A formal testing framework for UML statechart diagrams behaviours: from theory to automatic verification

We propose a formal testing framework for a behavioural subset of UML statechart diagrams (UMLSDs). A formal operational semantics is defined, which uses the same core semantics introduced in Latella et al. (1999) but which is better suited for testing theory. The new semantics is proved consistent with our original one and is guaranteed to generate only finite state machines. Proper testing pre-orders and equivalences are defined which allow us to equate/distinguish systems on the basis of their interaction with the surrounding environment, abstracting from their internal structure. Finally, we provide a way for effective automatic verification of testing equivalence of our statecharts, based on existing techniques and tools.