Information-flow Interfaces

Ezio Bartocci, Thomas Ferrère, Thomas A. Henzinger, Dejan Nickovic, Ana Oliveira da Costa

Abstract: Contract-based design is a promising methodology for taming the complexity of developing sophisticated systems. A formal contract distinguishes between assumptions, which are constraints that the designer of a component puts on the environments in which the component can be used safely, and guarantees, which are promises that the designer asks from the team that implements the component. A theory of formal contracts can be formalized as an interface theory, which supports the composition and refinement of both assumptions and guarantees.