COMPOSITIONAL VERIFICATION FOR WORKFLOW NETS

2006 ◽  
Vol 15 (04) ◽  
pp. 551-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
LI JIAO ◽  
TO-YAT CHEUNG
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Extended Model ◽  
Workflow Modeling ◽  
Compositional Verification ◽  
Workflow Nets ◽  
Business Context ◽  
Correctness Criterion ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Compositional Method

A workflow is the automation of business processes that describe activities in a business context. Petri nets have been widely used as a workflow modeling technique. Workflow nets (WF-nets), introduced by van der Aalst [LNCS1248 (1997) 407–426], are a class of Petri nets tailored towards workflow analysis. Soundness is used as the least correctness criterion for WF-nets in order to ensure that a process can terminate properly. This paper extends WF-nets by considering resources and allowing for multi-cases in a process. For the extended model, the relationship between soundness and standard behavior properties of Petri nets is investigated. A compositional method to construct and verify sound WF-nets is introduced.

Assigning Ontological Meaning to Workflow Nets

2012 ◽  
pp. 209-244
Author(s):  
Pnina Soffer ◽  
Maya Kaner ◽  
Yair Wand
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Business Process ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Actual Process ◽  
Workflow Nets ◽  
Business Process Models ◽  
Business Goals ◽  
General Constraints ◽  
Process Behavior

A common way to represent organizational domains is the use of business process models. A Workflow-net (WF-net) is an application of Petri Nets (with additional rules) that model business process behavior. However, the use of WF-nets to model business processes has some shortcomings. In particular, no rules exist beyond the general constraints of WF-nets to guide the mapping of an actual process into a net. Syntactically correct WF-nets may provide meaningful models of how organizations conduct their business processes. Moreover, the processes represented by these nets may not be feasible to execute or reach their business goals when executed. In this paper, the authors propose a set of rules for mapping the domain in which a process operates into a WF-net, which they derived by attaching ontological semantics to WF-nets. The rules guide the construction of WF-nets, which are meaningful in that their nodes and transitions are directly related to the modeled (business) domains. Furthermore, the proposed semantics imposes on the process models constraints that guide the development of valid process models, namely, models that assure that the process can accomplish its goal when executed.

Assigning Ontological Meaning to Workflow Nets

2010 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pnina Soffer ◽  
Maya Kaner ◽  
Yair Wand
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Business Process ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Actual Process ◽  
Workflow Nets ◽  
Business Process Models ◽  
Business Goals ◽  
General Constraints ◽  
Process Behavior

A common way to represent organizational domains is the use of business process models. A Workflow-net (WF-net) is an application of Petri Nets (with additional rules) that model business process behavior. However, the use of WF-nets to model business processes has some shortcomings. In particular, no rules exist beyond the general constraints of WF-nets to guide the mapping of an actual process into a net. Syntactically correct WF-nets may provide meaningful models of how organizations conduct their business processes. Moreover, the processes represented by these nets may not be feasible to execute or reach their business goals when executed. In this paper, the authors propose a set of rules for mapping the domain in which a process operates into a WF-net, which they derived by attaching ontological semantics to WF-nets. The rules guide the construction of WF-nets, which are meaningful in that their nodes and transitions are directly related to the modeled (business) domains. Furthermore, the proposed semantics imposes on the process models constraints that guide the development of valid process models, namely, models that assure that the process can accomplish its goal when executed.

scholarly journals An analytical method for well-formed workflow/Petri net verification of classical soundness

2014 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 931-939 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julio Clempner
Keyword(s):  
Dynamical Systems ◽  
Petri Nets ◽  
Petri Net ◽  
Difference Equations ◽  
Analytical Method ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Formal Model ◽  
Lyapunov Theory ◽  
Workflow Nets ◽  
Workflow Net

Abstract In this paper we consider workflow nets as dynamical systems governed by ordinary difference equations described by a particular class of Petri nets. Workflow nets are a formal model of business processes. Well-formed business processes correspond to sound workflow nets. Even if it seems necessary to require the soundness of workflow nets, there exist business processes with conditional behavior that will not necessarily satisfy the soundness property. In this sense, we propose an analytical method for showing that a workflow net satisfies the classical soundness property using a Petri net. To present our statement, we use Lyapunov stability theory to tackle the classical soundness verification problem for a class of dynamical systems described by Petri nets. This class of Petri nets allows a dynamical model representation that can be expressed in terms of difference equations. As a result, by applying Lyapunov theory, the classical soundness property for workflow nets is solved proving that the Petri net representation is stable. We show that a finite and non-blocking workflow net satisfies the sound property if and only if its corresponding PN is stable, i.e., given the incidence matrix A of the corresponding PN, there exists a Փ strictly positive m vector such that AՓ≤ 0. The key contribution of the paper is the analytical method itself that satisfies part of the definition of the classical soundness requirements. The method is designed for practical applications, guarantees that anomalies can be detected without domain knowledge, and can be easily implemented into existing commercial systems that do not support the verification of workflows. The validity of the proposed method is successfully demonstrated by application examples.

COMBINING STRUCTURED DOCUMENTS WITH HIGH-LEVEL PETRI-NETS FOR WORKFLOW MODELING IN INTERNET-BASED COMMERCE

1998 ◽  
Vol 07 (04) ◽  
pp. 275-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
WOLFGANG WEITZ
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Workflow Model ◽  
Workflow Modeling ◽  
Order Processing ◽  
New Variant ◽  
Structured Documents ◽  
High Level ◽  
Electronic Document Interchange

This article discusses the application of a new variant of high-level Petri nets, the so-called SGML nets, for modeling business processes in the area of Internet-based commerce. SGML nets are designed to capture the process of generating and manipulating structured documents based on the international standard SGML. Since the currently most relevant document standards on the Internet are HTML (an SGML application) and XML (a subset of SGML), SGML nets offer an elegant way to integrate central aspects of Electronic Commerce applications, such as the generation of online product catalogs, processing of online orders, and electronic document interchange between companies, into a unified formal workflow model. The article gives an introduction to the central concepts of SGML nets and includes an example of their application from the area of online order processing.

scholarly journals Integration of Business Processes With Activities and Information: Evidence From Brazil

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 215824402110061
Author(s):  
Ana Maria Magalhães Correia ◽  
Clarissa Figueredo Rocha ◽  
Luiz Carlos Duclós ◽  
Claudimar Pereira da Veiga
Keyword(s):  
Information Systems ◽  
Enterprise Architecture ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Information Architecture ◽  
Management Model ◽  
Science Parks ◽  
Specific Nature ◽  
Architecture Frameworks ◽  
And Control ◽  
The Relationship

This study proposes a management model by business processes for science parks based on the premises and concept of enterprise architecture (EA). The model offers integrating business processes with activities and information that can be generated by adopting customized information systems to meet the science parks’ needs. The proposed model’s main contributions included EA as a means for shaping and enabling reconfiguration through descriptions of the structures of business processes and information systems that connect these structures, forming business and information architecture frameworks. In association with these frameworks, the managers need to define a coherent set of patterns, policies, procedures, and principles that sustain the business processes integrated with the information systems. As a result of the study, this model can help management execute and control activities related to business processes in the parks through interaction and alignment with the information system intended to facilitate the execution. The model will also lead to greater agility and efficiency in these business processes, considering their specific nature and the relationship with the parks’ actors. As a practical contribution, knowledge of these processes aids the management of the parks in their drive for a competitive advantage by maintaining and developing their management models.

THE APPLICATION OF PETRI NETS TO WORKFLOW MANAGEMENT

1998 ◽  
Vol 08 (01) ◽  
pp. 21-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. M. P. VAN DER AALST
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Petri Net ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Workflow Management ◽  
Explicit Representation ◽  
The Other ◽  
Application Domain ◽  
Analysis Techniques ◽  
The One

Workflow management promises a new solution to an age-old problem: controlling, monitoring, optimizing and supporting business processes. What is new about workflow management is the explicit representation of the business process logic which allows for computerized support. This paper discusses the use of Petri nets in the context of workflow management. Petri nets are an established tool for modeling and analyzing processes. On the one hand, Petri nets can be used as a design language for the specification of complex workflows. On the other hand, Petri net theory provides for powerful analysis techniques which can be used to verify the correctness of workflow procedures. This paper introduces workflow management as an application domain for Petri nets, presents state-of-the-art results with respect to the verification of workflows, and highlights some Petri-net-based workflow tools.

CONTRIBUTION FOR MODELING OF THE BUSINESS PROCESSES THROUGH THE FORMALISM OF PETRI NETS

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara K Okayama ◽  
Eduardo Rocha Loures ◽  
Eduardo A. Portela Santos ◽  
Marco Antonio Busetti
Keyword(s):  
Petri Nets ◽  
Business Processes

scholarly journals Tacit Knowledge Sharing Behavior, Within A Relational Social Capital Framework, In A South African University Of Technology

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 2091 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Smith ◽  
Marie De Beer ◽  
Roger Bruce Mason
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Tacit Knowledge ◽  
Reasoned Action ◽  
Action Theory ◽  
Behavioral Control ◽  
Perceived Behavioral Control ◽  
Business Context ◽  
University Of Technology ◽  
Reasoned Action Theory ◽  
The Relationship

The sharing of tacit knowledge is an important influence on the development of intellectual capital in a University of Technology but whereas its effects are clear in a business context, they have been absent from studies in the context of higher education.This study integrated relational social capital and reasoned action theory to construct a model for investigating factors that predict an individual’s intention to share tacit knowledge.  Specifically, it examined the relationship between relational social capital in terms of trust (affect and cognitive-based trust), shared norms and values (including social norms and norms of social support and reciprocity) and the individual’s attitude towards sharing tacit knowledge.  It further examined the relationship between the individual’s attitude, their perceived norms and perceived behavioral control over the sharing of tacit knowledge and their intention to share tacit knowledge.A hypothesized, theoretical model of the individual’s intention to share tacit knowledge was developed.  This model was found to be a poor fit to the data and an alternative model was developed which was found to be a good fit to the data.  This study incorporated nine research interviews and five hundred and fifty four questionnaires. Relational social capital was found to be significant for predicting individuals’ intentions to share tacit knowledge but the reasoned action variables were found to be less significant, particularly perceived behavioral control over the sharing of tacit knowledge, indicating the need for further research.

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