The first goal of DS5 is to undertake a feasibility study for developing components
based on emergent technologies in the areas of the Semantic Web and Ontologies.
This study will be used as a reference for actual component designs and trial implementations, and ultimately developments of standards at the IVOA level.
The feasibility study will consist in two parallel actions:
surveying available techniques, standards and tools related to the Semantic Web and Ontologies, identifying their scope, community-support and limitations.
identifying a list of possible science cases where intelligent resource discovery tools could be developed for astronomers, highlighting interactions with related IVOA working groups when relevant.
A short-list of component designs and trial implementations will stem from the
combination of these two actions. Participants in DS5 will then focus on these
selected science-cases. Building on the knowledge gained from these experiments,
standards should be suggested for acceptance by the IVOA.
Because the semantic web and ontologies are active research topics, a technology
watch for the evolution of techniques, standards and tools will have to be
performed throughout the VOTech project duration (e.g. the evolution of available
techniques could allow during year 3 the development of applications that would
have been judged unrealistic in Stage 01).
There is a list of OntologyUseCases elsewhere