Semantic Information Modeling for Federation

1. SIMF Semantic Information Modeling for Federation OMG Architecture Ecosystem SIG Federal CIO Council Data Architecture Subcommittee May 2011 Cory Casanave

2. Why a new standard for information modeling? • Proposition • Federation (information sharing, interoperability, shared services, etc.) is the problem of this decade – it is costing productivity, lives and billions of dollars annually. It is the pre-requisite to solving our problems in the large. • Yet • None of the standards we have directly target this problem. Not UML or OWL or E/R or SOA or DoDAF , etc. • They are all built for other purposes and “hacked” to solve the data problem. • Why? • And can we fix it?

3. A Strategic Opportunity • Today, message formats, vocabularies and enterprise information are closed and siloed • There is an opportunity • To help federate information for and about the enterprise and enterprise systems • To enable information and data modeling as an open and collaborative experience, tuned to the needs of stakeholders • To discover and reconcile concepts, entities and data throughout the enterprise and beyond. • To unify the knowledge in multiple tools, infrastructures and information resources • To enable the transformations, agility, efficiency, collaboration and automation we have been promising for years

4. OMG Architecture Ecosystem SIG • Focused on better integration of information, models and meta-models • Initiated to solve OMG problems with lack of integration between modeling languages • Progressed to addressing information federation • The model federation problem being a special case of information federation • Two Tracks • Solving UML specific issues with profiles and meta models • Semantic integration of information (SIMF)

5. Semantic Information Modeling for Federation (SIMF) • First stop on the roadmap, SIMF RFP (In draft) • Focus on conceptual modeling and federation • Unify different representations of the same thing based on semantic relations • Unify the multiple ways information is modeled • E/R & SQL • UML • XML Schema • OWL, Common Logic & RDF • ISO 11169 • Etc… • Unify information sharing • Don’t replace, federate !!!

6. SIMF Layers Missing Layer: Model Bridging Relations Subject focused conceptual models define the terms and concepts of a domain and can be related to each other (This is where OGV fits in) Kernel Conceptual Domain Models SIMF Scope Simple and composite logical information elements represent domain concepts and can use and extend other information Logical Information Models Physical data schema are grounded in logical data models which define their context and semantics Physical Data Schema

7. RFP Requirements • Modeling language (graphical and textual) encompassing • Conceptual domain modeling – capturing the terms and concepts of the domain, not of data. This is the semantics of the domain and our pivot point – it captures the vocabulary of the domain and could provide the modeling language for open government vocabularies. • Logical Information Modeling – capturing logical information models contextualizing domain concepts in technology independent representations. Leverage representation people know and understand. • Our assumption is that physical data modeling exists and we just need to link to it, so this is out of scope • Model bridging relations – federation across and between layers – connecting the dots • Semantically grounded kernel as the basis for federated modeling • Federation with existing models – UML. E/R, Schema, etc.

8. SIMF Target User • User target - Anyone who models or integrates information at rest or in transit • Examples • US Government Information Sharing [ISE]. • European Cooperation for Space Standardization • NIEM • Financial message interoperability (MDMI) • Master Data Management • Controlled vocabularies Summary – target the users who are tasked to solve the problem!

9. NIEM-UML • There is also a new OMG effort to standardize a UML profile for the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) • This will provide for the representation of NIEM exchange packages in UML, mapped to NIEM XML and other technology forms • NIEM has already defined concepts and data structures for exchange of information across multiple domains • The NIEL-UML RFP is expected to be presented at the next OMG meeting in June • DAS is invited to participate! • The NIEM effort would represent one of the physical data schema SIMF would federation – since no one schema standard will serve all purposes.

10. Engagement Needed • We need to establish the business case for the SIMF endeavor • We need to engage user, government, vendor and academic stakeholders and experts • We need to combine the vision of the semantic community with the pragmatic solutions of the software tooling community • We need to overcome the stagnation of the status-quo • We need your help to make this happen

11. Interested? • Participate! • Next step – refine RFP • Engage user & industry stakeholders • We invite the data modeling and ontology communities! • We have phone meetings every 2 weeks (Monday 11 AM EST) • Email list (Open to all) • Send email to “request at omg dot org” • Wiki • http://www.omgwiki.org/architecture-ecosystem/doku.php?id=semantic_information_modeling_for_federation_rfp Cory Casanave (AESIG Chair) • Cory dash c at modeldriven dot org • Discussion…