Continuous Ontology Assurance through External Resources -- An Ontology Engineering Method with a Case Study in Software Language Engineering
Organizations: University of Koblenz, Faculty of Computer Science, Koblenz, Germany
Abstract
Domain ontologies require review against knowledge recorded in evolving external resources. We propose COATER, a method that manages executable review components called arrows. Each arrow compares a scoped part of an ontology with a relevant resource and reports support or challenges to its axioms. Challenges may prompt proposals for completion, correction, or restructuring and become tasks for human or agent-assisted triage. Per-axiom coverage summarizes the assessments. We illustrate COATER with the FSL ontology in software language engineering (SLE): arrows review language coverage, language conceptualization, and software-engineering activities. An LLM-assisted linkage exercise increases compliance with a defined Wikipedia-linkage policy from 405 to 600 of 600 entities. A structured catalogue of SLE resources organizes review opportunities.
Figures & tables
| External-resource situation | Assessment | Typical revision proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Resource corroborates ontology content | support | none |
| Resource provides contrary evidence | challenge | correction |
| Resource provides positive evidence for content missing from the ontology | challenge | completion |
| Resource provides evidence of inadequate conceptual organization | challenge | restructuring |
| Resource is silent, and coverage is unknown or incomplete | uncovered | none |
| Resource is silent, but coverage is assumed complete for this axiom type | challenge | correction |
Software Engineering
Software engineering studies how to design, build, test, deploy, and maintain reliable software systems and the processes behind them.
See all 270 papers