MBE solutions and incorporating AECO domain knowledge
for the best possibly experience and performance.
Table 3. Overview of the scenarios within Open-BIM Construction case study.
Scenario Purpose Specific expected
MONDO/Extreme
Modelling benefits
Scenario 1: The file-based collaboration scenario is one Technology provided by
File- (huge-) where model designers work on separate MONDO will allow
based models and share models (as huge files) with designers & engineers to
collaboration a model coordinator (that aggregates models work on a specific part of
altogether) and then with some model the model, but with the
clients. Here the Heterogeneous Model added flexibility of having
Server exists especially at the Model all parts merged together
Coordinator that can “upload” models and within a single model.
merge models together as well as doing Technology is to allow
some validations and checks to provided users to perform off-line
models. Data models are then exported in work and then be able to
designated formats to be shared with model readily reconvene for
clients. review and development.
Scenario 2: The shared-model collaboration scenario is MONDO technology will
Shared- one where all users (model designers, model, allow system engineers to
(huge-) model model coordinator, model clients) interact work only with specific
collaboration using a share-model hosted in a Model parts of the model, with the
Server. Users are provided with data models added flexibility of
views of the huge data models in the Model providing features that
Server and can check-in/check-off model allow partial load and
parts for off-line manipulation. load/unload on demand of
parts of the model where
different subsystems are
specified.
Scenario 3: Quantity take-off’s (QTO) is a key process On huge BIM data models
Quantity in construction. QTO are a detailed performing QTO is a non-
Take-Off measurement of the materials needed to trivial task due to the
(QTO) in complete a construction project. These complexity of the query
huge IFC measurements are used to format a bid on and need to traverse the
models the scope of construction. Estimators review whole of the data model.
drawings and specifications to find these The scenario tests then the
quantities, which is a very time consuming, ability of MONDO to
and erroneous process. BIM provides a report out of large-to-huge
direct way to extract the quantities of a data models using complex
building. It is done using a complex query to queries situations.[10] [11]
the BIM model. [12]
5 Conclusion and future work
The case studies and evaluation scenarios selection presented herein was performed
during the first ten months of the MONDO project (with a total duration of 30
months). As a general conclusion from the use case and scenario descriptions and the
subsequent requirement gathering and prioritization phase form industry, it is believed
that adopting MONDO technologies will bring benefits to the current software
development processes used by all the involved industries, helping designers to work
with large models.
In particular the MONDO technologies are expected to enable the Modelio tool to
provide scalability in modelling, being able to construct large models and to enable
large teams of modelers to construct and refine large models in a collaborative
manner. Moreover, MONDO technologies will provide a solution for collaborative
modelling within modelling tools to specify control systems for wind turbines. In this
way these modelling tools will support features that ease collaboration. Finally
MONDO technologies will be utilized within all the three case studies in the context
of large model transformations. More specifically being able to generate
documentation and to apply transformation on large models have been found as key
aspects of scalable Model-Based Engineering.
The MONDO technologies evaluations within is planned for the end of second
year of MONDO Project (October 2015). These will be both a qualitative and
quantitative evaluations aimed at assessing the usefulness and ease of use when
actually performing scalable modelling on real case studies through supporting tools.
Acknowledgements
The research leading to these results has received funding from the European
Community Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement
no FP7-611125. We would also like to acknowledge all the members of the MONDO
Consortium for their valuable help and in particular Scott Hansen (The Open Group),
and Dimitris Kolovos (University of York) for their support in the case studies
scenarios and expected benefits definition.
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