Models and representation of their ownership

Models, similar to other intellectual properties, are increasingly being treated as commodities worthy of protection. Providing ownership for models is key for promoting model reusability, composability, and distributed simulation. However, to date, it appears no principled approach has been developed to support ownership of models. Instead, individuals such as modelers and legal personnel employ ad hoc means to obtain and (re)use models developed and owned by others. In this article, we briefly describe access control capabilities offered by computer languages, operating systems, and HLA ownership management services. The examinations of such methods suggest the need for formal ownership specification. The article discusses, in an informal setting, requirements for model ownership from the point of view of increasing demand and necessity for model reuse, distributed simulation, and future trends for collaborative model development. We develop concepts for model ownership suitable for collaborative model development and distributed execution. Based on the developed concepts, we present an approach, within the DEVS modeling & simulation framework, for specifying model ownership. The article closes with the consideration of the proposed approach for the Collaborative DEVS Modeling environment and a brief discussion of HLA services relevant to model ownership.