| Robert Amor's Publications in 2008 |
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Ma, H., Amor, R. and Tempero, E. (2008) Indexing the Java API Using Source Code, Proceedings of ASWEC, Perth, Australia, 26-28 March, pp. 451-460. |
Abstract: The basic idea behind software reuse is that software developers use reusable components found in software repositories to reduce the amount of code that has to be written and so increase productivity. A problem arises, however, if the repository is too big —it becomes difficult to find relevant components. What is needed is an effective means to query repositories. Most approaches to developing such means involves creating a good index to which the queries can be applied. Developing a good index requires identifying the relevant information on which to base the index. In this paper, we present the results of a project that used source code as the basis for the index.
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Amor, R. (2008) A Better BIM: Ideas from other Industries, Proceedings of CIB W78 conference on Improving the management of construction projects through IT adoption, Santiago, Chile, 15-17 July, pp. 48-53. |
Abstract: The architecture, engineering, construction and facility management (A/E/C-FM) industries have the opportunity to interoperate with software tools which utilise the IFC standard building information model (BIM). However, within the companies and projects which are currently using this standard there have been a number of issues raised with an impact on achievable interoperability. At the time that the IFC specifiers look at approaches to address these interoperability issues it is worth looking at other industries, who also have complex models and high reliability requirements, to see how whether there are lessons which can be learnt. In this paper the healthcare and manufacturing domains are surveyed in regards to their interoperability, conformance and certification approaches and novel ideas from these industries are presented for consideration of the A/E/C-FM industries and the developers of the IFC. A number of these approaches would argue for a restructuring of responsibilities between standards setting and certification, and others propose further development of freely available resources for all in the industry.
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Schultz, C., Guesgen, H. and Amor, R. (2008) A Framework for Applying Qualitative Spatial and Temporal Reasoning, Proceedings of NZCSRSC, Christchurch, New Zealand, 14-17 April, pp. 159-164. |
Abstract: Many application domains make extensive use of spatial and temporal information. However, the numerical approaches employed by most software tools have limitations, particularly when information is vague or incomplete. To address this, alternative qualitative spatial and temporal reasoning (QSTR) methods have been developed, yet few applications have made significant use of these techniques. In response to this we are developing a framework that will support the application of QSTR by allowing software developers to create custom qualitative modelling systems. In this paper we compare our framework to more standard toolbox approaches for QSTR application support. We present fundamental principles of qualitative modelling, and demonstrate, using an architectural lighting example, how these principles provide a basis for creating qualitative modelling systems that incorporate domain knowledge.
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Dimyadi, J., Amor, R. and Spearpoint, M. (2008) Sharing Building Information using the IFC Data Model for FDS Fire Simulation, Proceedings of 9th IAFSS Symposium on Fire Safety Science, Karlsruhe, Germany, 21-26 September. [IAFSS Award for top student paper] |
Abstract: This paper describes part of a research project that looks into the potential and challenge of using the Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) open standard building information model in fire engineering design. In particular the paper describes work undertaken to share building geometry and other information with the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) fire simulation model. A commercially available building information modeling (BIM) authoring application has been used to create building geometries and export IFC data files. A web-based conversion tool has been created to generate FDS input data given the output from a dedicated fire engineering IFC parser tool. The capabilities and outcome of data sharing process is illustrated in this paper using a simple test case building.
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Schultz, C., Amor, R. and Guesgen, H.W. (2008) Development Framework for Qualitative Spatial and Temporal Reasoning Systems, Technical Report WS-08-11, AAAI Press, Menlo Park, California, USA, 7-9 November, pp. 48-52. |
Abstract: A significant number of qualitative methods for representing and reasoning about spatial and temporal information have now been developed that address limitations of purely numerical approaches. Despite this, qualitative spatial and temporal reasoning (QSTR) is yet to be fully utilised by researchers and software developers outside the QSTR community. In our view, the problem is that in many cases none of the existing pre-made QSTR methods directly meet the needs of a task and instead require modifications. In other cases a completely new and unique QSTR approach may be required. To address this we are developing a framework that supports the application of QSTR by providing a methodology of developing custom QSTR systems from specific task information. In this paper we give an overview of our framework. As an example we also present the design component, one of the key framework processes, in more detail.
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Baldauf, X. and Amor, R. (2008) Towards a second generation Topic Maps engine, Proceedings of TMRA 2008, Leipzig, Germany, 15-17 October, pp. 183-202. |
Abstract: The core of the second generation Topic Maps standards (TMDM, XTM2.0) has been finalized, yet the uptake is still slow. In this paper, we highlight engineering considerations for a novel backend for the TM4J open source topic maps engine, which is currently in development, but already usable for some purposes. As the name suggests, the “TMDM” backend is designed to reflect the TMDM specification closely. In fact, it is much closer to the TMDM than to the internal legacy TM4J data model (which is based on the XTM 1.0 data model). This motivates a bridging layer between the TMDM and the XTM 1.0 data model. We emphasize how merging is implemented in the “TMDM” backend and conclude with somesynthetic merging benchmarks of the current “TMDM” backend prototype.