A Channel Theory based 2-Step Approach to Semantic Alignment in a Complex Environment

This article shows a novel approach to semantically align two domain contexts in a distributed system based on the theory of Information Flow [1], also known as Channel Theory. In this article, we propose a 2-step approach to cope with the increasing complexity in constructing the channels, when the channel theory is applied in a complex environment, for example in the area of smart manufacturing. We describe why the methods that had been used so far for constructing the channel might not be suitable for such a complex environment and introduce the main components of our approach. Furthermore, we are explaining how these components work together by using an example from the manufacturing area where product specifications have to be aligned with the production capabilities of manufacturing equipment. Within this example, in the first step a high-level description of production steps is mapped to production processes, and in the second step, a detailed description of the production steps in question is mapped to available equipment and tooling that is related to the filtered production processes from step 1.