Formal foundations of object-oriented modeling notations

Describes and classifies the different solutions that have been proposed to realize the integration of graphic modeling languages, which are known and accepted by software developers, with formal modeling languages having analysis and verification tools. Inspired by that classification, we define a new integration proposal, based on first-order dynamic logic. The principal benefits of the proposed formalization can be summarized as follows. (i) The different views of a system are integrated in a single formal model; this allows us to define compatibility rules between the separate views, on both a syntactic and a semantic level. (ii) Using formal manipulation, it is possible to deduce further knowledge from the specification. (iii) Faults in the specifications, expressed using a user-friendly notation, can be revealed using analysis and verification techniques based on the formal kernel model. The principal difference between this model and other object-oriented formal models is that it integrates both of the levels in the modeling notation architecture into a single conceptual framework. The integration of modeling entities and modeled entities into a single formalism allows us to express both static and dynamic aspects of either the model or the modeled system within a first-order formalism.