15.5. Common Interaction Diagram Notation
Illustrating Classes and Instances
The UML has adopted a simple and consistent approach to illustrate instances vs. classifiers (see Figure 15.5):
For any kind of UML element (class, actor, ...), an instance uses the same graphic symbol as the type, but the designator string is underlined.
Figure 15.5. Class and instances.
Therefore, to show an instance of a class in an interaction diagram, the regular class box graphic symbol is used, but the name is underlined.
A name can be used to uniquely identify the instance. If none is used, note that a “:” precedes the class name.
Basic Message Expression Syntax ...
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