Active Meta Objects as Mediators for Ad-Hoc Federated Systems

Federated systems, built up from heterogeneous systems, require a basic level of interoperability among the component data sources. They should also have a reasonable degree of functionality similar to that of database management systems, e.g., support for queries. However, this requires the resolution of conflicts among dissimilar components while exercising weak central control to preserve the component systems' local autonomy. This report discusses our interoperability solution based on ad-hoc federations using a mediation system of active meta objects. Our approach is also designed to be extensible to include semi-structured and unstructured data sources. We also designed our solution to adhere to established and emerging technology standards, e.g. the Extended Markup Language (XML), the Meta Object Facility (MOF). We also combine sound transaction processing and agent system concepts for coordinating and controlling component interaction. We will show that our approach is feasible based on the results of a prototyping effort.