2017 Bellairs CAMPaM workshop 
   

Welcome to the home page of the fourteenth Bellairs CAMPaM workshop.

The workshop aims to further the state-of-the-art in Computer Automated Multi-Paradigm Modelling (CAMPaM) as well as to define future directions of this emerging research area by bringing together world experts in the field for an intense one-week workshop.

The workshop will be held Friday 17 March (arrival) - Friday 24 March (departure) 2017 at McGill University's Bellairs campus. The actual workshop starts on Saturday morning and continues for 5 full days (until Wednesday evening). Although it is possible to depart on Thursday, most participants leave on Friday to do some sightseeing on Thursday (in particular, to visit Crane Beach).
The workshop takes the Dagstuhl seminar format --bring a critical mass of top researchers together in a relatively remote location and soon new ideas will flow-- one step further: the Bellairs facilities are relatively primitive (and cheap) and there are no distractions such as typically found in hotels.

Organizers:


During the CAMPaM week, McGill colleague Jörg Kienzle organizes a related workshop (on Language Reuse) at Bellairs, so there will be plenty of opportunities to interact with some very smart researchers, which opens the possibility for further collaborations and cross-fertilization. We typically organize joint evening demonstrations/presentation/discussions.


Workshop Subject

Computer Automated Multi-Paradigm Modelling (CAMPaM)

CAMPaM acknowledges that modelling is the central activity in and main enabler for the analysis and design of complex systems. Because of the heterogeneous nature of for example embedded systems and the many implementation technologies, Multi-Paradigm Modelling is a critical enabler for holistic design approaches (such as mechatronics), to avoid overdesign and to support system integration. Multi-paradigm techniques have been successfully applied in the field of software architectures, control system design, model integrated computing, and tool interoperability. Twelve CAMPaM workshops at Bellairs '04, '05, '06, '07, '08, '09, '10, '11, '12, '13, '14, '15, '16, many conference Multi-Paradigm Modelling (MPM) conference sessions and MoDELS '06 (Genoa), '07 (Nashville), '09 (Denver), '10 (Oslo), '11 (Wellington), '12 (Innsbruck), '13 (Miami), '14 (Valencia), '15 (Ottawa) workshops have been held. A special issue of the journal Simulation was devoted to CAMPaM, and COST Action IC1404 "Multi-Paradigm Modelling for Cyber-Physical Systems" (MPM4CPS) works on MPM solutions for the design of complex, Cyber-Physical Systems. A special issue of the ACM Transactions on Modeling and Computer Simulation (TOMACS) will be devoted to Multi-Paradigm Modelling. The call for contributions is expected end of 2017. See also the (very outdated) CAMPaM page for more related material.

Multi-Paradigm Modelling spans the study of physical as well as network and software systems, and combinations thereof. Such systems are now commonly known referred Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). It adresses and integrates three orthogonal research dimensions:
  1. model abstraction, concerned with the (refinement, generalization, ...) relationships between models at different levels of abstraction;

  2. multi-formalism modelling, concerned with the coupling of and transformation between models described in different formalisms.

  3. explicitly model the processes of multi-paradigm activities.
To support the above, the following enabling theories/methods/technologies are considered crucial:
  1. Modelling language engineering and in particular meta-modelling, concerned with the description (models of models) of classes of models. More explictly, the specification of formalisms (including their semantics -- note that language engineers usually reserve the term meta-model to a model of abstract syntax of a formalism). Taking meta-modelling one step further, the structure, look, and behaviour of complete formalism-specific modelling environments is specified and the environments are automatically synthesized.

  2. the explicit modelling of transformations, treating transformations as first-class models. This leads quite naturally to questions about (meta-)model evolution, higher-order transformations (transforming transformations), co-evolution of models, multi-view modelling and syntactic and semantic model consistency.
CAMPaM explores the possible combinations of the above notions. It combines, transforms and relates formalisms, generates maximally constrained domain- and problem-specific formalisms, methods, and (visual) tools, and verifies consistency between multiple views.

Workshop High-level Goals
  1. The diversity in the research subjects of the attendees provides a fertile ground for cross-correlating research. In particular, since 2008, several of the workshop participants are not Computer Science researchers, but rather domain-experts (mechanical engineering, embedded systems, ...). The result of this interaction will be the application of methods and techniques that are well-known and established in different fields of research (such as meta-modelling, graph transformation, domain-specific modelling, visual modelling environments and component-based modelling) and will lead to cross-disciplinary collaboration. Furthermore, it should make evident the need for advances of research along avenues otherwise overlooked.

  2. A concerted effort of the attendees will result in a consolidation of scattered CAMPaM-related work as well as a common vision on how to best evolve the field of CAMPaM. This vision will include detailed technical perspectives, joint publications, how Multi-Paradigm Modelling and Model-Driven Engineering may be introduced in education, as well as organizational plans.


Workshop Focus
This year, we plan to focus on (some of) the following subjects during the workshop. The actual topics are decided at Bellairs depending on the particular interests of the participants. (Note: the greyed out topics were not covered during the 2017 workshop).
  1. The relationships between systems/models and their context of validity. This further develops Zeigler's notion of Experimental Frame (further developed by Traoré and Muzy) into Experiment Frames and Validity Frames and develops validity-frame aware development processes. This relates to the design of modelling languages and model libraries which contain not only systems models but also explicit models of the context in which these models may be meaningfully (re-)used.
  2. Continue work of CAMPaM 2015 on the foundations of abstraction in the context of Cyber-Physical Systems (stepping outside the comfort zone of software abstractions).
  3. Contract-Based Design, how to model contracts, and their relationship with experiment and validity frames. This, both for white-box modelling and black-box (co-simulation) modelling.
  4. Foundations of domain-specific modelling with a particular focus on visual modelling and the modelling/formal analysis/simulation/synthesis of complex user interfaces.
  5. The modelling of MPM MBSE processes. In particular, investigate the integration and extension of development processes for heterogenous cyber-physical systems (containing interacting physical, network and software components) into agile, certification-supporting, ... collaborative development processes.
  6. Foundations of co-simulation. Co-simulation supports early-stage system-level evaluation of system properties, as required in agile MBSE. Of particular interest is the analysis of accuracy and stability of co-simulation algorithms.
  7. Foundations of multi-formalism modelling and simulation. In particular, transformation and execution/deployment frameworks for models using multiple Models of Computation (MoCs). A particular focus is on embedded and Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS).
  8. Modular design of hybrid modelling languages also known as "language weaving" (by explicitly modelling syntax, and above all semantics). The link with co-simulation, debugging, and "live modelling".

Since 2011, we mostly, in addition to a few general presentations, work in small groups (as few as 2 participants) on specific problems. The results are discussed globally during the evening sessions (7-10pm). Such focused discussion are likely to lead more directly to joint publications.

Workshop (high-level) Schedule
  • Friday: participants arrive and check into their rooms (after 15:00, luggage can be left in the meeting room if arriving earlier);
  • Saturday: introduction of participants (5 min per person). Workshop topic selection (from the above list). Possibly some plenary talks about some topics, to make selection easier;
  • Sunday: work in small groups on topics, refine and present in the evening;
  • Monday: afternoon off for glassbottom boat trip (starts at 14:00);
  • Tuesday: continue working in groups. Evening plenary talks;
  • Wednesday: participants leaving on Thursday pay 10:30 - 11:30. Working groups prepare and give presentations about their work and discuss planning for post-workshop work. Post-mortem analysis of the workshop. Leave at 17:00 for cocktails at Surfside;
  • Thursday: participants leaving on Friday pay 10:30 - 11:30. Crane Beach/Oistins turtles and dinner/bus ride (or other alternatives such as island tour). Some participants depart;
  • Friday: participants check out of their rooms by 11:00 and depart.
Maintained by Hans Vangheluwe. Last Modified: 2017/04/22 11:36:59.