IDATG: an open tool for automated testing of interactive software

The IDATG (Integrating Design and Automated Test Case Generation) specification technique and tool is introduced. It is designed for the automated generation of test cases during the testing of interactive industrial applications. In addition to checking the application's usability, IDATG supports both the specification of the behavior of a user interface and the generation of two types of test case i.e. for GUI coverage and for checking the usability of the application. The test procedure for both cases is based on a particular test process model and on a formal language for representing the user interface. The tool architecture comprises a set of visual editors, a language interpreter and a test case generator. The interface concept on which the components are based enables the tool to be integrated into industrial platforms for defining and executing test cases. A first cost/benefit analysis indicates a significant reduction of effort for test case specification and test result analysis.