Contribuição a uma metodologia para identificação e especificação de padrões arquiteturais de software

Abstract

Although the concept of reuse is not new in software engineering, the awareness of its importance and its impact in the development of computational systems is not generalized yet. One of the main difficulties found by development companies is the absence of effective methods for software reuse. The researches on software engineering that focuses software reuse have generated increasing contributions in the form of paradigms (such as object orientation), concepts (such as domain and component), and methods, languages and processes. More recently, the concept of Pattern allowed new representation forms and the proposal of methods even more reuse-oriented. Software patterns named as Design Patterns and Programming Patterns (or Idioms) have been well explored at scientific literature. Representation models and examples related to these patterns type are found in articles and specialized books. The concept of Architectural Pattern, however, does not have the same maturity. This is a more including concept involving more extensive and complex models and techniques. Essentially, an Architectural Pattern is a generic model of a software solution to a determined domain. Its development may allow the reuse of all the architecture of a system in new similar projects. This work aims to offer a contribution for a methodology of Software Architectural Patterns identification and description. In order to achieve this objective, five typologies have been created to be employed as UML extension in the description of use cases, classes, sequences, states and components. This differentiated description aims to evidence, in the UML diagrams, variant, optional, and multiple pattern parts. These typologies are used in the developed metamodel for the architectural patterns description. The use of the metamodel, and consequently the use of typologies, is guided by the steps of a process, which was also created to serve as a guideline to accomplish the architectural pattern description.