TY - GEN
T1 - Introduction and Evaluation of Complexity Metrics for Network-based, Graphical IEC 61131-3 Programming Languages
AU - Wilch, Jan
AU - Fischer, Juliane
AU - Neumann, Eva Maria
AU - Diehm, Sebastian
AU - Schwarz, Michael
AU - Lah, Eric
AU - Wander, Matthias
AU - Vogel-Heuser, Birgit
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 IEEE.
PY - 2019/10
Y1 - 2019/10
N2 - The development of automated Production Systems (aPS) is an interdisciplinary process, where an increasing part of the system's functionality is realized in the respective control software. Such software projects commonly utilize programming languages standardized in IEC 61131-3. To measure, improve, and maintain source code while also promoting trust in its capabilities, an objective assessment of its characteristics is necessary. Software metrics are a means for such an evaluation. While there is an abundance of metrics available from the classical software engineering domain, these metrics focus on textual programming languages. IEC 61131-3, however, defines graphical languages, which are not targeted by renowned concepts in computer science. Besides, former research demonstrates that software engineering metrics for textual languages need adaption to be applicable in the aPS domain. Thus, this paper introduces a metrics suite consisting of adapted and newly developed measures, which focus on the graphical IEC 61131-3 language Function Block Diagram. The results are prototypically implemented in one of the leading integrated development environments for IEC 61131-3 and then evaluated regarding their understandability and applicability by practitioners at a German aPS manufacturer.
AB - The development of automated Production Systems (aPS) is an interdisciplinary process, where an increasing part of the system's functionality is realized in the respective control software. Such software projects commonly utilize programming languages standardized in IEC 61131-3. To measure, improve, and maintain source code while also promoting trust in its capabilities, an objective assessment of its characteristics is necessary. Software metrics are a means for such an evaluation. While there is an abundance of metrics available from the classical software engineering domain, these metrics focus on textual programming languages. IEC 61131-3, however, defines graphical languages, which are not targeted by renowned concepts in computer science. Besides, former research demonstrates that software engineering metrics for textual languages need adaption to be applicable in the aPS domain. Thus, this paper introduces a metrics suite consisting of adapted and newly developed measures, which focus on the graphical IEC 61131-3 language Function Block Diagram. The results are prototypically implemented in one of the leading integrated development environments for IEC 61131-3 and then evaluated regarding their understandability and applicability by practitioners at a German aPS manufacturer.
KW - Function Block Diagram
KW - IEC 61131-3
KW - automated Production Systems
KW - automatic code analysis
KW - graphical programming languages
KW - software metrics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85084063344&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/IECON.2019.8926726
DO - 10.1109/IECON.2019.8926726
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:85084063344
T3 - IECON Proceedings (Industrial Electronics Conference)
SP - 417
EP - 423
BT - Proceedings
PB - IEEE Computer Society
T2 - 45th Annual Conference of the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society, IECON 2019
Y2 - 14 October 2019 through 17 October 2019
ER -