Extending Feature Models with Types

Abstract

Feature models are diagrams representing the variability of a product. While they are beneficial in reducing time, costs, and risks, their application in several problem areas remains unexplored. For example, in the financial domain, feature models could be leveraged to represent the variability of complex financial products and aid users in managing them. However, existing feature modeling approaches have limitations w.r.t. representing large products with complex features. To address some of these limitations, this work proposes a new approach called typed feature modeling, which extends the expressiveness of feature modeling by associating features with types that cover specified or infinite domains. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach by applying it to represent complex financial products that follow a commonly used industry standard. Additionally, we present an interactive tool for typed feature modeling containing an implementation of the financial use case and demonstrate how it can assist users in managing their financial products.