RIF/ReqIF (Requirements Interchange Format) is an

XML Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language and file format for storing, transmitting, and reconstructing data. It defines a set of rules for encoding electronic document, documents in a format that is both human-readable and Machine-r ...

file format that can be used to exchange requirements, along with its associated metadata, between software tools from different vendors. The requirements exchange format also defines a workflow for transmitting the status of requirements between partners. Although developed in the automotive industry, ReqIF is suitable for lossless exchange of requirements in any industry.

History

In 2004, HIS (Herstellerinitiative Software) a consortium of German automotive manufacturers, defined a generic requirements interchange format called RIF. The format was handed over in 2008 to ProSTEP iViP e.V. for further maintenance. A project group responsible for international standardization further developed the format and handed over a revised version to

Object Management Group The Object Management Group (OMG®) is a computer industry Standards Development Organization (SDO), or Voluntary Consensus Standards Body (VCSB). OMG develops enterprise integration and modeling standards for a range of technologies. Busin ...

(OMG) as "Request for Comment" in 2010. As the acronym RIF had an ambiguous meaning within the OMG, the new name ReqIF was introduced to separate it from the

W3C The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is the main international standards organization for the World Wide Web. Founded in 1994 by Tim Berners-Lee, the consortium is made up of member organizations that maintain full-time staff working together in ...

Rule Interchange Format The Rule Interchange Format (RIF) is a W3C Recommendation. RIF is part of the infrastructure for the semantic web, along with (principally) SPARQL, RDF and OWL. Although originally envisioned by many as a "rules layer" for the semantic web, in r ...

. In April 2011, the version 1.0.1 of ReqIF was adopted by OMG as a formal specification (OMG Document Number: formal/2011-04-02). In October 2013, version 1.1 was published (OMG Document Number: formal/2013-10-01). Changes are restricted to the text of the standard, the XML schema and underlying model have not changed. Therefore, 1.1 and 1.0.1 .reqif files are equivalent. In July 2016, version 1.2 was published (OMG Document Number: formal/2016-07-01). As with the previous versions, changes are restricted to the text of the standard, the XML schema and underlying model have not changed. Therefore, 1.2, 1.1 and 1.0.1 .reqif files are equivalent.

Features

ReqIF is an exchange file format for exchanging requirements, attributes, additional files (e.g. images) across a chain of manufacturers, suppliers, sub-suppliers and the like. A

GUID A Universally Unique Identifier (UUID) is a 128-bit label used to uniquely identify objects in computer systems. The term Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) is also used, mostly in Microsoft systems. When generated according to the standard methods ...

ensures unique identification of content across the process chain.

Application

Requirements are typically elicited during the early phase of product development. This is the primary application of ReqIF, as development across organizations is happening more and more often. ReqIF allows for sharing of requirements between partners, even if different tools are used. In contrast to formats like Word, Excel or PDF, ReqIF allows for a loss-free exchange. ReqIF was pioneered by automotive manufacturers, who started to demand the use of ReqIF in particular for the development of embedded controllers. ReqIF is also used as the underlying data model for tool implementations. This is particularly true for the ReqIF

Reference implementation In the software development process, a reference implementation (or, less frequently, sample implementation or model implementation) is a program that implements all requirements from a corresponding specification. The reference implementation ...

( Eclipse RMF), which is being used by an implementer forum, that aims to ensure interoperability of various ReqIF implementations. ReqIF Server is another tool that natively uses ReqIF.

Operation

RIF/ReqIF is a standardized meta-model, defined by an XML schema. Such files must conform to the schema and contain the description of the model (the datatypes), as well as the data. A successful data exchange between various tools only succeeds, if all parties agree on a

common data model A common data model (CDM) can refer to any standardised data model which allows for data and information exchange between different applications and data sources. Common data models aim to standardise logical infrastructure so that related applica ...

. The previously mentioned implementor forum is working on such a common model and also organizes tests with tools of the participating manufacturers, to ensure future interoperability.

Structure of ReqIF files

An OMG ReqIF file consists of XML with the root element , containing information regarding the file itself as well as the contained datatypes and requirements. The containers for requirements in ReqIF are called specification objects (), which have user-defined attributes. Each attribute has a data type, which is one of , , , , (with user-defined values) and XHTML, which is also for formatted text and embedded objects, including images. Some datatypes can be constrained further, e.g. the range of numerical values. Relationships between objects are represented as , which can also have attributes. At last, hierarchical trees create a structured view on SpecObjects, called . Multiple references on the same SpecObject are permitted. The structure of ReqIF is described in detail in the specification. There is also a free one-page reference of the data model availableReqIF Quick Reference
ReqIF.academy, as of 10.1.2016 {{registration required

References

External links

ProSTEP iViP page with Information and Specifications
(German)
Requirements Interchange Format (ReqIF): Request for Comments
(English)
OMG: Requirements Interchange Format (ReqIF) Specification
(English)
Free ReqIF viewer for Windows (no installation needed)
(English)
ReqIF.academy: Free library of ReqIF information (references, checklists, software, etc.)
(English)
reqifsharp: Free open-source ReqIF library for .NET
(English)
ReqEdit: ReqIF Tool for reading, writing, merging, comparing, importing from word, excel etc.
(English) XML Computer file formats Software requirements