Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO)
language en

Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO)

Release: 2025-06-30

This version:
https://w3id.org/wmto/v1.0
Latest version:
https://w3id.org/wmto/
Revision:
v1.0
Issued on:
2025-10-23
Authors:
Marta Boscariol
Imported Ontologies:
org#
<https://w3id.org/rec/actuation/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/addressing/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/agents/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/analytics/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/asset/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/building/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/business/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/core/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/dataschemas/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/device/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/full/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/metadata/>
<https://w3id.org/rec/units/>
Download serialization:
JSON-LD RDF/XML N-Triples TTL
License:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Visualization:
Visualize with WebVowl
Cite as:
Marta Boscariol. Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO). Revision: v1.0. Retrieved from: https://w3id.org/wmto/v1.0
Ontology Specification Draft

Abstract

The Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO) is a modular OWL ontology designed to provide semantic interoperability for workplace management practices in enterprise environments. By integrating concepts from established ontologies including BOT, REC, Brick, ORG, FOAF, and Schema.org, WMTO offers a comprehensive framework for representing organizational structure, spatial topology, physical asset management, and employee allocation. The ontology addresses the semantic heterogeneity challenges that arise when integrating data from multiple workplace management domains (Human Resources, Facility Management, and Information and Communication Technology) into unified Digital Twin Environments. Following the diagram-first modelling paradigm and emphasizing modularity, WMTO balances the reuse of well-established ontological patterns with the introduction of enterprise-specific concepts tailored to workplace management needs. The ontology supports advanced use cases including historical asset allocation tracking, space optimization planning, remote work management, and cross-domain data integration, while maintaining extensibility through its modular architecture that localizes changes and facilitates future adaptations.

Introduction back to ToC

Modern workplace management involves the coordination of multiple organizational functions, each maintaining separate data systems with distinct vocabularies, structures, and semantics. Human Resources departments manage employee information and organizational hierarchies; Facility Management teams oversee spatial allocation and furniture assets; Information and Communication Technology units track equipment and digital resources. This fragmentation creates significant challenges for data integration, analytics, and decision-making processes that require cross-domain insights. The development of digital twin environments for workplace management necessitates a unified semantic layer capable of bridging these heterogeneous data sources. The Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO) addresses this need by providing formally defined concepts and relationships that enable semantic interoperability while respecting the domain-specific requirements of each workplace management function. WMTO is designed to support the following core objectives: - Semantic Integration: Provide a common vocabulary for integrating workplace management data across HR, FM, and ICT domains - Historical Tracking: Enable temporal representation of asset allocations, spatial assignments, and organizational changes - Spatial Representation: Model building topology and workplace allocation with sufficient granularity for space optimization - Asset Management: Support lifecycle tracking of both ICT equipment and furniture assets from commissioning to turnover - Organizational Modeling: Represent complex organizational structures, employment relationships, and role distinctions - Extensibility: Facilitate future adaptations through modular design and case-study-specific enumeration patterns

WMTO introduces several distinctive modeling patterns that enhance its utility for workplace management: - Allocation Pattern: Rather than embedding allocation attributes directly in asset or space classes, WMTO creates intermediate allocation nodes (e.g., wmto:AssetAllocation, wmto:WorkplaceAllocation) that carry temporal constraints. This pattern enables multiple allocation records over time without overwriting existing properties, supporting comprehensive historical analysis - Enumeration Strategy: Case-study-specific classifications (organizational unit types, employment types, role types, asset types) are managed through enumeration lists, allowing organizations to customize taxonomies while maintaining ontological structure - Remote Work Semantics: The ontology introduces properties for tracking remote work patterns (wmto:remoteWorkDaysN), positioning workplace management systems to support hybrid work policies and space optimization strategies - Modular Replacement: The clear delineation of modules enables organizations to replace or extend specific domain areas without affecting the entire ontology, supporting evolutionary development

Namespace declarations

Table 1: Namespaces used in the document
bot<https://w3id.org/bot#>
brick<https://brickschema.org/schema/Brick#>
dc<http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/>
dcterms<http://purl.org/dc/terms/>
foaf<http://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/>
org<http://www.w3.org/ns/org#>
owl<http://www.w3.org/2002/07/owl#>
qudt<http://qudt.org/schema/qudt/>
rdf<http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#>
rdfs<http://www.w3.org/2000/01/rdf-schema#>
rec<https://w3id.org/rec#>
sdo<https://schema.org/>
sh<http://www.w3.org/ns/shacl#>
skos<http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#>
unit<http://qudt.org/vocab/unit/>
vann<http://purl.org/vocab/vann/>
wmto<https://w3id.org/wmto#>
xml<http://www.w3.org/XML/1998/namespace>
xsd<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#>

Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO): Overview back to ToC

This ontology has the following classes and properties.

Classes

Object Properties

Data Properties

Named Individuals

Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO): Description back to ToC

The Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO) is a multi-domain ontological framework that integrates organizational, spatial, and asset-related knowledge for workplace management. The ontology selectively imports classes, properties, and axioms from six established vocabularies rather than incorporating them entirely: BOT for building topology and spatial hierarchies, REC for real estate and furniture assets, Brick for ICT equipment, ORG for organizational structure, FOAF for employee personal details, and Schema.org for events and cross-domain properties. WMTO is structured around three operational domains—Human Resources (HR) for employee information and organizational membership, Facilities Management (FM) for spatial topology and furniture inventory, and ICT management for equipment tracking and user allocation. This modular approach enables unified semantic representation across traditionally siloed organizational functions, facilitating integrated queries spanning multiple organizational domains.

Cross-reference for Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO) classes, object properties and data properties back to ToC

This section provides details for each class and property defined by Workplace Management of the University of Torino Ontology (WMTO).

Classes

Agentc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: http://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/Agent

is equivalent to
Agent c
is in domain of
hasAssetAllocation op
is in range of
isAssetAllocationTo op

Asset Allocationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#AssetAllocation

To allocate ICT Assets to employees or Furniture Assets to workplaces/offices/rooms.
has super-classes
Allocate Action c
is in domain of
definesAssetAllocationOf op, isAssetAllocationTo op
is in range of
hasAssetAllocation op, isDefinedByAssetAllocation op

Employment Type Enumerationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#EmploymentTypeEnum

Collection of individuals defining the types of employment contract available in the use case organization
is in range of
employmentType op
has members
Contract ni, Full Time ni, Internship ni, Non Profit Volunteering ni, On Call ni, Part Time ni, Temporary ni

Furniture Assets Type Enumerationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#FurnitureAssetTypeEnum

Collection of Individuals describing Furniture assets available in the use case organization
has members
Chair ni, Desk ni, Drawer Unit ni, Ergonomic Chair ni, Meeting Table ni, Shelving Unit ni, Storage Cabinet ni

ICT Assets Type Enumerationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#IctAssetTypeEnum

Collection of Individuals describing ICT assets available in the use case organization
has members
Desktop ni, Laptop ni, Printer ni, Smartboard ni, Smartphone ni, Tablet ni, Workstation ni

Organizational Unit Type Enumerationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#OrgUnitTypeEnum

Collection of individuals defining the types of OrganizationalUnits available in the use case organization
is in range of
organizationalUnitType op
has members
Area ni, Directorate ni, Office ni, Project Unit ni, Section ni, Staff Unit ni

Rolec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: http://www.w3.org/ns/org#Role

is equivalent to
Organization Role c
is in domain of
roleType op

Role Type Enumerationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#RoleTypeEnum

Collection of Individuals describing organizational roles available in the use case organization
is in range of
roleType op
has members
C E ni, D C ni, Dir O U ni, P T A ni, R Area ni, R Sez ni, R U Prog ni, R Uff ni, Secretary ni

Spacec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/bot#Space

is equivalent to
Room c

WorkplaceAllocationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#WPAllocation

To allocate users/employees to a workplace/office.
has super-classes
Allocate Action c
is in domain of
definesWorkPlaceAllocationOf op, is W P A To op
is in range of
hasWorkPlaceAllocation op, isDefinedByWorkPlaceAllocation op

Object Properties

assetTypeop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#assetType

To link an Asset (e.g. ICT Asset, Furniture) to its TypeEnum individual, depending on those defined by the use case.
has domain
Asset c

definesAssetAllocationOfop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#definesAAOf

To link an Asset Allocation instance to a piece of Furniture/ICTEquipment
has domain
Asset Allocation c
has range
Asset c
is inverse of
isDefinedByAssetAllocation op

definesWorkPlaceAllocationOfop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#definesWPAOf

To link a WorkPlace Allocation instance to a Space/Office/Workplace
has domain
WorkplaceAllocation c
has range
Office c
is inverse of
isDefinedByWorkPlaceAllocation op

employmentTypeop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://schema.org/employmentType

Type of employment (e.g. full-time, part-time, contract, temporary, seasonal, internship).
Is defined by
https://schema.org/employmentType
has domain
Post c
has range
Employment Type Enumeration c

employmentUnitop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://schema.org/employmentUnit

Indicates the department, unit and/or facility where the employee reports and/or in which the job is to be performed.
Is defined by
https://pending.schema.org/employmentUnit
has range
Organizational Unit c

hasAssetAllocationop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#hasAA

To link an Agent (Person, OrgUnit, Org) or a Room (e.g., Office) to an Asset Allocation instance
has domain
Agent c or Room c
has range
Asset Allocation c
is inverse of
isAssetAllocationTo op

hasWorkPlaceAllocationop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#hasWPA

To link a Person/employee to a WorkPlaceAllocation instance
has domain
Person c
has range
WorkplaceAllocation c
is inverse of
is W P A To op

is W P A Toop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#isWPATo

has domain
WorkplaceAllocation c
has range
Person c
is inverse of
hasWorkPlaceAllocation op
is also defined as
data property

isAssetAllocationToop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#isAATo

To link an AssetAllocation instance to an Agent (Person or Organization/OrgUnit) or a Room (e.g., Office)
has domain
Asset Allocation c
has range
Agent c or Room c
is inverse of
hasAssetAllocation op

isDefinedByAssetAllocationop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#isDefinedByAA

To link an Asset (e.g. a piece of Furniture/ICTEquipment) to an Asset Allocation instance
has domain
Asset c
has range
Asset Allocation c
is inverse of
definesAssetAllocationOf op

isDefinedByWorkPlaceAllocationop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#isDefinedByWPA

To link a Space/Office/Workplace to a WorkPlace Allocation instance
has domain
Office c
has range
WorkplaceAllocation c
is inverse of
definesWorkPlaceAllocationOf op

organizationalUnitTypeop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#orgUnitType

To link an OrgUnit to its TypeEnum individual, depending on those defined by the use case.
has domain
Organizational Unit c
has range
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

roleTypeop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#roleType

To link a Role to its TypeEnum individual, depending on those defined by the use case.
has domain
Role c
has range
Role Type Enumeration c

Data Properties

allocationDatedp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#allocationDate

Date of allocation, assigned to the allocation node (e.g. AssetAllocation, WorkplaceAllocation). An object can have multiple allocation nodes, each with its own allocation date
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Allocate Action c
has range
date Time

deallocationDatedp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#deallocationDate

Date of de-allocation, assigned to the allocation node (e.g. AssetAllocation, WorkplaceAllocation). An object can have multiple allocation nodes, each with its own de-allocation date
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Allocate Action c
has range
date Time

idCFdp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#idCF

Personal unique identifier (italian CF, Codice Fiscale)
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Person c
has range
string

nameBuildingdp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#nameBuilding

Full name of the building, referring to the codified Space unique identifier defined by the organization for that building.
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Building c

remoteWorkDaysNumberdp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#remoteWorkDaysN

Number of remote working days assigned to a Post an employee fills.
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Post c
has range
non Negative Integer

spaceIDdp back to ToC or Data Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#spaceID

Space unique identifier defined by the organization to identify buildings, floors, rooms.
Is defined by
https://example.org/UniToWorkplaceManagementOntology#
has domain
Architecture c

Named Individuals

Areani back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Area

Area
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

C Eni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#CE

Collaboratore Esterno (External Collaborator)
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Chairni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Chair

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Contractni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Contract

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

D Cni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#DC

Dipendente di Cooperativa (Cooperative Employee)
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Deskni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Desk

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Desktopni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Desktop

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Dir O Uni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#DirOU

Dirigente di Unità Organizzativa
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Directorateni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Directorate

Direzione
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

Drawer Unitni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#DrawerUnit

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Ergonomic Chairni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#ErgonomicChair

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Full Timeni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#FullTime

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

Internshipni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Internship

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

Laptopni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Laptop

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Meeting Tableni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#MeetingTable

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Non Profit Volunteeringni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#NonProfitVolunteering

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

Officeni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Office

Ufficio
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

On Callni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#OnCall

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

P T Ani back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#PTA

Personale Tecnico Amministrativo (PTA)
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Part Timeni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#PartTime

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

Printerni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Printer

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Project Unitni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#ProjectUnit

Unità di Progetto
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

R Areani back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#RArea

Responsabile di Area
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

R Sezni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#RSez

Responsabile di Sezione
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

R U Progni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#RUProg

Responsabile di Unità di Progetto
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

R Uffni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#RUff

Responsabile di Ufficio
belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Secretaryni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Secretary

belongs to
Role Type Enumeration c

Sectionni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Section

Sezione
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

Shelving Unitni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#ShelvingUnit

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Smartboardni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Smartboard

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Smartphoneni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Smartphone

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Staff Unitni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#StaffUnit

Staff
belongs to
Organizational Unit Type Enumeration c

Storage Cabinetni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#StorageCabinet

belongs to
Furniture Assets Type Enumeration c

Tabletni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Tablet

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Temporaryni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Temporary

belongs to
Employment Type Enumeration c

Workstationni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/wmto#Workstation

belongs to
ICT Assets Type Enumeration c

Legend back to ToC

c: Classes
op: Object Properties
dp: Data Properties
ni: Named Individuals

References back to ToC

Add your references here. It is recommended to have them as a list.

Acknowledgments back to ToC

The authors would like to thank Silvio Peroni for developing LODE, a Live OWL Documentation Environment, which is used for representing the Cross Referencing Section of this document and Daniel Garijo for developing Widoco, the program used to create the template used in this documentation.