地理空间约束的业务流程建模方法

明晰了受地理空间约束的业务流程的两个基本概念:地理位置与地理空间信息.首先,提出了地理空间约束思想,分析了地理空间约束的内涵,并在工作流元模型的知识基础上构建了地理空间约束的UML语义框架;其次,以形式化的方式提出了地理空间约束的业务流程建模方法(LAWF-net),并描述了LAWF-net模型转化为CPN可执行模型的规则,探讨了地理空间约束对流程建模的影响;最后,通过案例结合GIS系统来扩展CPN Tools,不仅验证了LAWF-net建模方法的可行性,而且实现了地理空间约束的业务流程的可视化.     

Discovery and analysis of e-mail-driven business processes

E-mail is used as the primary tool for business communication and collaboration. This paper presents a novel e-mail interaction mining method to discover and analyze e-mail-driven business processes. An e-mail-driven business process is perceived as a human collaboration process that consists of interactions between people who may each play different roles. The notion of message threads (i.e. sets of e-mail messages that are replies to each other) is used as the fundamental building block to construct the interactions in the e-mail-driven business process. The proposed method adopts an interaction-centric business process modeling language to visualize the discovered e-mail-driven business process. The method identifies message threads from an e-mail archive, and constructs an interaction-centric process model based on the temporal order and similarity of the threads. Process-related information is extracted from e-mail header fields. A software tool, named E-mail Interaction Miner, implements the proposed method. A case study is used to apply and evaluate the method on a set of e-mails collected from a Dutch gas transport company. The evaluation results are discussed. These results comprise business process improvement opportunities for the case organization, and contributions to theory and language development.     

基于元图的工作流建模分析方法

工作流可以有效的规范业务流程、监控流程的执行，而且能够根据客户的需求创建出新流程模型。工作流的建模过程存在一定的复杂性，它要求创建的新模型具有可视化和可操作的特点，同时模型的有效性（即正确性与合理性）也是相当重要的。将元图运用于工作流建模和分析过程，以具体的业务流程为背景，逐步分析隐含在流程中的深层次问题，找出信息元素、活动和资源之间的相互关系，从而确保工作流模型的有效性。     

The importance of business process modeling in software systems design

Despite diligent efforts made by the software engineering community, the failure of software projects keeps increasing at an alarming rate. After two decades of this problem reoccurring, one of the leading causes for the high failure rate is still poor process modeling (requirements’ specification). Therefore both researchers and practitioners recognize the importance of business process modeling in understanding and designing accurate software systems. However, lack of direct model checking (verification) feature is one of the main shortcomings in conventional process modeling methods. It is important that models provide verifiable insight into underlying business processes in order to design complex software systems such as Enterprise Information Systems (EIS). The software engineering community has been deploying the same methods that have haunted the industry with failure. In this paper, we try to remedy this issue by looking at a non-conventional framework. We introduce a business process modeling method that is amenable to automatic analysis (simulation), yet powerful enough to capture the rich reality of business systems as enacted in the behavior and interactions of users. The proposed method is based on the innovative language-action perspective.     

Decision-enabled dynamic process management for networked enterprises

Enterprises in today’s networked economy face numerous information management challenges, both from a process management perspective as well as a decision support perspective. While there have been significant relevant advances in the areas of business process management as well as decision sciences, several open research issues exist. In this paper, we highlight the following key challenges. First, current process modeling and management techniques lack in providing a seamless integration of decision models and tools in existing business processes, which is critical to achieve organizational objectives. Second, given the dynamic nature of business processes in networked enterprises, process management approaches that enable organizations to react to business process changes in an agile manner are required. Third, current state-of-the-art decision model management techniques are not particularly amenable to distributed settings in networked enterprises, which limits the sharing and reuse of models in different contexts, including their utility within managing business processes. In this paper, we present a framework for decision-enabled dynamic process management that addresses these challenges. The framework builds on computational formalisms, including the structured modeling paradigm for representing decision models, and hierarchical task networks from the artificial intelligence (AI) planning area for process modeling. Within the framework, interleaved process planning (modeling), execution and monitoring for dynamic process management throughout the process lifecycle is proposed. A service-oriented architecture combined with advances from the semantic Web field for model management support within business processes is proposed.     

Supporting Different Dimensions of Adaptability in Workflow Modeling

This paper discusses the theme of workflow systemadaptability in relation to process modeling. Startingfrom a discussion on the role of formal constructs incooperation, the main claim is that adaptabilityinvolves different dimensions of process modeling.These dimensions concern the possibility to flexiblycombine a rich set of basic categories in order toobtain the most suitable language for modeling thetarget business process and the work practices aroundit; to take into account various levels of visibilityof the contexts of definition and use of a processmodel; and finally to allow for temporary as well aspermanent modifications of the process itself.Ariadne, a notation conceived for the above purpose,is illustrated by means of a working example.Moreover, the paper presents the main designprinciples governing Ariadne's implementation.     

基于TLA的SaaS业务流程定制及验证机制研究

SaaS模式已成为当前流行的软件服务形式.为满足不同租户个性化的业务服务需求,SaaS模式必须提供灵活的定制机制.为此,提出了一个支持租户业务流程定制行为建模及验证的框架.该框架以层次定制行为约束图作为定制指导,通过TLA(Temporal Logic of Actions)对各层的原子定制活动建模,并以此为基础构建租户的全局定制行为,然后基于应用的业务规则约束设计算法验证全局定制行为的正确性;为有效提高租户的定制效率,基于对多租户已有正确定制结果的统计分析,设计定制推荐算法,合理减少验证次数.仿真实验结果证实了该机制的高效性及可靠性.     

企业组织模型结构和建模方法研究

组织建模对于企业实施先进制造战略具有重要意义。文章在研究分析了多种组织结构形式的基础上,应用工作流和过程建模等概念和方法,定义了一种新型的企业组织模型结构,通过引入新型建模元素,可以更为全面地描述企业组织静、动态层次结构,并可以表现业务过程到组织的映射。基于该结构,采用面向对象和构件化方法,提出了一种柔性的、数据表达一致并且可以有力地支持过程模型的动态执行的组织建模方法,并开发了相应的软件工具。     

Managing the alignment between business processes and software systems

ContextThe alignment degree existing between a business process and the supporting software systems strongly affects the performance of the business process execution. Methodologies and tools are needed for detecting the alignment level and keeping a business process aligned with the supporting software systems even when they evolve.ObjectiveThis paper aims to provide an adequate support for managing such a kind of alignment and suggesting evolution actions if misalignment is detected. It proposes an approach including modeling and measuring activities for evaluating the alignment level and suggesting evolution activities, if needed.MethodThe proposed approach is composed of three main phases. The first phase regards the modeling of business process and software systems supporting it by applying a modeling notation based on UML and adequately extended for representing business processes. The second phase concerns the evaluation of the alignment degree through the assessment of a set of metrics codifying the alignment concept. Finally, the last phase analyses the evaluation results for suggesting evolution activities if misalignment is detected.ResultsThe paper analyses the application of the proposed approach to a case study regarding a working business process and related software system. The obtained results provided useful suggestion for evolving the supporting software system and improving the alignment level existing between them and the supported business process.ConclusionThe approach contributes in all phases of the process and software system evolution, even if its improvement can be needed for identifying the impact of the changes. The proposed approach facilitates the understanding of business processes, software systems and related models. This favors the interaction of the software and business analysts, as it was possible to better formulate the interviews to be conducted with regard to the objectives and, thus, to collect the required data.     

A linear time layout algorithm for business process models

The layout of a business process model influences how easily it can be understood. Existing layout features in process modeling tools often rely on graph representations, but do not take the specific properties of business process models into account. In this paper, we propose an algorithm that is based on a set of constraints which are specifically identified toward establishing a readable layout of a process model. Our algorithm exploits the structure of the process model and allows the computation of the final layout in linear time. We explain the algorithm, show its detailed run-time complexity, compare it to existing algorithms, and demonstrate in an empirical evaluation the acceptance of the layout generated by the algorithm. The data suggests that the proposed algorithm is well perceived by moderately experienced process modelers, both in terms of its usefulness as well as its ease of use.     

基于WfPN的业务流程重组

工作流管理技术在企业的业务流程重组和业务流程自动化中扮演重要角色。它提供了一系列工具来建立、分析、仿真和实施业务流程,按照工作流管理联盟的规范自主开发了AutoFlow工作流管理系统,其中工作流建模方法是整个系统的核心基础。在此,提出了一种基于Petri网的工作流建模理论－WfPN模型,并描述如何将业务流程映射成WfPN(workflow Petri net)模型,WfPN可以作为工作流系统流程建模的理论基础,为业务流程的自动化和BPR的计算机实施铺平道路。     

Conceptual Data Modeling for Spatiotemporal Applications

Many exciting potential application areas for database technology manage time-varying, spatial information. In contrast, existing database techniques, languages, and associated tools provide little built-in support for the management of such information. The focus of this paper is on enhancing existing conceptual data models with new constructs, improving their ability to conveniently model spatiotemporal aspects of information. The goal is to speed up the data modeling process and to make diagrams easier to comprehend and maintain. Based on explicitly formulated ontological foundations, the paper presents a small set of new, generic modeling constructs that may be introduced into different conceptual data models. The ER model is used as the concrete context for presenting the constructs. The semantics of the resulting spatiotemporal ER model, STER, is given in terms of the underlying ER model. STER is accompanied by a textual counterpart, and a CASE tool based on STER is currently being implemented, using the textual counterpart as its internal representation.     

On design,verification, and dynamic modification of the problem-based scientific workflow model

A science process is a process to solve complex scientific problems which usually have no mature solving methods. Science processes if modeled in workflow forms, i.e. scientific workflows, can be managed more effectively and performed more automatically. However, most current workflow models seldom take account of specific characteristics of science processes and are not very suitable for modeling scientific workflows. Therefore, a new workflow model named problem-based scientific workflow model (PBSWM) is proposed in this paper to accommodate those specific characteristics. Corresponding soundness verification and dynamic modification are discussed accordingly based on the new modelling method. This paper makes three main contributions: (1) three new constructs are proposed for special logic semantics in science processes; (2) verification is deployed with the consideration from both data-specific perspective and control-specific perspective; and (3) a set of rules are provided to automatically infer passive modifications caused by other modifications.     

Do activity lifecycles affect the validity of a business rule in a business process?

Traditional process mining techniques offer limited possibilities to analyze business processes working in low-predictable and dynamic environments. Recently, to close this gap, declarative process models have been introduced to represent process mining results since they allow for describing complex behaviors as a compact set of business rules. However, in this context, activities of a business process are still considered as atomic/instantaneous events. This is a strong limitation for these approaches because often, in realistic environments, process activities are not instantaneous but executed across a time interval and pass through a sequence of states of a lifecycle. This paper investigates how the existing techniques for the discovery of declarative process models can be adapted when the business process under analysis contains non-atomic activities. In particular, we base our proposed approach on the use of discriminative rule mining to determine how the characteristics of the activity lifecycles in a business process influence the validity of a business rule in that process. The approach has been implemented as a plug-in of the process mining tool ProM and validated on synthetic logs and on a real-life log recorded by an incident and problem management system called VINST in use at Volvo IT Belgium.     

Dynamic partitioning of complex process models

The E³ modeling language offers a set of mechanisms to support the modeling of complex business and engineering processes. The language is based on well-known object-oriented concepts, extended with specific process-related notions. The E³ language is supported by a modeling tool (called E³ p-draw) that offers mechanisms to support the dynamic partitioning of the process model, and enables the creation and the exploitation of multiple model slices. These mechanisms make it possible to master complex and large process models, since the process engineer can focus on specific factors and aspects of the process, ignoring those information that are irrelevant in a specific stage of the modeling activity. The language and the supporting tool have been applied to the modeling of real industrial processes.     

基于FSM的工作流建模方法及其应用

传统工作流建模工具大多是按照流程序列化思想进行使用,关注的是业务的执行顺序和路径,难以对跳转、回退、循环等复杂的业务过程进行建模。本文提出一种基于有限状态机的工作流进行建模的方法,该方法将业务过程看成是有限状态机的状态转移过程,给出工作流建模的几个步骤,最后通过一个实例对该建模方法进行分析说明。     

Applying ontology-based rules to conceptual modeling: a reflection on modeling decision making

Conceptual modeling represents a domain independently of implementation considerations for purposes of understanding the problem at hand and communicating about it. However, different people may construct different models given the same domain. Variations among correct models, while known and familiar in practice, have hardly been investigated in the literature. Their roots are in the decisions made during the modeling process, where modelers face the need to map reality into modeling constructs. This paper reports an empirical study whose aim is to explore model variations and in particular to examine possible directions for reducing them. Specifically, the study uses a multimethod research paradigm to examine the effect of applying ontology-based modeling rules on modeling decisions as reflected in resulting model variations. The findings of the study provide insights into the variations phenomenon, as well as to the application of ontology-based modeling rules.     

一种基于Prolog的时间约束业务流程验证方法

随着互联网技术的快速发展,对复杂系统业务流程建模的需求越来越大。针对带有时间约束的业务流程模型的正确性验证问题,提出了一种基于节点转换规则的图分解算法,将业务流程模型转换为运行时流程轨迹集合;设计了流程轨迹集合到Prolog的转换,将轨迹中的节点与时间约束转化为Prolog事实,提出了一种业务流程模型到Prolog语言的转换算法;将持续时间、周期循环与固定时刻3种时间模式转换为Prolog规则,以其支持业务流程模型3种时间模式的验证。最后对一个带有时间约束的医疗流程实例进行了验证。