Data integrity is ensured by expressing constraints it should satisfy. One can also view constraints as data properties and take advantage of them for several tasks such as reasoning about data or accelerating query processing. In the context of graph databases, simple constraints can be expressed by means of path constraints while simple queries are modeled as regular path queries (RPQs). In this paper, we investigate the containment of RPQs under path constraints. We focus on word constraints that can be viewed as tuple-generating dependencies (TGDs) of the form ∀x_1,x_2, ∃y⁻, a_1(x_1,y_1) ∧ ... ∧ a_i(y_{i-1},y_i) ∧ ... ∧ a_n(y_{n-1},x_2) ⟶ ∃z⁻, b_1(x_1,z_1) ∧ ... ∧ b_i(z_{i-1},z_i) ∧ ... ∧ b_m(z_{m-1},x_2). Such a constraint means that whenever two nodes in a graph are connected by a path labeled a_1 … a_n, there is also a path labeled b_1 … b_m that connects them. Rewrite systems offer an abstract view of these TGDs: the rewrite rule a_1 … a_n → b_1 … b_m represents the previous constraint. A set of constraints 𝒞 is then represented by a rewrite system R and, when dealing with possibly infinite databases, a path query p is contained in a path query q under the constraints 𝒞 iff p rewrites to q with R. Contrary to what has been claimed in the literature we show that, when restricting to finite databases only, there are cases where a path query p is contained in a path query q under the constraints 𝒞 while p does not rewrite to q with R. More generally, we study the finite controllability of the containment of RPQs under word constraints, that is when this containment problem on unrestricted databases does coincide with the finite case. We give an exact characterisation of the cases where this equivalence holds. We then deduce the undecidability of the containment problem in the finite case even when RPQs are restricted to word queries. We prove several properties related to finite controllability, and in particular that it is undecidable. We also exhibit some classes of word constraints that ensure the finite controllability and the decidability of the containment problem.

We study the notion of boundedness in the context positive existential rules, that is, wether there exists an upper bound to the depth of the chase procedure, that is independent from the initial instance. By focussing our attention on the oblivious and the semi-oblivious chase variants, we give a characterization of boundedness in terms of FO-rewritability and chase termination. We show that it is decidable to recognize if a set of rules is bounded for several classes of rules and outline the complexity of the problem.

We propose a novel rule-based ontology language for JSON records and investigate its computational properties. After providing a natural translation into first-order logic, we identify relationships to existing ontology languages, which yield decidability of query answering but only rough complexity bounds. By establishing an interesting and non-trivial connection to word rewriting, we are able to pinpoint the exact combined complexity of query answering in our framework and obtain tractability results for data complexity. The upper bounds are proven using a query reformulation technique, which can be implemented on top of key-value stores, thereby exploiting their querying facilities.

We study the problem of update translation for views on XML documents. More precisely, given an XML view definition and a user defined view update program, find a source update program that translates the view update without side effects on the view. Additionally, we require the translation to be defined on all possible source documents; this corresponds to Hegner's notion of uniform translation. The existence of such translation would allow to update XML views without the need of materialization.

Connections between Tree Automata and Term Rewriting are now well known. Whereas tree automata can be viewed as a subclass of ground rewrite systems, tree automata are successfully used as decision tools in rewriting theory. Furthermore, applications, including rewriting theory, have influenced the definition of new classes of tree automata. In this talk, we will first present a short and not exhaustive reminder of some fruitful applications of tree automata in rewriting theory. Then, we will focus on extensions of tree automata, specially tree automata with local or/and global (dis-)equality constraints: we will emphasize new results, compare different extensions, and sketch some applications.

Variables are the distinguishing new feature of XPath 2.0 which permits to select n-tuples of nodes in trees. It is known that the Core of XPath 2.0 captures n-ary first-order (FO) queries modulo linear time transformations. In this paper, we distinguish a fragment of Core XPath 2.0 that remains FO-complete with respect ton-ary queries while enjoying polynomial-time query answering.

In this paper we investigate the quantifier-free fragment of the TQL logic proposed by Cardelli and Ghelli. The TQL logic, inspired from the ambient logic, is the core of a query language for semistructured data represented as unranked and unordered trees. The fragment we consider here, named STL, contains as main features spatial composition and location as well as a fixed point construct. We prove that satisfiability for STL is undecidable. We show also that STL is strictly more expressive than the Presburger monadic second-order logic (PMSO) of Seidl, Schwentick and Muscholl when interpreted over unranked and unordered edge-labelled trees. We define a class of tree automata whose transitions are conditioned by arithmetical constraints; we show then how to compute from a closed STL formula a tree automaton accepting precisely the models of the formula. Finally, still using our tree automata framework, we exhibit some syntactic restrictions over STL formulae that allow us to capture precisely the logics MSO and PMSO.

We present a collection of results on regular tree languages and rewrite systems. Moreover we prove the undecidability of the preservation of regularity by rewrite systems. More precisely we prove that it is undecidable whether or not for a set E of

We present a decision procedure, based on tree automata techniques, for satisfiability of systems of set constraints including negated subset relationships. This result extends all previous works on set constraints solving and solves a problem which was left open by L. Bachmair et al. (1993). We prove in a constructive way that a non empty set of solutions always contains a regular solution, that is a tuple of regular tree languages. Moreover, we think that the new class of tree automata described here could be interesting in its own.>

Using tree automata techniques, it is proven that the theory of ground rewrite systems is decidable. Novel decision procedures are presented for most classic properties of ground rewrite systems. An example is presented to illustrate how these results could be used for specification and debugging.>