Towards syntactical model quality assurance in industrial software development: process definition and tool support

Abstract

The paradigm of model-based software development has become more and more popular, since it promises an increase in the efficiency and quality of software development. Following this paradigm, models become primary artifacts in the software development process where quality assurance of the overall software product considerably relies on the quality assurance of involved software models. In this paper, we concentrate on the syntactical dimension of model quality which is analyzed and improved by model metrics, model smells, and model refactorings. We propose an integration of these model quality assurance techniques in a predefined quality assurance process being motivated by specific industrial needs. By means of a small case study, we illustrate the model quality assurance techniques and discuss Eclipse-based tools which support the main tasks of the proposed model quality assurance process.