Towards formal verification of UML diagrams based on graph transformation

In this paper, a meta-level and highly automated technique that could formally transform UML diagrams for verification is presented. Firstly, the meta-model hierarchical structure of UML is reviewed and the relationships among different UML diagrams are analyzed from different views. An approach for transforming and verifying UML statechart diagrams is developed based on graph transformation. This approach can be used to transform UML diagrams to Petri-nets while preserving dynamic consistency properties Finally, the approach is validated through a case study.