Using logic to solve the submodule construction problem

Submodule construction is the problem of finding a new submodule which, together with a given submodule, provides a behavior that conforms to a given desired global behavior. A new formulation of this problem and its solution in first-order logic is presented, and it is shown how the known solutions to this problem in the context of various communication paradigms and specification formalisms can be derived. Communication paradigms are: synchronous rendezvous at several interfaces; interleaved rendezvous; input/output automata with complete or partial behavior specifications and with synchronous or interleaved communication. A new algorithm for deriving a progressive solution is also presented.