The TopBraid SPIN API

SPIN is a collection of RDF vocabularies enabling the use of SPARQL to define constraints and inference rules on Semantic Web models. SPIN also provides meta-modeling capabilities that allow users to define their own SPARQL functions and query templates. Finally, SPIN includes a ready to use library of common functions.

The SPIN API is an open source Java API distributed by TopQuadrant to encourage the adoption of SPIN in the community. The SPIN API is built on the Apache Jena API and provides the following features:

• Converters between textual SPARQL syntax and the SPIN RDF Vocabulary
• A SPIN-based constraint checking engine (via spin:constraint)
• A SPIN-based inferencing engine (via spin:rule and spin:constructor)
• Support to execute user-defined SPIN functions using Jena/ARQ
• Support to execute user-defined SPIN templates

GitHub Repository

The latest snapshot of the SPIN API can be found as an open source project at https://github.com/spinrdf/spinrdf

Latest Official Release: 2.0.0 (2016-02-17)

The library depends on Apache Jena 3.0.1.

Specifying the SPIN API as a Maven Dependency:

<dependencies>
    <dependency>
    	<groupId>org.topbraid</groupId>
    	<artifactId>spin</artifactId>
    	<version>2.0.0</version>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>
  
<repositories>
    <repository>
        <id>org.topbraid</id>
        <url>http://topquadrant.com/repository/spin</url>
    </repository>
</repositories>

Previous Release: 1.4.0 (2014-07-31)

The library depends on Apache Jena 2.11.0.

Specifying the SPIN API as a Maven Dependency:

<dependencies>
    <dependency>
    	<groupId>org.topbraid</groupId>
    	<artifactId>spin</artifactId>
    	<version>1.4.0</version>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>
  
<repositories>
    <repository>
        <id>org.topbraid</id>
        <url>http://topquadrant.com/repository/spin</url>
    </repository>
</repositories>

To download the full distribution including examples, go directly to the Maven folder.

Licensing and Support

The TopBraid SPIN API is distributed under the Apache License Version 2.0.

Please feel free to ask technical questions on the TopBraid Suite support mailing list. Please indicate that you have a question on the API by putting [SPIN API] into the subject line. While TopQuadrant staff is monitoring this list, we are not guaranteeing any responses on SPIN API related questions.

For commercial support, please contact sales@topquadrant.com. Commercial extensions of the SPIN API are available, including a rich library of SPIN functions (many of which are known as the SPIF functions in TopBraid), SPARQLMotion, SPARQL Web Pages and Faceted Search.

Relationship with SHACL

The W3C is in the process of standardizing the Shapes Constraint Language (SHACL). SHACL is strongly influenced by SPIN and the working group includes TopQuadrant personnel. TopQuadrant is maintaining the TopBraid SHACL API as a GitHub project, which extends the SPIN API. As of release 2.0 of the SPIN API, the SHACL support is included (and the source code taken from the GitHub repo).