Match Engine Modeling Language for Trading Systems

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Solution Overview

Problem

The complexity of commodities markets, characterized by a large number of potential order combinations and exponential growth in possible trades, poses challenges for high-speed and reliable electronic trading systems, particularly in terms of development, testing, and maintenance, due to the need for rapid implementation and high reliability in a competitive and scrutinized environment.

Innovation Solution

A symbolic modeling language, such as the Match Engine Modeling Language (MEML), is introduced to describe match engine operations in a form understandable by business analysts and easily translatable into program code, facilitating development, testing, and maintenance by using Domain Specific Visual Modeling Language elements like concrete syntax, abstract syntax, syntactic mapping, semantic domain, and semantic mapping, along with an automated test tool to expedite match engine development and ensure reliability.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If traditional programming approaches are used for match engine development, then implementation speed is fast, but development time and testing complexity increase due to market complexity and exponential order combinations

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveimplementation speedVSAvoiddevelopment and testing time
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a virtual model of the match engine using a symbolic language that replicates the engine's behavior. This virtual model can be simulated and tested independently of the actual engine, allowing thorough testing without delaying implementation. The model copies the engine's logic and can be used to generate test cases and verify functionality before deployment.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The symbolic language allows developers to specify the match engine's behavior in advance and automatically generate test cases before the actual engine is built or before new features are implemented. This preliminary specification and testing approach ensures that complex scenarios are covered without requiring time-consuming manual testing after implementation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If comprehensive testing is performed to ensure reliability, then system reliability improves, but testing time and resource requirements increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem reliabilityVSAvoidtesting time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The virtual model serves as a copy of the match engine that can be extensively tested without affecting the actual system. This allows comprehensive testing of edge cases, error conditions, and complex order combinations in isolation, ensuring reliability while avoiding the time cost of testing the live system repeatedly.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses its own symbolic representation to automatically generate test cases and perform self-verification. The match engine can be described in the symbolic language, and the system automatically derives test scenarios from this description, reducing the need for manual test case creation and execution.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Adaptability or versatility

If the match engine handles complex implied markets with multiple commodities, then market coverage increases, but computational complexity and processing requirements grow exponentially

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemarket coverageVSAvoidcomputational complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the complex market modeling into discrete components using the symbolic language. Each market relationship, order type, and trading rule can be represented as separate symbolic elements that can be combined to model complex scenarios. This segmentation allows the system to handle multiple commodities and implied markets without overwhelming computational complexity, as each component can be processed independently.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS10740840B2Match engine testing system
Publication Date: 2020.08.11 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE
  • US10740840B2 patent drawing
  • US10740840B2 patent drawing
  • US10740840B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A symbolic modeling language for trade matching providers techniques to describe the specialized operations of a match engine in a form that can be understood by business analysts and readily translated into program code and test cases by developers and testers. Associated techniques for calculating implied markets and testing can expedite match engine development, testing and maintenance.