Methodological guidelines for matching ontologies

Abstract

Finding alignments between ontologies is a very important operation for ontology engineering. It allows for establishing links between ontologies, either to integrate them in an application or to relate developed ontologies to context. It is even more critical for networked ontologies. Incorrect alignments may lead to unwanted consequences throughout the whole network, and incomplete alignments may fail to provide the expected consequences. Yet, there is no well-established methodology available for matching ontologies. We propose methodological guidelines that build on previously disconnected results and experiences.