Software Specification Modeling for Ambiguous Requirements
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing software development process is hindered by ambiguities in textual system requirements, leading to costly flaws that are often discovered late in the verification and test phases, increasing the cost of fixing faults by 10 to 15 times compared to early detection during requirements engineering or design phases.
Innovation Solution
A model-based software development process using a semantic module and a specification module to generate a specification model, which formally defines software requirements, ensuring completeness and unambiguity through semantic modeling and graphical representations, thereby mitigating the risk of misunderstandings and inconsistencies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual review and analysis of textual requirements is performed, then completeness and inconsistencies can be detected, but the process is time-consuming and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical review processes with automated computer-based analysis. The system uses software to automatically parse, analyze, and validate requirements against templates and constraints, substituting human effort with computational processing to reduce time while maintaining detection capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary automated analysis system that acts as a mediator between requirement authors and reviewers. This intermediary software performs preliminary analysis, identifies inconsistencies, and provides feedback, reducing the burden on manual reviewers and accelerating the overall process.
2Productivity
If requirements are written informally with varying levels of detail, then they can be quickly captured, but ambiguities result in flaws discovered late in testing phases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by providing automated analysis and validation during the requirement capture phase itself. The system checks requirements against templates, constraints, and consistency rules immediately when written, rather than waiting for later review phases. This early detection prevents flaws from propagating to testing phases.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the automated analysis system immediately provides information about ambiguities, inconsistencies, and completeness issues back to requirement authors. This real-time feedback allows corrections to be made during the capture phase, improving reliability without sacrificing productivity.
3Reliability
If flaws are detected during system verification and test phases, then system quality can be validated, but the cost to fix faults is 10 to 15 times more expensive than early detection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary validation of system quality during the requirements and design phases through automated analysis. By checking requirements against templates, constraints, and consistency rules early in the development process, the system identifies potential quality issues before they become expensive defects in testing phases.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of early requirement flaws into benefit by using automated analysis to detect and flag issues during capture. What would otherwise be costly late-stage defects are transformed into inexpensive early corrections, turning a potential problem into a quality improvement opportunity.
4Reliability
If formal specification modeling is implemented, then requirements accuracy and consistency are improved, but the complexity of the modeling process increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex manual formal specification modeling with automated computer-based analysis. The system handles the complexity of formal methods through software algorithms that automatically parse requirements, apply templates, and validate consistency, reducing the perceived complexity for users while maintaining high accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
According to some embodiments, a system includes a communication device operative to communicate with a user to obtain the one or more requirements associated with a specification model for a semantic module; a semantic module to receive the one or more requirements, store the one or more requirements and transform the one or more requirements into a semantic model; a specification module to receive the semantic model, store the semantic model, translate the semantic model and generate a specification model; a memory for storing program instructions; at least one specification model platform processor, coupled to the memory, and in communication with the specification module and the semantic module and operative to execute program instructions to: transform the one or more requirements into a semantic model by executing the semantic module; translate the semantic model into a graphical model by executing the specification module; and modify the graphical model by executing the specification module to generate the specification model; and generate a specification model that is human-readable and computer-readable for use in software design. Numerous other aspects are provided.