Automated extraction of feature models from android based portable devices

Abstract

Domain analysis is an essential activity in software product line engineering to identify common and variable features among the products of a product family. Feature models are commonly used for depicting the identified commonalities and variations. However, it requires significant time and effort to perform domain analysis and to create a feature model. We introduce a method and a tool for automatic extraction of a feature model based on a given set of android based portable devices. We use native applications that extract information regarding the available features, sensors and other peripherals. Hence, our approach does not require any manual effort, for instance, to create product specifications as input. We performed an industrial case study with a real product family of a consumer electronics company. We observed promising results in which a feature model is automatically constructed and the accuracy of the model is approved by product managers.