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Other literature type . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
ZENODO
Other literature type . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
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A Minimal Mathematical Definition of a Stateless Event-Condition-Action Rule Engine

Authors: Gosling, Rohin;

A Minimal Mathematical Definition of a Stateless Event-Condition-Action Rule Engine

Abstract

This note defines a stateless ECA rule engine as a pure mathematical action-selection function. An event occurrence consists of an event type and an optional payload. Payloads and condition sets are finite typed partial maps that distinguish a concrete value, an explicit null, and an absent key. A condition-side null is an explicit wildcard, whereas a payload-side null is a present null value. The query retains the matching rules of greatest specificity, resolves any tie with a fixed deterministic selector, and returns one action or the no-action value ⊥. Specificity assigns weight two to a concrete condition, one to an explicit-null wildcard, and zero to an omitted key. The score is defined for every condition set and compared only among rules that fully match the current payload. The engine is stateless because, for a fixed rule base and tie selector, its result depends only on the current event occurrence. Event types, parameter domains, conditions, and actions remain otherwise uninterpreted, making the model independent of any application domain or implementation technology. Status: Independent technical note; not peer-reviewed. Companion implementation: 10.5281/zenodo.21802923Interactive demonstration: https://rohingosling.github.io/eca-rule-engine-2/

Keywords

formal semantics, rule-based systems, ECA rule engine, stateless evaluation, specificity, Event-Condition-Action rules, rule selection, deterministic action selection, predicates

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
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