A Framework for Automatic Monitoring of Norms that regulate Time Constrained Actions

TL;DR

This paper introduces T-NORM, a formal framework using OWL 2 for modeling and automatically monitoring norms related to time-constrained actions, enabling reasoning about norm violations and fulfillments.

Contribution

The paper presents T-NORM, a novel formal model for expressing and reasoning about temporal norms, integrating OWL 2 and rule-based semantics for automatic norm violation detection.

Findings

OWL reasoning can determine norm violations or fulfillments.

T-NORM effectively formalizes obligations, prohibitions, permissions, and exemptions.

The framework supports automated monitoring of time-constrained actions.

Abstract

This paper addresses the problem of proposing a model of norms and a framework for automatically computing their violation or fulfilment. The proposed T-NORM model can be used to express abstract norms able to regulate classes of actions that should or should not be performed in a temporal interval. We show how the model can be used to formalize obligations and prohibitions and for inhibiting them by introducing permissions and exemptions. The basic building blocks for norm specification consists of rules with suitably nested components. The activation condition, the regulated actions, and the temporal constrains of norms are specified using the W3C Web Ontology Language (OWL 2). Thanks to this choice, it is possible to use OWL reasoning for computing the effects that the logical implication between actions has on norms fulfilment or violation. The operational semantics of the T-NORM model is specified by providing an unambiguous procedure for translating every norm and every exception into production rules.