An elucidation of blended modeling from an industrial perspective

Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) has been widely adopted across various industrial sectors due to its ability to manage the complexity of modern engineering products. However, traditional modeling languages and tools are often limited to a single, specific concrete syntax, which poses challenges for the diverse stakeholders involved in the modeling process.. To address these limitations, the emerging field of blended modeling introduces the use of multiple concrete syntaxes, and in some cases, even multiple abstract syntaxes, for representing the same information. In this expert perspective, we present generalized, technology-agnostic concepts developed within a European research and development project focused on blended modeling. Specifically, we contribute a standardized terminology and ontology for blended modeling, along with a methodology for creating blended modeling environments. These concepts were developed through collaboration between academic and industrial partners, who aligned on the motivations and benefits of this approach. The insights gained from this project are not only relevant to blended MDE but also can be applied to traditional MDE practices.