Understanding redundancy in UML models for object-oriented analysis

Abstract

A phenomenon that frequently appears when designers define analysis specifications is that of redundancy between models. A correct and deep understanding of this phenomenon is necessary to help the task of the designer. In this paper, we study the problem of redundancy in UML Models for Object-Oriented Analysis. In this context, we identify different kinds of redundancies that may arise. We evaluate the impact of redundancy in specifications from the point of view of their desirable properties. We also propose how to obtain a canonical analysis model, which does not include any of the identified redundancies, and we sketch the possibility of having redundant views of some aspects of the canonical model.