Educational process modelling with workflow and time Petri nets : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Computer Science at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

The research presented in this thesis describes how to use workflow management technology to model educational processes with a time axis. As workflow management technology has been widely used in modelling business processes, it has the potential to model educational processes. Based upon the components of workflow, educational processes and business processes have many common features such that educational processes can be modelled with workflow management technology. In addition, owing to the importance of the time component in processes, time Petri nets have been chosen as the design language for the modelling of the educational processes. The notation of time Petri nets has been illustrated in this thesis for the educational process. In this thesis, three different educational processes have been presented and modelled with workflow management technology as well as with time Petri nets individually. Furthermore, the architecture of the educational process management system has been constructed by adopting the reference model from the Workflow Management Coalition. To show the validity of using workflow management technology in the education domain, a sub-process of an educational process has been modelled and developed with certain developing techniques. It provides the potential research direction for further research on the modelling of educational process with workflow technology associated with a time component

A Systems Engineering Reference Model for Fuel Cell Power Systems Development

This research was done because today the Fuel Cell (FC) Industry is still in its infancy in spite over one-hundred years of development has transpired. Although hundreds of fuel cell developers, globally have been spawned, in the last ten to twenty years, only a very few are left struggling with their New Product Development (NPD). The entrepreneurs of this type of disruptive technology, as a whole, do not have a systems engineering \u27roadmap , or template, which could guide FC technology based power system development efforts to address a more environmentally friendly power generation. Hence their probability of achieving successful commercialization is generally, quite low. Three major problems plague the fuel cell industry preventing successful commercialization today. Because of the immaturity of FC technology and, the shortage of workers intimately knowledgeable in FC technology, and the lack of FC systems engineering, process developmental knowledge, the necessity for a commercialization process model becomes evident. This thesis presents a six-phase systems engineering developmental reference model for new product development of a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) Power System. For this work, a stationary SOFC Power System, the subject of this study, was defined and decomposed into a subsystems hierarchy using a Part Centric Top-Down, integrated approach to give those who are familiar with SOFC Technology a chance to learn systems engineering practices. In turn, the examination of the SOFC mock-up could gave those unfamiliar with SOFC Technology a chance to learn the basic, technical fundamentals of fuel cell development and operations. A detailed description of the first two early phases of the systems engineering approach to design and development provides the baseline system engineering process details to create a template reference model for the remaining four phases. The NPD reference template model\u27s systems engineering process, philosophy and design tools are presented in great detail. Lastly, the thesi

A Systems Engineering Reference Model for Fuel Cell Power Systems Development

This research was done because today the Fuel Cell (FC) Industry is still in its infancy in spite over one-hundred years of development has transpired. Although hundreds of fuel cell developers, globally have been spawned, in the last ten to twenty years, only a very few are left struggling with their New Product Development (NPD). The entrepreneurs of this type of disruptive technology, as a whole, do not have a systems engineering \u27roadmap , or template, which could guide FC technology based power system development efforts to address a more environmentally friendly power generation. Hence their probability of achieving successful commercialization is generally, quite low. Three major problems plague the fuel cell industry preventing successful commercialization today. Because of the immaturity of FC technology and, the shortage of workers intimately knowledgeable in FC technology, and the lack of FC systems engineering, process developmental knowledge, the necessity for a commercialization process model becomes evident. This thesis presents a six-phase systems engineering developmental reference model for new product development of a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) Power System. For this work, a stationary SOFC Power System, the subject of this study, was defined and decomposed into a subsystems hierarchy using a Part Centric Top-Down, integrated approach to give those who are familiar with SOFC Technology a chance to learn systems engineering practices. In turn, the examination of the SOFC mock-up could gave those unfamiliar with SOFC Technology a chance to learn the basic, technical fundamentals of fuel cell development and operations. A detailed description of the first two early phases of the systems engineering approach to design and development provides the baseline system engineering process details to create a template reference model for the remaining four phases. The NPD reference template model\u27s systems engineering process, philosophy and design tools are presented in great detail. Lastly, the thesi

Social Shaping Leadership in Enterprise System Acquisition and Development: The Influence of Reference Users in Xizi Holdings

Acquisition and development remains an important aspect of enterprise systems research. In practice, it means reference users interact in and across organizations to fill gaps in knowledge and offer their experience as models or standards for others. Despite their importance, how reference users influence the acquisition process and the role of IT in its development have received scant attention. This paper presents a study of how reference users shape and lead the acquisition and development of enterprise systems (ES). We derive our findings from investigating and conducting a case study on Xizi Holdings, one of the largest private enterprises in China. Our model deploys a theoretical lens of the social shaping of technology in the context of inter-organizational ES adoption. We build the model on stage-wise observations of the roles that reference users play across the ES acquisition and development process in Xizi, and how Xizi brings together hundreds of autonomous IT systems across 128 subsidiaries under one enterprise-wide vision. Our study model identifies three intermediary mechanisms (i.e., attaching, staging, and shaping of technology) that reference users in the process of negotiating ES acquisition and development enable

Quality-aware model-driven service engineering

Service engineering and service-oriented architecture as an integration and platform technology is a recent approach to software systems integration. Quality aspects ranging from interoperability to maintainability to performance are of central importance for the integration of heterogeneous, distributed service-based systems. Architecture models can substantially influence quality attributes of the implemented software systems. Besides the benefits of explicit architectures on maintainability and reuse, architectural constraints such as styles, reference architectures and architectural patterns can influence observable software properties such as performance. Empirical performance evaluation is a process of measuring and evaluating the performance of implemented software. We present an approach for addressing the quality of services and service-based systems at the model-level in the context of model-driven service engineering. The focus on architecture-level models is a consequence of the black-box character of services

An assessment model in outcomes-based education and training (OBET) for Health Sciences and Technology in South Africa

Published ArticleThe study addresses a concern in higher education and specifically in Health Sciences and Technology regarding integrated and authentic assessment with an outcomes-based approach. From the information generated, an assessment model is proposed for application in Health Sciences and Technology. By applying the Delphi technique, a validated assessment model is presented for assessment in outcomes-based education and training in Health Sciences and Technology. The process and product of the research should add value to the assessment of learning in the outcomes-based approach in higher education with specific reference to Health Sciences and Technology

Beta Spaces as a Model for Recontextualizing Reference Services in Libraries

Reference services are at a cross-roads. While many academic libraries continue to offer reference services from behind a desk, others are moving to roving and embedded reference models. Meanwhile, libraries are also engaged in the development of collaborative learning spaces—often rich with technology, such as makerspaces and learning labs—but these spaces are often removed from the reference services environment. Beta spaces are another type of collaborative environment used in both public and academic libraries with the potential to infuse energy into the reference space and emphasize research support through experimentation, collaboration, and user contribution. Beta spaces are user-oriented environments with a focus on innovation and experimentation, much like a makerspace but with an emphasis on ideas over technology. A beta space model for reference services would enhance opportunities for active learning, help make the research process visible and tangible, and effectively demonstrate the value of reference

Machines as Teammates: A Collaboration Research Agenda

Humans will soon need to adapt to a collaborative setting in which technology becomes a smart collaboration partner that works with a group to achieve its goals. It is therefore time for collaboration researchers to explore the vast opportunities afforded by smart technology and to test its utility for enhancing team processes and outcomes. In this paper, we take a long view on the implications of smart technology for collaboration process design, and propose a research agenda for the next decade of collaboration research. We create a reference model to frame the research agenda

Proposal for a Reference Model for Sales Operations Planning and Aggregate Planning

Companies are increasingly adopting practices aimed at improving the quality of management, with the main purpose of enabling them to act competitively in the present market characterized by high competition and strong organizational changes. Among the improvements developed, we highlight the adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. However, the high cost of deploying and maintaining this type of technology can be a barrier for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that want to achieve such advances. Therefore, it is essential to develop a reference model of typical business planning modules to support ERP implementation, aiming at reducing time and cost in the elaboration of a particular model. In this context, the main objective of this paper is to develop a reference model from the elaboration of the processes related to Sales Operations Planning (SOP) and Aggregate Planning (AP), important modules of Production Planning and Control (PPC). The methodology used for the elaboration of this work was divided in eight sequential stages: study of the functions of SOP and AP, study of process modeling area, definition of reference model processes, choice of modeling notation, choice of modeling tool , development of the reference model, software development and results analysis. The modeling methodology employed in this work was the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN), through the tool Bizagi Process Modeler version 3.1.0.011. The software was developed through the interface Delphi version 7.0 (Object-Pascal language) in order to apply the reference model in the support to the implementation of a business management tool. As results, from a formal documentation, the reference model proved to be a useful tool in understanding and communicating the business processes raised. It is also concluded that the implemented model is able to support the implementation of production management systems in real situations