Consistency Rules for UML-based Domain-specific Language Models: A Literature Review

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) has become a popular implementation vehicle for domain-specific modeling languages (DSMLs). A UML-based DSML is typically defined by multiple specification artifacts, i.e. inter-related models, describing different views on the DSML. These separate, yet interrelated models are potential sources of specification inconsistencies which bear a high risk of affecting all subsequent DSML development phases (e.g., platform integration). In a large-scale literature review of more than 8,000 publications, we collected evidence on consistency-rule usage for 84 UML-based DSML designs. In this paper, we report on the identified patterns of consistency-rule usage (e.g., rule formalization, rule scopes, and supported development activities) and specification defects which challenge the use of consistency rules in DSML specifications.