Model Checking ofWorkflow Nets with Tables and Constraints

Many operations in workflow systems are dependent on database tables. The classical workflow net and its extensions (e.g., worflow net with data) cannot model these operations so that some related errors cannot be found by them. Recently, workflow nets with tables (WFT-nets) were proposed to remedy such a flaw. However, when the reachability graph of a WFT-net is constructed by their method, some pseudo states are possibly generated since it does not consider the guards that constrain the enabling and firing of transitions. Additionally, they only considered the soundness property that just represents a single design requirement, so that many other requirements, especially those related to tables, cannot be analyzed. In this paper, therefore, we re-define the WFT-net by augmenting constraints of guards to it and re-name it as workflow net with tables and constraints (WFTC-net). We propose a new method to generate the state reachability graphs (SRG) of WFTC-nets such that SRG can avoid pseudo states, due to the consideration of the guards in it. To represent design requirements related to database operations, we define database-oriented computation tree logic (DCTL), to represent more design requirements. We design the model checking algorithms of DCTL based on the SRG of WFTC-nets and develop a tool. Experiments on a number of public benchmarks show the usefulness of our methods

Verification of Structured Processes: A Method Based on an Unsoundness Profile

The verification of business processes has been widely studied in the last two decades achieving significant results. Despite this, existing verification techniques based on state space exploration suffer, for large processes, the state space explosion problem. New techniques improved verification performance by structuring processes as trees. However, they do not support complex constructs for advanced synchronization and exception management. To cope with this issue we propose the definition of an unsoundness profile of a given process language, which specifies all possible combinations of control flow constructs that can lead to errors in the behavior of structured processes defined with such a language. In addition, we introduce the sequential and hierarchical soundness properties, which make use of this profile to determine soundness of a structured process with complex constructs in polynomial time. As an example, we defined an unsoundness profile for a subset of the BPMN language and verified the behavior of a BPMN process model.Sociedad Argentina de Informática e Investigación Operativa (SADIO

Developing Web Services Using Workflow Model: An Inter-organizational Perspective

This paper discusses how a workflow model can be used in the design and development of web services composition. We particularly investigate the development of web services composition in an inter-organizational workflow environment. We discuss respectively how to design an inter-organizational workflow from scratch when there is no existing internal workflow, and how to make existing internal workflows work together in an inter-organizational workflow environment

Knowledge based approach to flexible workflow management systems

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).Today's business environments are characterized by dynamic and uncertain environments. In order to effectively support business processes in such contexts, workflow management systems must be able to adapt themselves effectively. In this dissertation, the workflow is redefined in concept and represented with a set of business rules. Business rules play a central role in organizational workflows in context of cooperation among actors. To achieve business goals, they constrain the flow of works, use of resources, and responsibility mapping between tasks and actors using role concept. Business rules are explicitly modeled in the Knowledge-based Workflow Model (KWM) using frames. To increase the adaptability of workflow management system, KWM has several distinctive features. First, it increases expressiveness of workflow model so that exception handling rules and responsibility mapping rules between tasks and actors as well as task scheduling rules are explicitly modeled. Secondly, formal definition of KWM enables one to define and to analyze correctness of workflow schema. Knowledge-based approach enables more powerful analysis on workflow schema including checking consistency and compactness of routing rules as well as terminality of a workflow. Thirdly, providing change propagation mechanism which assures correctness of workflow after the modification of workflow schema increases adaptability. Change propagation rules for the modification primitives are provided to manage workflow evolution. On the other hand, metarules that control rules in KWM are used to handle exceptions that occur in a running workflow instance. Workflow participants can easily change workflow schema of a workflow instance with the support of extra rules and a metarule. Based on KWM, K-WFMS (Knowledge-based WorkFlow Management System) has been implemented in client/server architecture. Inference shell of knowledge-based systems is employed for enactment of business rules and integrated with database systems. From a real application based on the KWM architecture, it has been shown that system performance can increase notably by reducing the number of rules and facts that are used in the course of workflow enactment

A comparative assessment of collaborative business process verification approaches.

Industry 4.0 is a key strategic trend of the economy. Virtual factories are key building blocks for Industry 4.0 where product design processes, manufacturing processes and general collaborative business processes across factories and enterprises are integrated. In the context of EU H2020 FIRST (vF Interoperation suppoRting buSiness innovaTion) project, end users of vFs are not experts in business process modelling to guarantee correct collaborative business processes for realizing execution. To enable automatic execution of business processes, verification is an important step at the business process design stage to avoid errors at runtime. Research in business process model verification has yielded a plethora of approaches in form of languages and tools that are based on Petri nets family and temporal logic. However, no report specifically targets and presents a comparative assessment of these approaches based on criteria as one we propose. In this paper we present an assessment of the most common verification approaches based on their expressibility, flexibility, suitability and complexity. We also look at how big data impacts the business process verification approach in a data-rich world

Third Workshop on Modelling of Objects, Components, and Agents

This booklet contains the proceedings of the Third International Workshop on Modelling of Objects, Components, and Agents (MOCA'04), October 11-13, 2004. The workshop is organised by the CPN group at the Department of Computer Science, University of Aarhus, Denmark and the "Theoretical Foundations of Computer Science" group at the University of Hamburg. The home page of the workshop is: http://www.daimi.au.dk/CPnets/workshop0