Ontology-driven approach towards domain-specific system design

In practice, domain-specific modelling is intended for improved conceptualisation of a specific domain. Further, distinct parts of a large software system are modelled by different domain-specific modelling languages. This approach sometimes leads to the problem of poor semantics, interoperability and reusability of domain model concepts. However, ontology aids in common understanding of domain conceptualisation by providing enriched semantics. To address these issues, this paper proposes an upper level ontology called Generalised Ontology Modelling (GOM) which aims to facilitate formal realisation of crucial software design aspects such as structural, functional, behavioural and also evolving domain knowledge. In addition, to show the expressiveness of the proposed ontology, a domain-specific ontology for Reference Information Model (RIM) of Health Level 7 (HL7) standard is derived from GOM. Besides, the paper includes verification of several useful properties of the proposed GOM. Moreover, a detailed comparative analysis has been provided towards evaluation of the proposed GOM.