A Model-Driven Environment for Service Design, Simulation and Prototyping

In this paper, we present an environment that contains tools for service design, simulation and prototyping. The main goal of this research is to provide the designer with a method for flexible service modeling. The models generated from this method are then simulated using the Alloy Analyzer tool, or prototyped in the given target language, like Java. In this way, the designer can analyze the behavior of the modeled services and verify if they satisfy business needs and requirements. At the heart of the environment is a flexible, semi-automatic, model-driven tool for designing business services and transforming them through multiple model layers to IT services by capturing the design decisions. The modeling language is based on predefined parametrized functional units. The applicability of this approach is demonstrated by a running example based on the consulting project we undertook at the General Ressort company.