D.3 Implementation Suggestions
(1) This section suggests ways of graphically showing the system structure and topology. Because of the structure of the underlying formalisms, certain visualizations or views capture information that is particularly useful to the user. The examples given in this section are recommendations not requirements. A graphical toolset may include alternative views.
Package Library View
(2) An AADL model represents a system as a set of component type and implementation declarations. These declarations may be organized into packages and may have extends relationships. This organizational structure can be shown in a library view (see Figure 43). This library view may show the content of a package as component types and component implementations, and the extends and implements relationship (see Figure 26).
Figure 43 A Component Library View
(3) The nesting of package names may be simply reflected in the package name label, or the packages themselves may be shown as a hierarchy based in the name nesting.
System Instance Hierarchy
(4) Actual systems have an instance hierarchy. This system instance hierarchy is implicitly represented in the set of component types and component implementations with one system implementation identified as the root of the system instance. The subcomponents of this root system implementation represent the components making up the system, and the subcomponents contained in the component implementations of these subcomponents recursively identify the nested component instances.
(5) The system instance hierarchy may be shown as a hierarchical tree or as graphical structures. In Figure 44, the system hierarchy is shown in tree form with a solid line with a diamond at the container end showing the containment relationship. In Figure 45, the system hierarchy is shown as a nesting of the graphical symbols to reflect the containment. Both representations are permissible.
Figure 44 Tree-Structured Graphical Instance Hierarchy
Figure 45 Nested Graphical Instance Hierarchy
(6) In many cases navigational tree views for showing hierarchical structures are combined with a second panel showing the content of the selected item in the navigational tree. This allows the full instance hierarchy to be shown in the navigator and the currently selected element in a graphical layout (see Figure 46).
Figure 46 Instance Navigation & Graphical Viewer