OpenL Tablets
Encyclopedia
OpenL Tablets is a business rule management system (BRMS) and a business rules engine
(BRE) based on table representation of rules. Engine implements optimized sequential algorithm. OpenL includes such table types as decision table
, decision tree
, spreadsheet
-like calculator.
.
First it was only Open Source
business rule
engine for Java
. Starting from version 5 it evolved into BRMS
.
s and uses table rules presentation. Table format enforces rules to be structured and format itself is close to tables found in various business documents.
OpenL Tablets is based on OpenL framework for creating custom languages running on Java VM. The engine is designed to allow pluggable language implementations. Currently, it uses 2 languages: table structure for rules format and java-like for code snippets in rules. Java-like language is Java
5.0 implementation with Business User Extensions.
OpenL Tablets rules are mixture of declarative programming
for rules logic and imperative programming
for workflow control. Table formats are flexible enough to match the semantics of the problem domain.
Tests, traces, benchmarks are integral part of the engine. It also provides powerful type definition capabilities to handle rules domain model inside rules files.
The project is written in Java
, but can be used at any platform using Service-oriented architecture
approach, e.g. via web service
.
There are usages of OpenL Tablets which may be patented.
Business rules engine
A business rules engine is a software system that executes one or more business rules in a runtime production environment. The rules might come from legal regulation , company policy , or other sources...
(BRE) based on table representation of rules. Engine implements optimized sequential algorithm. OpenL includes such table types as decision table
Decision table
Decision tables are a precise yet compact way to model complicated logic.Decision tables, like flowcharts and if-then-else and switch-case statements, associate conditions with actions to perform, but in many cases do so in a more elegant way....
, decision tree
Decision tree
A decision tree is a decision support tool that uses a tree-like graph or model of decisions and their possible consequences, including chance event outcomes, resource costs, and utility. It is one way to display an algorithm. Decision trees are commonly used in operations research, specifically...
, spreadsheet
Spreadsheet
A spreadsheet is a computer application that simulates a paper accounting worksheet. It displays multiple cells usually in a two-dimensional matrix or grid consisting of rows and columns. Each cell contains alphanumeric text, numeric values or formulas...
-like calculator.
History
The OpenL Tablets project was started as in-house development in 2003 and later in 2006 registered at SourceForgeSourceForge
SourceForge Enterprise Edition is a collaborative revision control and software development management system. It provides a front-end to a range of software development lifecycle services and integrates with a number of free software / open source software applications .While originally itself...
.
First it was only Open Source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
business rule
Business rule
A Business rule is a statement that defines or constrains some aspect of the business and always resolves to either true or false. Business rules are intended to assert business structure or to control or influence the behavior of the business. Business rules describe the operations, definitions...
engine for Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
. Starting from version 5 it evolved into BRMS
BRMS
A BRMS or Business Rule Management System is a software system used to define, deploy, execute, monitor and maintain the variety and complexity of decision logic that is used by operational systems within an organization or enterprise...
.
Technology
OpenL Tablets engine is specially designed for business ruleBusiness rule
A Business rule is a statement that defines or constrains some aspect of the business and always resolves to either true or false. Business rules are intended to assert business structure or to control or influence the behavior of the business. Business rules describe the operations, definitions...
s and uses table rules presentation. Table format enforces rules to be structured and format itself is close to tables found in various business documents.
OpenL Tablets is based on OpenL framework for creating custom languages running on Java VM. The engine is designed to allow pluggable language implementations. Currently, it uses 2 languages: table structure for rules format and java-like for code snippets in rules. Java-like language is Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
5.0 implementation with Business User Extensions.
OpenL Tablets rules are mixture of declarative programming
Declarative programming
In computer science, declarative programming is a programming paradigm that expresses the logic of a computation without describing its control flow. Many languages applying this style attempt to minimize or eliminate side effects by describing what the program should accomplish, rather than...
for rules logic and imperative programming
Imperative programming
In computer science, imperative programming is a programming paradigm that describes computation in terms of statements that change a program state...
for workflow control. Table formats are flexible enough to match the semantics of the problem domain.
Tests, traces, benchmarks are integral part of the engine. It also provides powerful type definition capabilities to handle rules domain model inside rules files.
The project is written in Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
, but can be used at any platform using Service-oriented architecture
Service-oriented architecture
In software engineering, a Service-Oriented Architecture is a set of principles and methodologies for designing and developing software in the form of interoperable services. These services are well-defined business functionalities that are built as software components that can be reused for...
approach, e.g. via web service
Web service
A Web service is a method of communication between two electronic devices over the web.The W3C defines a "Web service" as "a software system designed to support interoperable machine-to-machine interaction over a network". It has an interface described in a machine-processable format...
.
Patents
The OpenL Tablets engine has patent pending validation feature.There are usages of OpenL Tablets which may be patented.
BRMS
OpenL Tablets includes several productivity tools and applications addressing BRMS related capabilities. They include web application to edit rules called OpenL Webstudio, web application to deploy rules as web services, Rules repository to store and manage rules, Eclipse plug-ins to work with rules projects.Related systems
- CLIPSCLIPSCLIPS is a public domain software tool for building expert systems. The name is an acronym for "C Language Integrated Production System." The syntax and name was inspired by Charles Forgy's OPS...
: public domain software tool for building expert systems. - d3webD3webd3web is a free, open-source platform for knowledge-based systems .Its core is written in Java using XML and/or Office-based formats for the knowledge storage....
: free, open-source platform for knowledge-based systems (expert systems). - ILOG rulesILOGILOG is an international software company owned by IBM. It creates enterprise software products for supply chain, business rule management, visualization and optimization....
: a business rule management system. - JBoss DroolsDroolsDrools is a business rule management system with a forward chaining inference based rules engine, more correctly known as a production rule system, using an enhanced implementation of the Rete algorithm....
: a business rule management system (BRMS). - JESSJess programming languageJess is a rule engine for the Java platform - it is a superset of CLIPS programming language, developed by Ernest Friedman-Hill of Sandia National Labs. It was first written in late 1995....
: a rule engine for the Java platform - it is a superset of CLIPSCLIPSCLIPS is a public domain software tool for building expert systems. The name is an acronym for "C Language Integrated Production System." The syntax and name was inspired by Charles Forgy's OPS...
programming language. - PrologPrologProlog is a general purpose logic programming language associated with artificial intelligence and computational linguistics.Prolog has its roots in first-order logic, a formal logic, and unlike many other programming languages, Prolog is declarative: the program logic is expressed in terms of...
: a general purpose logic programming language. - DTRulesDTRulesDTRules is Open Sourced Rules Engine written entirely in Java. DTRules executes Decision tables directly, and utilizes a Domain Specific Language for expressing the conditions and actions within the Decision Tables....
: a Decision Table based, open-sourced rule engine for Java.