A Process Modelling Framework Based on Point Interval Temporal Logic with an Application to Modelling Patient Flows

This thesis considers an application of a temporal theory to describe and model the patient journey in the hospital accident and emergency (A&E) department. The aim is to introduce a generic but dynamic method applied to any setting, including healthcare. Constructing a consistent process model can be instrumental in streamlining healthcare issues. Current process modelling techniques used in healthcare such as flowcharts, unified modelling language activity diagram (UML AD), and business process modelling notation (BPMN) are intuitive and imprecise. They cannot fully capture the complexities of the types of activities and the full extent of temporal constraints to an extent where one could reason about the flows. Formal approaches such as Petri have also been reviewed to investigate their applicability to the healthcare domain to model processes. Additionally, to schedule patient flows, current modelling standards do not offer any formal mechanism, so healthcare relies on critical path method (CPM) and program evaluation review technique (PERT), that also have limitations, i.e. finish-start barrier. It is imperative to specify the temporal constraints between the start and/or end of a process, e.g., the beginning of a process A precedes the start (or end) of a process B. However, these approaches failed to provide us with a mechanism for handling these temporal situations. If provided, a formal representation can assist in effective knowledge representation and quality enhancement concerning a process. Also, it would help in uncovering complexities of a system and assist in modelling it in a consistent way which is not possible with the existing modelling techniques. The above issues are addressed in this thesis by proposing a framework that would provide a knowledge base to model patient flows for accurate representation based on point interval temporal logic (PITL) that treats point and interval as primitives. These objects would constitute the knowledge base for the formal description of a system. With the aid of the inference mechanism of the temporal theory presented here, exhaustive temporal constraints derived from the proposed axiomatic system’ components serves as a knowledge base. The proposed methodological framework would adopt a model-theoretic approach in which a theory is developed and considered as a model while the corresponding instance is considered as its application. Using this approach would assist in identifying core components of the system and their precise operation representing a real-life domain deemed suitable to the process modelling issues specified in this thesis. Thus, I have evaluated the modelling standards for their most-used terminologies and constructs to identify their key components. It will also assist in the generalisation of the critical terms (of process modelling standards) based on their ontology. A set of generalised terms proposed would serve as an enumeration of the theory and subsume the core modelling elements of the process modelling standards. The catalogue presents a knowledge base for the business and healthcare domains, and its components are formally defined (semantics). Furthermore, a resolution theorem-proof is used to show the structural features of the theory (model) to establish it is sound and complete. After establishing that the theory is sound and complete, the next step is to provide the instantiation of the theory. This is achieved by mapping the core components of the theory to their corresponding instances. Additionally, a formal graphical tool termed as point graph (PG) is used to visualise the cases of the proposed axiomatic system. PG facilitates in modelling, and scheduling patient flows and enables analysing existing models for possible inaccuracies and inconsistencies supported by a reasoning mechanism based on PITL. Following that, a transformation is developed to map the core modelling components of the standards into the extended PG (PG*) based on the semantics presented by the axiomatic system. A real-life case (from the King’s College hospital accident and emergency (A&E) department’s trauma patient pathway) is considered to validate the framework. It is divided into three patient flows to depict the journey of a patient with significant trauma, arriving at A&E, undergoing a procedure and subsequently discharged. Their staff relied upon the UML-AD and BPMN to model the patient flows. An evaluation of their representation is presented to show the shortfalls of the modelling standards to model patient flows. The last step is to model these patient flows using the developed approach, which is supported by enhanced reasoning and scheduling

A survey of agent-oriented methodologies

This article introduces the current agent-oriented methodologies. It discusses what approaches have been followed (mainly extending existing object oriented and knowledge engineering methodologies), the suitability of these approaches for agent modelling, and some conclusions drawn from the survey

Reflective visualization and verbalization of unconscious preference

A new method is presented, that can help a person become aware of his or her unconscious preferences, and convey them to others in the form of verbal explanation. The method combines the concepts of reflection, visualization, and verbalization. The method was tested in an experiment where the unconscious preferences of the subjects for various artworks were investigated. In the experiment, two lessons were learned. The first is that it helps the subjects become aware of their unconscious preferences to verbalize weak preferences as compared with strong preferences through discussion over preference diagrams. The second is that it is effective to introduce an adjustable factor into visualization to adapt to the differences in the subjects and to foster their mutual understanding.Comment: This will be submitted to KES Journa

Modelling learning behaviour of intelligent agents using UML 2.0

This thesis aims to explore and demonstrate the ability of the new standard of structural and behavioural components in Unified Modelling Language (UML 2.0 / 2004) to model the learning behaviour of Intelligent Agents. The thesis adopts the research direction that views agent-oriented systems as an extension to object-oriented systems. In view of the fact that UML has been the de facto standard for modelling object-oriented systems, this thesis concentrates on exploring such modelling potential with Intelligent Agent-oriented systems. Intelligent Agents are Agents that have the capability to learn and reach agreement with other Agents or users. The research focuses on modelling the learning behaviour of a single Intelligent Agent, as it is the core of multi-agent systems. During the writing of the thesis, the only work done to use UML 2.0 to model structural components of Agents was from the Foundation for Intelligent Physical Agent (FIPA). The research builds upon, explores, and utilises this work and provides further development to model the structural components of learning behaviour of Intelligent Agents. The research also shows the ability of UML version 2.0 behaviour diagrams, namely activity diagrams and sequence diagrams, to model the learning behaviour of Intelligent Agents that use learning from observation and discovery as well as learning from examples of strategies. The research also evaluates if UML 2.0 state machine diagrams can model specific reinforcement learning algorithms, namely dynamic programming, Monte Carlo, and temporal difference algorithms. The thesis includes user guides of UML 2.0 activity, sequence, and state machine diagrams to allow researchers in agent-oriented systems to use the UML 2.0 diagrams in modelling the learning components of Intelligent Agents. The capacity for learning is a crucial feature of Intelligent Agents. The research identifies different learning components required to model the learning behaviour of Intelligent Agents such as learning goals, learning strategies, and learning feedback methods. In recent years, the Agent-oriented research has been geared towards the agency dimension of Intelligent Agents. Thus, there is a need to conduct more research on the intelligence dimension of Intelligent Agents, such as negotiation and argumentation skills. The research shows that behavioural components of UML 2.0 are capable of modelling the learning behaviour of Intelligent Agents while structural components of UML 2.0 need extension to cover structural requirements of Agents and Intelligent Agents. UML 2.0 has an extension mechanism to fulfil Agents and Intelligent Agents for such requirements. This thesis will lead to increasing interest in the intelligence dimension rather than the agency dimension of Intelligent Agents, and pave the way for objectoriented methodologies to shift more easily to paradigms of Intelligent Agent-oriented systems.The British Council, the University of Plymouth and the Arab-British Chamber Charitable Foundation

The Development of an Automated Testing Framework for Data-Driven Testing Utilizing the UML Testing Profile

The development of increasingly-complex Web 2.0 applications, along with a rise in end-user expectations, have not only made the testing and quality assurance processes of web application development an increasingly-important part of the SDLC, but have also made these processes more complex and resource-intensive. One way to effectively test these applications is by implementing an automated testing solution along with manual testing, as automation solutions have been shown to increase the total amount of testing that can be performed, and help testing team achieve consistency in their testing efforts. The difficulty, though, lies in how to best go about developing such a solution. The use of a framework is shown to help, by decreasing the amount of duplicate code and maintenance required, and increasing the amount of separation among the various elements of the testing solution. This research examines the use of the UML Testing Profile (UTP), including the use of UML diagrams, in the creation of such a framework. Using an Action Design Research methodology, a framework is developed for an automated testing solution that utilizes the Selenium Webdriver with a data-driven methodology, used in an organizational context, and evaluated, over the course of multiple iterations. Design principles, including the use of a test architecture and test context, the use of UML diagrams for the creation of Page Objects, and the identification and implementation of workflows are distilled from these iterations, and their impact on the larger context, the delivery of a robust application that meets end-user expectations, is examined

Modeling views in the layered view model for XML using UML

In data engineering, view formalisms are used to provide flexibility to users and user applications by allowing them to extract and elaborate data from the stored data sources. Conversely, since the introduction of Extensible Markup Language (XML), it is fast emerging as the dominant standard for storing, describing, and interchanging data among various web and heterogeneous data sources. In combination with XML Schema, XML provides rich facilities for defining and constraining user-defined data semantics and properties, a feature that is unique to XML. In this context, it is interesting to investigate traditional database features, such as view models and view design techniques for XML. However, traditional view formalisms are strongly coupled to the data language and its syntax, thus it proves to be a difficult task to support views in the case of semi-structured data models. Therefore, in this paper we propose a Layered View Model (LVM) for XML with conceptual and schemata extensions. Here our work is three-fold; first we propose an approach to separate the implementation and conceptual aspects of the views that provides a clear separation of concerns, thus, allowing analysis and design of views to be separated from their implementation. Secondly, we define representations to express and construct these views at the conceptual level. Thirdly, we define a view transformation methodology for XML views in the LVM, which carries out automated transformation to a view schema and a view query expression in an appropriate query language. Also, to validate and apply the LVM concepts, methods and transformations developed, we propose a view-driven application development framework with the flexibility to develop web and database applications for XML, at varying levels of abstraction

OntoEng: A design method for ontology engineering in information systems

This paper addresses the design problem relating to ontology engineering in the discipline of information systems. Ontology engineering is a realm that covers issues related to ontology development and use throughout its life span. Nowadays, ontology as a new innovation promises to improve the design, semantic integration, and utilization of information systems. Ontologies are the backbone of knowledge-based systems. In addition, they establish sharable and reusable common understanding of specific domains amongst people, information systems, and software agents. Notwithstanding, the ontology engineering literature does not provide adequate guidance on how to build, evaluate, and maintain ontologies. On the basis of the gathered experience during the development of V4 Telecoms Business Model Ontology as well as the conducted integration of the related literature from the design science paradigm, this paper introduces OntoEng and its application as a novel systematic design method for ontology engineering