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RAISE Language Group.
The RAISE Specification Language.
Prentice-Hall. 1992

Formal specification languages are becoming increasingly important for producing software. Using the mathematical basis of a formal language it is possible to explore design concepts in a precise manner, to prove properties of specifications and designs and to reason about the behaviour of the final software before producing it.

The RAISE specification language (RSL) is a powerful, wide spectrum specification language suitable for industrial use. This book gives a comprehensive description of the language. It contains:

• A tutorial showing how to write specifications in various styles:
 – abstract or concrete
 – applicative or imperative
 – sequential or concurrent
and in a modular manner

• A reference description that explains the syntax, scope and type rules of RSL and describes its semantics.

RSL, together with its associated development method and support tools, was initially developed in the collaborative RAISE ESPRIT project (1985–90) by companies in Denmark and England. This technology is currently being used and further developed by companies in six European countries in the LaCoS ESPRIT project (1990–95). Other companies and academic institutions in Europe and North America are also starting to use and teach RSL.