Features

Features define the structural relationships between classes. Unlike variables (which hold runtime state), features are resolved during instantiation and eliminated during flattening; they do not exist at runtime.

Feature Kinds

Kind	Meaning
contains	The class owns instances of the target type.
refers	A cross-reference to instances owned elsewhere.
container	The reverse of contains; must be paired via opposite.
derived refers	A reference whose value is derived from the model structure.
features	An abstract feature that subclasses must redefine as contains or refers.

contains

A contains feature declares ownership: each instance of the enclosing class owns its own instance of the target type. Children are instantiated together with their parent.

class Pair {
  contains a: Counter
  contains b: Counter
}

refers

A refers feature is a cross-reference. It points to an instance that lives elsewhere; there is no ownership.

class Display {
  refers source: Counter
}

container

A container feature is the reverse of a contains feature: the child pointing back to its owning parent. A container must always be paired with the corresponding contains via opposite. A validation rule enforces this pairing.

class Tree {
  contains children: Tree[0..*] opposite parent
  container parent: Tree[0..1] opposite children
}

derived refers

A derived refers feature is computed automatically from the model structure. Derived refers features with opposite may be derived from their opposite declaration.

class StateNode {
  derived refers inTrans: Transition[0..*] opposite to
  derived refers outTrans: Transition[0..*] opposite from
}

features

The features keyword declares an abstract feature whose kind is left to subclasses. A subclass must redefine it as a concrete contains or refers.

abstract class Container {
  features payload: any
}

class IntContainer : Container {
  redefine contains payload: int
}

Multiplicities

A feature's multiplicity specifies how many target values are permitted. The multiplicity bracket holds a compile-time expression. The default is [1].

Syntax	Meaning
[1]	Exactly one (default)
[0..1]	Optional; may be nothing
[0..*]	Any number
[n]	Exactly n (n is a compile-time expression)
[lb..ub]	Between lb and ub
[]	Unbounded shorthand

The infinity literal * is allowed in ranges (0..*).

opposite

opposite declares a bidirectional relationship: navigating in one direction automatically populates the other. A validation rule enforces that opposite features point to each other and that container/contains pairs match.

class Tree {
  contains children: Tree[0..*] opposite parent
  container parent: Tree[0..1] opposite children
}

subsets

subsets declares that the values of one feature are also included in another, more general feature.

class Wrapper {
  contains all: Item[0..*]
  contains primary: Item subsets all
}

This is the primary way semantic libraries declaratively add instances to a collection defined in a superclass.

redefine and redefines

redefine overrides an inherited feature of the same name, typically with a more specific type or a more constrained body.

class Counter10Pair : CounterPair {
  redefine contains a: Counter10
  redefine contains b: Counter10
}

The redefines modifier may be applied to a redefining feature for additional clarity.

class Counter10Pair : CounterPair {
  contains newA: Counter10 redefines a
  contains newB: Counter10 redefines b
}

Nested Features

A feature declaration may include a block of nested feature declarations to redefine inner structure.

contains state: State {
  redefine contains entryAction: SetValueAction
}

Feature Binding

A feature can be bound to a compile-time expression with =. The bound value cannot depend on runtime state.

refers maximum: int = 10

Top-Level (Global) Features

Top-level features are declared outside any class. They represent shared instances or references that exist at the root of the model. Conceptually, they act as implicit features of the class being instantiated.

Kind	Meaning
global containment	A top-level owned instance.
global reference	A top-level reference.

global containment globalEvent: Event[1]

Top-level features currently support only the subsets modifier. This restriction may be relaxed in future versions.

global containment sharedEvent: Event subsets sharedEvents