Simply Model
Domain Knowledge

Ontologies provide a common information model
for highly interoperable systems

Enabling Cross-Industry Semantic Interoperability

A key challenge to digital transformation is the ability to enable end-to-end interoperability across different industries, each having its own environments and interdependent use cases. BEAMable^™ systems are coupled to BEAMable ontologies that can be distributed to all subscribers in real-time as concepts evolve - from a top-level cross-industry ontology to domain-specific extensions developed by domain experts and artificial intelligence. Thousands of tables and columns within a legacy ERP system can be simplified into a few hundred ontology classes and attributes.

The Object Model
Classify and Describe

BEAMable ontologies are based on an Object Model that provides a hierarchy of cross-domain classes. Each class represents a general category of like objects with common attributes. Collectively, these classes represent physical objects, information objects, and ontology objects themselves. The Object Model is abstracted away from any object-oriented programming language (e.g., Java).

Design Principles ＞

The Data Model
Store and Distribute

BEAMable ontologies are stored and distributed as BEAM Events, where each event describes one attribute of one object at a point in time. This time-stamped canonical Data Model incorporates decentralized identifiers for ontology concepts. BEAMable ontologies and BEAM events offer a simplified, machine-optimized alternative to OWL ontologies and RDF statements, while BEAM-RDF converters maintain compatibility.

BEAM Object Model

Design Principles

The BEAM Object Model incorporates the following design principles:

Each class (concept) is defined to reflect the attributes, restrictions, and relationships unique to its objects.
A class may be a subclass (type) of another class, forming a class hierarchy that can be as deep as needed.
All subclasses inherit the attributes of its upper (super) class. For example, “Subclass 1” inherits “Attribute 10” and “Attribute 11” of “Class 1”.
An attribute is attached at the most general class applicable to all its objects, including subclasses.
Since all classes are types of objects, the class hierarchy has one root class which comprises attributes that are inherited by all objects. (Subclass 1” also inherits “Attribute 1” and “Attribute 2” of the Object class.)
Each object is an instance of its class (“Object 1” and “Object 2” are instances of “Subclass 1”), and comprises values representing the state of attributes within its class and those it inherits.

Ontology Model

BEAMable^™

SHARED CONCEPTS FOR MODELING ONTOLOGIES

The BEAMable Ontology Model models itself along with all top-level classes and domain-specific subclasses. It provides an extensible abstraction layer to support interoperable application services and metadata introspection. While the information model parallels object-oriented programming, it represents an abstraction from programming. The metadata representing the ontology can be maintained in a repository (e.g., BEAM Event ledger) completely abstracted from any programming environment.

Attribute

The top-level Attribute class represents any characteristic applicable to all instances of a specific class, including the Attribute class itself. An attribute instance is contained within the most general class applicable to all its objects, including subclasses.

Class

The top-level Class class represents classes themselves. Class instances inherit the attributes of upper (super) classes. Collectively, class instances define the hierarchical structure of the Common Ontology and domain-specific ontologies.

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Data Type

The Data Type class represents atomic types of data (Boolean, number, string), classified based on their data size, possible values and operations, and method of persistence.

Enumerator

The top-level Enumerator class represents named values contained within instances of the Enumeration class (a Data Type subclass).

Term

The top-level Term class represents words and phrases within a controlled vocabulary that are used to provide well-defined, human-readable meaning to classes and attributes, including the Term class itself. The Term class comprises an attribute for each human language to provide National Language Support for global applications.

Unit

The top-level Unit class represents any standardized quantity used as a factor to express occurring values of an attribute assigned to the Quantity data type. Conversion Factor and Offset attributes contained within the Unit class support a unit conversion process.

System Model

BEAMable^™

SHARED CONCEPTS FOR MODELING SYSTEMS

The BEAMable System Model can model businesses, devices, and humans as systems and subsystems that can connect and interact in real-time, forming a complete, interdependent and interoperable ecosystem. Each constituent system can be defined as independently operable, but can be connected for a period of time to achieve a certain higher goal.

System

The top-level System class represents any regularly interacting or interdependent group of objects forming a unified whole. Every system is delineated by its spatial and temporal boundaries, surrounded and influenced by its environment, described by its structure and purpose, and expressed in its processes.

Process

The top-level Process class represents an action within a system that produces one or more events (state changes) from one or more triggering events. Each System instance can contain a collection of Process instances. A process can consume events based on its rules and produce events from its actions.

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Rule

The top-level Rule class represents a state that influences the triggering of a process. Each process can contain a collection of rules.

Commerce Ontology

BEAMable^™

SHARED CONCEPTS FOR INTEROPERABLE COMMERCE SYSTEMS

The BEAMable Commerce Ontology facilitates interoperable e-commerce and supply chain management across industries by ensuring that foundational terms and concepts are used in a unified and semantically compatible manner. The ontology supports parties that offer products and services that are exchanged and performed at locations and governed by agreements.

Agreement

The top-level Agreement class represents any negotiated and typically legally binding arrangement between parties as to a course of action. Its Party attribute identifies one party, while the Owning Party attribute of the root object identifies another party in the agreement.

Asset

The top-level Asset class represents resources or supplies that can be traded, transformed, used, or consumed to produce benefit. A production unit usually begins as an inventory asset of the manufacturer and transitions to an equipment asset of a customer.

Location

The top-level Location class represents any place or geographic position with subclasses supporting geolocation containment, as well as space subdivisions within a building. The Site subclass includes unique attributes supporting a postal address.

Offering

The top-level Offering class and subclasses classify products and services based on their essential attributes and their relationships to related offerings. This hierarchy enables trading partners to group offering instances in the same manner for comparisons across multiple e-commerce sites.

Party

The top-level Party class comprises Person and Organization subclasses, enabling a single class to assume one or more roles and legal ownership of physical and informational objects. The Organization class supports containment of one organization within another. Every object is owned by a party.

Event

The top-level Event class represents any occurrence happening at a determinable time, with or without the participation of humans. Event subclasses represent many commerce-related occurences including inventory movements and transformations. BEAM Event is a special subclass that comprises immutable objects.

Aligning Consortia Ontologies

ControlBEAM provides guidance to several industry consortia developing common ontologies, including Object Management Group (OMG), Airport Council International (ACI), and BrickSchema. By aligning concepts and semantic identifiers to a top-level ontology, business and device systems will evolve to enable the highest level of interoperability across all interdependent industries.

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ControlBEAM Helps OMG Develop a Retail Ontology

ControlBEAM is helping the Object Management Group (OMG) develop a retail ontology that aligns with a cross-industry commerce model and provides retail-specific extensions. OMG's Retail Task Force is developing and promoting standardized retail business models and practices that foster a shared understanding of retail business principles, terminology and data between retailers and their suppliers.

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ControlBEAM Collaborates with Airport Consortium to Align Top-Level Ontologies

ControlBEAM is collaborating with Airport Council International (ACI) to align top-level, cross-industry ontology concepts that will extend interoperability to all airport and partner systems impacting the passenger experience, including retail, food service, public transport, and public safety. ACI has over 600 members operating nearly 2,000 airports globally.

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ControlBEAM's Building Ontology Aligns With Consortia Initiatives

ControlBEAM is aligning building ontology concepts with Brick Schema and including semantic identifiers from Project Haystack within the BEAMable Building Ontology. The ASHRAE BACnet committee, Project Haystack and the Brick initiative are actively collaborating to integrate Haystack tagging and Brick data modeling concepts into the new proposed ASHRAE Standard 223P for semantic tagging of building data.

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