Rule Module Inheritance with Modification Restrictions

TL;DR

This paper introduces a formal framework for inheriting and modifying rule modules with restrictions to prevent uncontrolled variations, using Datalog+/- as the rule language, demonstrated through a prototype.

Contribution

It formalizes inheritance of rule modules with modification restrictions, enhancing reuse and controlled adaptation in rule management systems.

Findings

Formal inheritance of rule modules defined

Modification restrictions regulate variation

Prototype demonstrates practical feasibility

Abstract

Adapting rule sets to different settings, yet avoiding uncontrolled proliferation of variations, is a key challenge of rule management. One fundamental concept to foster reuse and simplify adaptation is inheritance. Building on rule modules, i.e., rule sets with input and output schema, we formally define inheritance of rule modules by incremental modification in single inheritance hierarchies. To avoid uncontrolled proliferation of modifications, we introduce formal modification restrictions which flexibly regulate the degree to which a child module may be modified in comparison to its parent. As concrete rule language, we employ Datalog+/- which can be regarded a common logical core of many rule languages. We evaluate the approach by a proof-of-concept prototype.