Temporal Semantics of Compositional Task Models and Problem Solving Methods

Task models and problem solving methods can be specified informally or formally. In recent years various approaches have formalized their notion of task model or problem solving method. Most modelling approaches concentrate on the form of a task model or problem solving method rather than on their precise semantics; a formalisation is often only a syntactical formalisation. A more precise definition of the semantics requires explication of the control of a system’s behaviour. In this paper temporal semantics is defined for a compositional modelling approach to task models and problem solving methods. The semantics is a description of a compositional system’s behaviour; a temporal approach provides a means to describe the dynamics involved. The formalisation of the semantics is based on compositional three-valued temporal models. The compositional structure of information states, transitions and reasoning traces provides a transparant model of the system’s behaviour, both conceptually and formally.