JPC: A library for categorising and applying inter-language conversions between Java and Prolog

Castro, Sergio [UCL] Mens, Kim [UCL] Moura, Paulo [INESC-TEC, Portugal]

The number of approaches existing to enable a smooth interaction between Java and Prolog programs testifies the growing interest in solutions that combine the strengths of both languages. Most of these approaches provide limited support to allow programmers to customise how Prolog artefacts should be reified in the Java world, or how to reason about Java objects on the Prolog side. This is an error-prone task since often a considerable amount of mappings must be developed and organised. Furthermore, appropriate mappings may depend on the particular context in which a conversion is accomplished. Although some libraries alleviate this problem by providing higher-level abstractions to deal with the complexity of custom conversions between artefacts of the two languages, such libraries are difficult to implement and evolve, because of a lack of appropriate underlying building blocks for encapsulating, categorising and applying Java–Prolog conversion routines. We therefore introduce a new library, JPC, serving as a development tool for both programmers willing to categorise context-dependent conversion constructs in their Java–Prolog systems, and for architects implementing frameworks providing higher-level abstractions for better interoperability between these two languages.