Network-based business process management: embedding business logic in communications networks

Advanced Business Process Management (BPM) tools enable the decomposition of previously integrated and often ill-defined processes into re-usable process modules. These process modules can subsequently be distributed on the Internet over a variety of many different actors, each with their own specialization and economies-of-scale. The economic benefits of process specialization can be huge. However, how should such actors in a business network find, select, and control, the best partner for what part of the business process, in such a way that the best result is achieved? This particular management challenge requires more advanced techniques and tools in the enabling communications networks. An approach has been developed to embed business logic into the communications networks in order to optimize the allocation of business resources from a network point of view. Initial experimental results have been encouraging while at the same time demonstrating the need for more robust techniques in a future of massively distributed business processes.active networks;business process management;business protocols;embedded business logic;genetic algorithms;internet distributed process management;payment systems;programmable networks;resource optimization

Network Traffic Threat Detection and Reporting System Validation through UML

In today’s digital world, computer network security experts struggle to manage security issues effectively. Reporting the network data in graphical form helps the expert to take decision in more effective and efficient way. Visualizing the network traffic seamlessly is a big challenge but an integrated network traffic visualization approach can resolve such issues effectively. The work presented here focuses on structural, behavioral and architectural modeling of an Integrated Network Traffic Visualization System (INTVS) and validating  it through unified modeling language. The adopted modeling can accommodate the analysis and designing of INTVS effectively, which is demonstrated in this study. Keywords:  Network traffic visualization, Network Security, INTVS framework,  INTVS modeling

Network-based business process management: embedding business logic in communications networks

Advanced Business Process Management (BPM) tools enable the decomposition of previously integrated and often ill-defined processes into re-usable process modules. These process modules can subsequently be distributed on the Internet over a variety of many different actors, each with their own specialization and economies-of-scale. The economic benefits of process specialization can be huge. However, how should such actors in a business network find, select, and control, the best partner for what part of the business process, in such a way that the best result is achieved? This particular management challenge requires more advanced techniques and tools in the enabling communications networks. An approach has been developed to embed business logic into the communications networks in order to optimize the allocation of business resources from a network point of view. Initial experimental results have been encouraging while at the same time demonstrating the need for more robust techniques in a future of massively distributed business processes

Dataflow/Actor-Oriented language for the design of complex signal processing systems

International audienceSignal processing algorithms become more and more complex and the algorithm architecture adaptation and design processes cannot any longer rely only on the intuition of the designers to build efficient systems. Specific tools and methods are needed to cope with the increasing complexity of both algorithms and platforms. This paper presents a new framework which allows the specification, design, simulation and implementation of a system operating at a higher level of abstraction compared to current approaches. The framework is base on the usage of a new actor/dataflow oriented language called CAL. Such language has been specifically designed for modelling complex signal processing systems. CAL data flow models expose the intrinsic concurrency of the algorithms by employing the notions of actor programming and dataflow. Concurrency and parallelism are very important aspects of embedded system design as we enter in the multicore era. The design framework is composed by a simulation platform and by Cal2C and CAL2HDL code generators. This paper described in details the principles on which such code generators are based and shows how efficient software (C) and hardware (VHDL and Verilog) code can be generated by appropriate CAL models. Results on a real design case, a MPEG-4 Simple Profile decoder, show that systems obtained with the hardware code generator outperform the hand written VHDL version both in terms of performance and resource usage. Concerning the C code generator results, the results show that the synthesized C-software mapped on a SystemC scheduler platform, is much faster than the simulated CAL dataflow program and approaches handwritten C versions

Uma arquitetura de telerreabilitação baseada em realidade aumentada para apoiar o treinamento de usuários de cadeiras de rodas motorizadas

Many people worldwide have been experimenting a decrease in their mobility as a result of aging, accidents and degenerative diseases. In many cases, a Powered Wheelchair (PW) is an alternative help. Currently, in Brazil, patients can receive a PW from the Unified Health System, following prescription criteria. However, they do not have an appropriate previous training for driving the PW. Consequently, users might suffer accidents since a customized training protocol is not available. Nevertheless, due to financial and/or health limitations, many users are unable to attend a rehabilitation center. To overcome these limitations, we developed an Augmented Reality (AR) Telerehabilitation System Architecture based on the Power Mobility Road Test (PMRT), for supporting PW user’s training. In this system, the therapists can remotely customize and evaluate training tasks and the user can perform the training in safer conditions. Video stream and data transfer between each environment were made possible through UDP (User Datagram Protocol). To evaluate and present the system architecture potential, a preliminary test was conducted with 3 spinal cord injury participants. They performed 3 basic training protocols defined by a therapist. The following metrics were adopted for evaluation: number of control commands; elapsed time; number of collisions; biosignals and a questionary was used to evaluate system features by participants. Results demonstrate the specific needs of individuals using a PW, thanks to adopted (qualitative and emotional) metrics. Also, the results have shown the potential of the training system with customizable protocols to fulfill these needs. User’s evaluation demonstrates that the combination of AR techniques with PMRT adaptations, increases user’s well-being after training sessions. Furthermore, a training experience helps users to overcome their displacement problems, as well as for appointing challenges before large scale use. The proposed system architecture allows further studies on telerehabilitation of PW users.CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível SuperiorTese (Doutorado)Muitas pessoas em todo o mundo estão vivenciando uma diminuição de sua mobili- dade como resultado de envelhecimento, acidentes e doenças degenerativas. Em muitos casos, uma cadeira de rodas motorizada (CRM) é uma ajuda alternativa. Atualmente, no Brasil, os pacientes podem receber uma CRM do Sistema Único de Saúde, seguindo os critérios de prescrição. No entanto, eles não têm um treinamento prévio apropriado para dirigir a CRM. Conseqüentemente, os usuários podem sofrer acidentes, pois um protocolo de treinamento personalizado não está disponível. Além disto, devido a limi- tações financeiras e / ou de saúde, muitos usuários não podem comparecer a um centro de reabilitação. Para superar essas limitações, desenvolvemos uma arquitetura de sistema de telereabilitação com Realidade Aumentada (RA) baseado no PMRT (Power Mobility Road Test), para apoiar o treinamento de usuários de CRM. Nesse sistema, os terapeutas podem personalizar e avaliar remotamente as tarefas de treinamento e o usuário pode realizar o treinamento em condições mais seguras. O fluxo de vídeo e a transferência de dados entre cada ambiente foram possíveis através do UDP (User Datagram Protocol). Para avaliar e apresentar o potencial da arquitetura do sistema, foi realizado um teste preliminar de três participantes com lesão medular. Eles realizaram três protocolos básicos de treinamento definidos por um terapeuta. As seguintes métricas adotadas para avaliação foram: número de comandos de controle; tempo decorrido; número de colisões e biossinais. Além disso, um questionário foi usado para avaliar os recursos do sistema. Os resultados demonstram as necessidades específicas dos indivíduos que usam uma CRM, graças às métricas adotadas (qualitativas e emocionais). Além disso, os resultados mostraram o potencial do sistema de treinamento com protocolos personalizáveis para atender a essas necessidades. A avaliação do usuário demonstra que a combinação de técnicas de RA com adaptações PMRT aumenta o bem-estar do usuário após as sessões de treinamento. Além disso, esta experiência de treinamento ajuda os usuários a superar seus problemas de deslocamento, bem como a apontar desafios antes do uso em larga escala. A arquitetura de sistema proposta, permite estudos adicionais sobre a telerreabilitação de usuários de CRM

Mobile Order Tracking System

The objective of the "Mobile Order Tracking System" is to build a restaurant or cafe ordering and salestracking system prototype to improve the business process. One of the main problems of food ordering theproblem with the restaurant business operation is the phases that need to be covered before the food canbeprepared, thephases that need to be covered before the food can be delivered, andthe phases that needto be covered before the transaction bill can be prepared. Prompt and fast service to customers is very important to increase the revenue of the business. With the system, all the integrated components in the business process can be done easily. The existing of this system will also improve the existing system that performs the same function which is the "Wireless Mobile Application for F&B Ordering System" with additional feature and improvement on the system framework. The important feature that has been added to the existing system is the sales tracking and analysis. In the future itis optimistically that this system will assist the flow ofthe business and could assist the corporate level to conduct the sales analysis as well as the sales projection. An addition to that the system is equipped with wireless technology and also still maintaining the ordinary wired technology. It is to show the capabilities and benefits of wireless technology that are available to smaller scale business operation particularly food and beverages industry without costing huge investment and possibility ofallowing high ROI (return ofinvestment)

Standardization in cyber-physical systems: the ARUM case

Cyber-physical systems concept supports the realization of the Industrie 4.0 vision towards the computerization of traditional industries, aiming to achieve intelligent and reconfigurable factories. Standardization assumes a critical role in the industrial adoption of cyber-physical systems, namely in the integration of legacy systems as well as the smooth migration from existing running systems to the new ones. This paper analyses some existing standards in related fields and presents identified limitations and efforts for a wider acceptance of such systems by industry. A special attention is devoted to the efforts to develop a standard-compliant service-oriented multi-agent system solution within the ARUM project.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Construction of a real vehicular delay-tolerant network testbed

Vehicular Delay-Tolerant Networks (VDTNs) appear as innovative network architecture, able to outline communication challenges caused by issues like variable delays, disruption and intermittent connectivity once that it utilizes the store-carry-and-forward method to allow that in-transit messages (called bundles) can be delivered to the destination by hopping over the mobile vehicles even that an end-to-end path does not exist. Since messages are stored persistently in a buffer and forward to the next hop, a new communication infrastructure is created allowing low-cost asynchronous opportunistic communication under the most critical situations like variable delays and bandwidth constraints. VDTN introduces a layered architecture, acting as an overlay network over the link layer, aggregating incoming IP packets in data bundles (large IP packets), using out-of-band signaling, based on the separation of the control plane and planes. This dissertation presents and evaluates the performance of a real VDTN testbed, demonstrating the real applicability of this new vehicular communication approach. It includes an embedded VDTN testbed created to evaluate safety systems in a real-world scenario. It was used cars with laptops to realize terminal and relay nodes. A real testbed is very important because some complex issues presented in vehicular communication systems can be treated with more realism in real-world environments than in a laboratory environment. The experiments were performed on the internal streets of Brazilian Fiat Automobile manufacturing plant. Performance measurements and analysis were also conduct to verify the efficiency of the system. The results obtained show that safety applications and services can be executed with the actual proposal VDTN architecture in several environments, although notable interference as fading and characteristics of the radio channel, require the use of more modern, appropriate and robust technologies. Thus, the real deployment of VDTNs confirms that VDTNs can be seen as a very promising technology for vehicular communications.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

A Multi-Criteria Framework to Assist on the Design of Internet-of-Things Systems

The Internet-of-Things (IoT), considered as Internet first real evolution, has become immensely important to society due to revolutionary business models with the potential to radically improve Human life. Manufacturers are engaged in developing embedded systems (IoT Systems) for different purposes to address this new variety of application domains and services. With the capability to agilely respond to a very dynamic market offer of IoT Systems, the design phase of IoT ecosystems can be enhanced. However, select the more suitable IoT System for a certain task is currently based on stakeholder’s knowledge, normally from lived experience or intuition, although it does not mean that a proper decision is being made. Furthermore, the lack of methods to formally describe IoT Systems characteristics, capable of being automatically used by methods is also an issue, reinforced by the growth of available information directly connected to Internet spread. Contributing to improve IoT Ecosystems design phase, this PhD work proposes a framework capable of fully characterise an IoT System and assist stakeholder’s on the decision of which is the proper IoT System for a specific task. This enables decision-makers to perform a better reasoning and more aware analysis of diverse and very often contradicting criteria. It is also intended to provide methods to integrate energy consumptionsimulation tools and address interoperability with standards, methods or systems within the IoT scope. This is addressed using a model-driven based framework supporting a high openness level to use different software languages and decision methods, but also for interoperability with other systems, tools and methods