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Technical Approach
GAIA is providing a holistic architecture based on the principle of interworking interchangeable components, providing additionality to ongoing standardisation processes and taking into account the inevitable diversity of the telecommunications infrastructure. To ensure this technical and business portability, the GAIA architecture is:
Key Issues
The GAIA architecture must support an information economy in which Information Brokers will offer service economies and refinements that enhance the supply chain to the advantage of both suppliers and consumers. The service must recognise the critical features of the digital economy:
Relationship to other projects
GAIA's Reference Model is a generic framework for information brokerage systems. GAIA is working with other ACTS projects in both Domain 1 and Domain 5 to get consensus on brokerage reference models. Of particular note is the SIA Chain, in which GAIA leads development of the Enterprise Models guideline, and the cross-domain Virtual Broker Cluster, which also involves such projects as ABS, OSM, COBRA and others.
The GAIA Standard describes the GAIA system and is a specialisation of the GAIA Reference Model. GAIA draws upon previous and ongoing work in standardisation, e.g. Z39.50 (ISO 239.50), ISO ILL, DAVIC. The GAIA Functional Architecture is based on »Functional Units« with CORBA specification of interfaces used to build the GAIA Broker, and Open Standards protocols for interworking between Brokers.
Achievements
GAIA has published an initial statement of Generic & Domain Requirements. The requirements were captured by analysing the needs of the demonstrator domains in comparison to the GAIA Reference Model.
Internal drafts of the Reference Model have been made available for brokerage concertation in ACTS. They are a basis for the Interim and Final GAIA Standards which will be publicly released in the future.
As GAIA involves the development of services based on the agreed Reference Model and Standard, a number of internal framework reports have been produced to cover technology selection, state of the art, and design issues. The GAIA Design will pull this work together, with validation from the demonstration sectors and the standardisation and ACTS concertation processes.
Expected Impact
GAIA contributes to the specification of an agreed open architecture for information brokerage, capable of supporting the diverse requirements of a broad range of information trading scenarios. Through the construction of demonstrators for the trials described above, the project is generating both service and technology outputs capable of exploitation by the consortium and the project sponsors. Central to the approach taken is the development of generic tools within the GAIA architecture to provide key reusable services, including user access components and mechanisms to use data from existing repositories.
Contact:
Jenny Hands Fretwell-Downing Ltd Brincliffe House 861 Ecclesall Road Sheffield S11 7AE United Kingdom Tel: +44 114 281 6000 Fax: +44 114 281 6001 E-mail: jhands@fdgroup.co.uk
List of Domains and Chains
Multimedia Domain
Service Integration Chains
Generic Applications Chains
List of participants