Concept-oriented software engineering system and method for identifying, extracting, organizing, inferring and querying software system facts

A computer-implemented method, comprising:

• receiving at least one cross-artifact relationship definition;
• identifying at least one cross-artifact relationship between a first concept instance extracted from a first software system artifact of a software system and a second concept instance extracted from a second software system artifact of a software system, the identification based on the at least one cross-artifact relationship definition, wherein the first concept instance and the second concept instance are specific instantiations of at least one identified concept associated with the software system;
• and
• storing the at least one cross-artifact relationship in one or more repositories, wherein the at least one cross-artifact relationship specifies a relationship type that relates the identified concept to the first concept instance and the second concept instance.

One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing a data structure, the data structure comprising:

• one or more concepts associated with a software system;
• one or more relationship types, respective of the relationship types having one or more terms;
• for respective of the relationship types, one or more role definitions associated with the one or more terms of the respective relationship type, respective of the role definitions defining the permissible concepts and/or concept instances that can represent the term associated with the respective role definition for the respective relationship type;
• and one or more relationships based on the one or more concepts and/or the one or more concept instances, the one or more relationships comprising a cross-artifact relationship between a first concept instance of the one or more concept instances and a second concept instance of the one or more concept instances, wherein the cross-artifact relationship specifies a relationship type of the one or more relationship types that relates a concept of the one or more concepts to the first concept instance and the second concept instance.

A computer-implemented method comprising:

• receiving a plurality of concept instances comprising a first concept instance extracted from a first software system artifact of a software system and a second concept instance extracted from a second software system artifact of a software system, wherein the first software system artifact and the second software system artifact are associated with a first formal language and a second formal language respectively;
• identifying one or more relationships comprising a cross-artifact relationship between the first concept instance and the second concept instance or a relationship between at least one of the first concept instance or the second concept instance and at least one identified concept associated with the software system or a relationship between an intentional concept of a software system and the at least one identified concept of the software system or a relationship between the internal concept and the first concept instance, at least one of the one or more relationships having an associated relationship type, the associated relationship type having one or more terms, respective of the terms having an associated role indicating permissible concepts and/or concept instances that may be used for the respective term, wherein the cross-artifact relationship specifies the relationship type that relates the at least one identified concept to the first concept instance and the second concept instance;
• and
• identifying the at least one concept associated with the software system and the intentional concept of the software system;
• extracting at least the first concept instance and the second concept instance from the first software system artifact and the second software system artifact, respectively;
• storing the at least one concept associated with the software system, the first concept instance and the second concept instance, the intentional concept, the one or more relationships, the relationship type and the roles associated with the one or more terms of the relationship type in one or more repositories.

At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions for causing a computer system programmed thereby to performed a method comprising:

• receiving a plurality of concept instances comprising a first concept instance extracted from a first software system artifact of a software system and a second concept instance extracted from a second software system artifact of a software system, wherein the first software system artifact and the second software system artifact are associated with a first formal programming language and a second formal programming language respectively, and the first concept instance and the second concept instance are specific instantiations of at least one identified concept associated with the software system;
• identifying one or more relationships comprising a cross-artifact relationship between the first concept instance and the second concept instance or a relationship between at least one of the first concept instance or the second concept instance and at least one identified concept associated with the software system;
• and storing at least one of the one or more relationships comprising a the cross-artifact relationship between the first concept instance and the second concept instance in one or more repositories, wherein the cross-artifact relationship specifies a relationship type that relates the identified concept to the first concept instance and the second concept instance, the relationship type having one or more terms, at least one term of the one or more terms having an associated role indicating the first concept instance as being permissible for the at least one term of the one or more terms.

A computer, comprising:

• at least one processor;
• and
• memory storing computer-executable instructions defining:
• a programming module configured to receive a plurality of concept instances comprising a first concept instance extracted from a first software system artifact of a software system and a second concept instance extracted from a second software system artifact of a software system, wherein the first software system artifact and the second software system artifact are associated with a first formal language and a second formal language respectively, and the first concept instance and the second concept instance are specific instantiations of at least one identified concept associated with the software system;
• a programming module configured to identify one or more relationships comprising a cross-artifact relationship between the first concept instance and the second concept instance or a relationship between at least one of the first concept instance or the second concept instance and at least one identified concept associated with the software system;
• and
• a programming module configured to store at least one of the one or more relationships comprising the cross-artifact relationship between the first concept instance and the second concept instance in one or more repositories, wherein the cross-artifact relationship specifies a relationship type that relates the identified concept to the first concept instance and the second concept instance.