Background What is it for?

1 1 Scope

1.1 Background

The Open Modelling Interface standard more usually referred to as the OpenMI makes possible runtime data exchange between independently developed modelling components. It is an enabling technology that facilitates the simulation of process interactions, where the interactions may either lie within or across the traditional boundaries of scientific disciplines. When the components are models, they may be simple or complex, be based on the same or different concepts and come from the same or different suppliers, whether commercial or open source. The OpenMIs development has been co‐funded by the European Union through two projects HarmonIT EC contract: EVK1‐CT‐2001‐00090 and Open‐Life Grant agreement number LIFE06 ENVUK000409 and by the commercial and academic partners of those projects. They were managed by the Natural Environment Research Council UK with technical leadership coming from DHI DK, Deltares NL and HR Wallingford UK, the last with the assistance of its former subsidiary Wallingford Software now Innovyze USA. Future development and the OpenMIs publication as an Open Geospatial Consortium international standard are now the responsibility of the OpenMI Association, which is a legal entity established under Dutch law to take ownership of the Intellectual Property Rights IPR relating to the OpenMI – see Annex D for details of the OpenMI Associations IPR policy in relation to the OpenMI standard. 1.2 What is it for? The standard exists to enable the exchange of data between modelling components at runtime; components being anything from a single constant, e.g. Pi, via measurement devices, functions, models, databases, visualization tools and analytical tools, to complex 3D time‐variant modelling applications. In more practical terms, components can be anything necessary to build simulation models or decision support systems DSS. These enable scientists to improve our understanding of the Earth as a system, help policy‐makers to find effective and sustainable responses to societal challenges, help entrepreneurs, consultants and developers to explore, develop and deliver new ideas, products and services and provide facilities for teaching and demonstrating our growing knowledge of a joined‐up world. 1.3 What is it?