Internet enabled modelling of extended manufacturing enterprises using the process based techniques

The paper presents the preliminary results of an ongoing research project on Internet enabled process-based modelling of extended manufacturing enterprises. It is proposed to apply the Open System Architecture for CIM (CIMOSA) modelling framework alongside with object-oriented Petri Net models of enterprise processes and object-oriented techniques for extended enterprises modelling. The main features of the proposed approach are described and some components discussed. Elementary examples of object-oriented Petri Net implementation and real-time visualisation are presented

The Impact of Petri Nets on System-of-Systems Engineering

The successful engineering of a large-scale system-of-systems project towards deterministic behaviour depends on integrating autonomous components using international communications standards in accordance with dynamic requirements. To-date, their engineering has been unsuccessful: no combination of top-down and bottom-up engineering perspectives is adopted, and information exchange protocol and interfaces between components are not being precisely specified. Various approaches such as modelling, and architecture frameworks make positive contributions to system-of-systems specification but their successful implementation is still a problem. One of the most popular modelling notations available for specifying systems, UML, is intuitive and graphical but also ambiguous and imprecise. Supplying a range of diagrams to represent a system under development, UML lacks simulation and exhaustive verification capability. This shortfall in UML has received little attention in the context of system-of-systems and there are two major research issues: 1. Where the dynamic, behavioural diagrams of UML can and cannot be used to model and analyse system-of-systems 2. Determining how Petri nets can be used to improve the specification and analysis of the dynamic model of a system-of-systems specified using UML This thesis presents the strengths and weaknesses of Petri nets in relation to the specification of system-of-systems and shows how Petri net models can be used instead of conventional UML Activity Diagrams. The model of the system-of-systems can then be analysed and verified using Petri net theory. The Petri net formalism of behaviour is demonstrated using two case studies from the military domain. The first case study uses Petri nets to specify and analyse a close air support mission. This case study concludes by indicating the strengths, weaknesses, and shortfalls of the proposed formalism in system-of-systems specification. The second case study considers specification of a military exchange network parameters problem and the results are compared with the strengths and weaknesses identified in the first case study. Finally, the results of the research are formulated in the form of a Petri net enhancement to UML (mapping existing activity diagram elements to Petri net elements) to meet the needs of system-of-systems specification, verification and validation

Subtyping for Hierarchical, Reconfigurable Petri Nets

Hierarchical Petri nets allow a more abstract view and reconfigurable Petri nets model dynamic structural adaptation. In this contribution we present the combination of reconfigurable Petri nets and hierarchical Petri nets yielding hierarchical structure for reconfigurable Petri nets. Hierarchies are established by substituting transitions by subnets. These subnets are themselves reconfigurable, so they are supplied with their own set of rules. Moreover, global rules that can be applied in all of the net, are provided

A Coloured Petri Net approach to model and analyze safety-critical interactive systems

To gain confidence in safety-critical interactive systems, formal modelling and analysis plays a vital role. The aim of this paper is to use Coloured Petri Nets to model and analyze safety-critical interactive systems. We present a technique to construct a single Coloured Petri Net model of the user interface, interaction and functionality of safety-critical interactive systems and then analyze the achieved Coloured Petri Net model using a state space analysis method. There are several reasons for using Coloured Petri Nets. Coloured Petri Nets provides a graphical representation and hierarchical structuring mechanism, and a state space verification technique, which allows querying the state space to investigate behaviours of a system. There are several tools that supports Coloured Petri Nets including the CPN Tool which helps in building CPN models and allows simulation and analysis using state spaces. The technique to model and analyze safety-critical interactive systems is illustrated using a simplified infusion pump example

Integration of the Cimosa and high-level coloured Petri net modelling techniques with application in the postal process using hierarchical dispatching rules

Enterprise processes, i.e. business and manufacturing, rely on enterprise modelling and simulation tools to assess the quality of their structure and performance in an unobtrusive and cost-effective way. Each of these processes is a collaboration of inseparable elements such as resources, information, operations, and organization. In order to provide a more complete assessment of enterprise processes, a simulation approach that allows communication and interaction among these elements needs to be provided. The simulation approach requires an analysis of the performance of each element and its influence on other elements in an object-oriented way. It also needs to have the capability to represent the structures and dynamics of the elements mentioned, and to present the performance assessment comprehensively. This will ensure a more holistic simulation modelling task. These simulation requirements have motivated the investigation of the novel integration of two popular enterprise process modelling methods: Cimosa and high-level coloured Petri net. The Cimosa framework is used to formalize the enterprise modelling procedure in the aspects of representing process elements, structure, behaviours, and relationships. The high-level coloured Petri nets method provides the mechanism to simulate the dynamics of objects and their characteristics, and also to enable communication among the objects. The approach is applied on a postal process model, which involves elements from manufacturing processes, i.e. machine processing (sorting), inventory (storage), product flow, and resource planning. Simulation studies based on the hierarchical dispatching rules show that the integrated approach is able to present vital information regarding the communication method, resource management, and the effect of interactions among these manufacturing process elements, which are not provided by the current modelling system in the postal company. The current paper has presented a novel mechanism, i.e. Cimosa—HCTSPN modelling approach, to extract information on process elements and their interactions. It has also presented the novel hierarchical dispatching rules and contributed to the extension of information that can be represented for a postal process

Design/CPN - A Computer Tool for Coloured Petri Nets

In this paper, we describe the computer tool Design/CPN supporting editing, simulation, and state space analysis of Coloured Petri Nets. So far, approximately 40 man-years have been invested in the development of Design/CPN. It is used world-wide by more than 200 companies and research institutions. For the presentation, we draw from the experiences gained in recent industrial application using Coloured Petri Nets in the design, validation, and verification of communication protocols for audio/video systems

Comparative Analysis of Different Tools Business Process Simulation

Business process modelling is an increasingly popular research area for both organisations and enterprises due to its usefulness in facilitating better planning of resources, business reengineering and optimized business performance. The modelling and simulation of Business Processes has been able to show Business Analysts, and Managers where bottleneck exists in the system, how to optimize the Business Process to reduce cost of running the Organization, and the required resources needed for an Organization An important part of the evaluation of designed and redesigned business processes is Business Process Simulation (BPS). Although an abundance of simulation tools exist, the applicability of these tools is diverse. In this paper we thrash out a number of simulation tools that are applicable for the BPM field, we estimate their applicability for BPS and formulate recommendations for further research. This paper is limited to analysis three tools that is IBM WebSphere, FLOWer and FileNet (process management); and Arena and CPN Tools (discrete event simulation)) are compared based on the capabilities of modelling, support of simulation and output analysis