DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13955565
title: Design of an Ontology-Driven Constraint Tester (ODCT) and Application to SAREF & Smart Energy Appliances: Datasets, SHACL Shapes, Demo Video of Web Application, and Detailed Performance Reports

description: Description

This repository presents the resources used for validating the compliance of smart energy appliances against the Smart Appliances REFerence (SAREF) ontology and its extension SAREF4ENER, as part of the Ontology-Driven Constraint Tester (ODCT) project. The ODCT tool is specifically designed to ensure semantic interoperability and adherence to standardized ontological frameworks, which are crucial for integrating smart devices into modern energy management systems.

ODCT Overview

The Ontology-Driven Constraint Tester (ODCT) is a robust framework created to validate datasets against ontologies defined by SAREF and SAREF4ENER, both established under ETSI SmartM2M. This tool has been applied to the Flexible Start use case from the Joint Research Centre’s (JRC) Code of Conduct for Energy Smart Appliances. The ODCT tool ensures that smart devices like energy-efficient washing machines, thermostats, and connected lighting operate in compliance with established ontologies, thereby enhancing their interoperability within energy management systems and smart grids.

Repository Contents

This repository contains essential resources used in the ODCT compliance testing process:





Compliant Dataset: This dataset represents a fully compliant scenario where no errors are present in the smart energy appliances’ profiles, demonstrating the ODCT’s accuracy under ideal conditions.




Modified Datasets: These datasets introduce various types of errors to showcase ODCT’s ability to handle diverse compliance scenarios:



Modified Dataset 1: Introduces type mismatches and spelling errors in key attributes.

Modified Dataset 2: Contains extraneous properties and missing required properties, including details about energy consumption and efficiency class.

Modified Dataset 3: Includes both extraneous and missing properties, and additional priority levels for energy profiles.





SHACL Shapes: The SHACL shapes used in the compliance testing for both SAREF and SAREF4ENER ontologies are included in this repository to allow reproducibility of the validation process.







Error Detection Results and Performance Reports: After conducting compliance tests using ODCT we got the Results and Performance Reports, the repository includes comprehensive reports detailing the results. These reports highlight the types of errors detected and provide a performance analysis of the tool under various scenarios.




Demonstration Video: A video is provided to guide users through the ODCT web application, showcasing how the tool detects errors and generates detailed compliance reports based on smart energy appliance datasets.



Background

The integration of smart energy appliances into modern power grids is key to improving energy management and supporting sustainability goals like the European Green Deal. However, ensuring that these devices communicate effectively and conform to standardized protocols is a challenge. The ODCT tool addresses this challenge by providing a rigorous, ontology-based validation framework that is both protocol-agnostic and technology-flexible.

This work is grounded in the broader context of global warming and the need for energy efficiency and demand-side flexibility in energy systems. By ensuring compliance with SAREF and SAREF4ENER, ODCT supports the EU’s ambitions for carbon neutrality by 2050, contributing to a connected, efficient, and sustainable energy ecosystem.

Methodology

ODCT uses a structured methodology that involves:



Generating relevant datasets for validation.

Defining SHACL shape constraints based on ontologies.

Developing a user-friendly web application to facilitate compliance testing.

Performing compliance tests that validate datasets against SHACL shapes, ensuring interoperability and adherence to energy management standards.


Why It Matters

Researchers and developers working on smart energy appliances will benefit from ODCT by:



Ensuring their devices meet standardized ontological requirements for interoperability.

Reducing compliance issues in the development phase, leading to smoother integration into energy management systems.

Supporting the sustainability efforts by enhancing device communication in smart grids.


This repository showcases the potential of ODCT in fostering data accuracy, semantic interoperability, and compliance with essential energy standards. It offers comprehensive resources for furthering research and development in the field of smart energy appliances and energy management.