REPRESENTS EXPLICIT RELATIONSHIP

The REPRESENTS EXPLICIT RELATIONSHIP keyword is used to specify a symbol as representational consistent and representing explicit relationships that can be displayed on a diagram. The explicit relationship is a definition that maintains a reference to two other model objects.

In the following example “Generic Line” indicates that the relationship is to be drawn as a plain line.

SYMBOL "activityChangesResource (DM2r)"
  {
    REPRESENTS EXPLICIT RELATIONSHIP "ActivityChangesResource (DM2r)"
    Assign To "OV-01 High Level Operational Concept (DM2)"
    Assign To "OV-02 Operational Resource Flow Alternative (DM2)"
    Assign To "CV-01 Vision (DM2)"
    DEPICT LIKE "Generic Line"
  }

There must be two separate single-reference-type properties, one with a FROMDEF statement and the other with a TODEF statement, such as ONEOF, HETEROGENOUSONEOF. For example:

DEFINITION "ActivityPerformedByPerformer (DM2r)"
  {
    CHAPTER "Activity and Performer"
    PROPERTY "Activity"{ EDIT HETEROGENEOUSONEOF "Activity (DM2)" AND_SUBTYPES ASGRID FROMDEF }
    PROPERTY "Performer"{ EDIT HETEROGENEOUSONEOF "Performer (DM2)" AND_SUBTYPES ASGRID TODEF }
  }

Supporting more than one relationship through a single definition type

REPRESENTS EXPLICIT RELATIONSHIP "definition type"
{
     FROMDEF "from property" TODEF "to property"
     [FROMTAG "from tag property"] [TOTAG "to tag property"]
     [CONNECTS "from type" [AND_SUBTYPES] TO "to type" [AND_SUBTYPES]]*
}

This {..} block sets up the properties for one relationship representation. Each representation will cause an individual line to be generated on a diagram.

▪The CONNECTS structure is optional and there can be as many as required.

If required, the entire structure can be formed on one line – just separate the tokens with spaces.

▪System Architect does not support using the same symbol type to represent more than one relationship through the same definition type. To resolve this, a user must define individual symbol types.

▪The use of the FROMDEF, TODEF, FROMTAG, TOTAG, and CONNECTS keywords within the DEFINITION block is still supported. However, if a symbol type is defined with the new keyword structure then that structure must be used for all relationships that it is to represent.