ModelSet: a dataset for machine learning in model-driven engineering

Abstract

The application of machine learning (ML) algorithms to address problems related to model-driven engineering (MDE) is currently hindered by the lack of curated datasets of software models. There are several reasons for this, including the lack of large collections of good quality models, the difficulty to label models due to the required domain expertise, and the relative immaturity of the application of ML to MDE. In this work, we present ModelSet, a labelled dataset of software models intended to enable the application of ML to address software modelling problems. To create it we have devised a method designed to facilitate the exploration and labelling of model datasets by interactively grouping similar models using off-the-shelf technologies like a search engine. We have built an Eclipse plug-in to support the labelling process, which we have used to label 5,466 Ecore meta-models and 5,120 UML models with its category as the main label plus additional secondary labels of interest. We have evaluated the ability of our labelling method to create meaningful groups of models in order to speed up the process, improving the effectiveness of classical clustering methods. We showcase the usefulness of the dataset by applying it in a real scenario: enhancing the MAR search engine. We use ModelSet to train models able to infer useful metadata to navigate search results. The dataset and the tooling are available at https://figshare.com/s/5a6c02fa8ed20782935c and a live version at http://modelset.github.io.