KP-LAB Knowledge Practices Laboratory -- Specifications and Prototype of the Knowledge Repository (V.3.0) and the Knowledge Mediator (V.3.0)

deliverablesThis deliverable reports the technical and research development performed until M36 (January 2009) within tasks T5.2 and T5.4 of WP5 in the KP-Lab project, per the latest Description of Work (DoW) 3.2 [DoW3.2]. The described components are included in the KP-Lab Semantic Web Knowledge Middleware (SWKM) Prototype Release 3.0 software that takes place in M36. This release builds on the Prototype Release 2.0 that was presented in [D5.4]. The present deliverable includes both the specification, as well as the implementation details for the described components. The description of the features of the new functionalities is provided based on the motivating scenarios and the subsequent functional requirements. The focus and the high-level objective of the new services is the provision of improved scalability and modularity properties on the existing services, as well as improved management abilities upon conceptualizations. The implementation of the services is described by providing the related services signatures, their proper way of use, the accepted input parameters, as well as their preconditions and effects. Initially, we describe the Delete Service, which is a Knowledge Repository service allowing the removal of existing namespaces from the repository; such removal includes the deletion of the contents of said namespaces, as well as the deletion of any reference to the namespaces themselves that exists in the repository. This new service enhances SWKM management capabilities upon conceptualizations. Then, the Named Graphs functionality is described, which is a new feature that allows a very flexible modularization of the information found in RDF KBs. We describe in detail the semantics of this feature, as well as the offered capabilities for querying and updating RDF KBs that include modularization information (i.e., information on named graphs) and the implications from their use. Finally, in the context of the Knowledge Mediator, we present the Persistent Comparison Service, which is a variation of the existing (Main Memory) Comparison Service (see M24 release, [D5.3], [D5.4]); unlike the original version, the new service works exclusively on the persistent storage, guaranteeing improved scalability features