Monotone Precision and Recall Measures for Comparing Executions and Specifications of Dynamic Systems

The behavioural comparison of systems is an important concern of software engineering research. For example, the areas of specification discovery and specification mining are concerned with measuring the consistency between a collection of execution traces and a program specification. This problem is also tackled in process mining with the help of measures that describe the quality of a process specification automatically discovered from execution logs. Though various measures have been proposed, it was recently demonstrated that they neither fulfil essential properties, such as monotonicity, nor can they handle infinite behaviour. In this paper, we address this research problem by introducing a new framework for the definition of behavioural quotients. We proof that corresponding quotients guarantee desired properties that existing measures have failed to support. We demonstrate the application of the quotients for capturing precision and recall measures between a collection of recorded executions and a system specification. We use a prototypical implementation of these measures to contrast their monotonic assessment with measures that have been defined in prior research

Mining Project- Oriented Business Processes

Large engineering processes need to be monitored in detail regarding when what was done in order to prove compliance with rules and regulations. A typical problem of these processes is the lack of con- trol that a central process engine provides, such that it is difficult to track the actual course of work even if data is stored in version control systems (VCS). In this paper, we address this problem by defining a mining technique that helps to generate models that visualize the work history as GANTT charts. To this end, we formally define the notion of a project-oriented business process and a corresponding mining algorithm. Our evaluation based on a prototypical implementation demonstrates the benefits in comparison to existing process mining approaches for this specific class of processes

Blockchains for Business Process Management - Challenges and Opportunities

Blockchain technology promises a sizable potential for executing inter-organizational business processes without requiring a central party serving as a single point of trust (and failure). This paper analyzes its impact on business process management (BPM). We structure the discussion using two BPM frameworks, namely the six BPM core capabilities and the BPM lifecycle. This paper provides research directions for investigating the application of blockchain technology to BPM.Comment: Preprint for ACM TMI

Misplaced product detection using sensor data without planograms

Accurate and timely provisioning of products to the customers is essential in retail environments to avoid missed sales opportunities. One cause for missed sales is that products are misplaced in the store. This can be addressed by fast and accurately detecting those misplacements. A problem of current detection methods for misplaced products is their reliance on up-to-date planogram information, which is often missing in practice. This paper investigates the effectiveness and efficiency of outlier detection methods for finding misplaced products without planograms. To that end, we conduct simulation studies with realistic parameters for different store parameters and sensor infrastructure settings. We also evaluate the detection methods in a real setting with an RFID inventory robot. The findings indicate that our proposed MiProD aggregation of individual detection methods consistently outperforms individual techniques in detecting misplaced products

Automatic root cause identification using most probable alignments

\u3cp\u3eIn many organizational contexts, it is important that behavior conforms to the intended behavior as specified by process models. Non-conforming behavior can be detected by aligning process actions in the event log to the process model. A probable alignment indicates the most likely root cause for non-conforming behavior. Unfortunately, available techniques do not always return the most probable alignment and, therefore, also not the most probable root cause. Recognizing this limitation, this paper introduces a method for computing the most probable alignment. The core idea of our approach is to use the history of an event log to assign probabilities to the occurrences of activities and the transitions between them. A theoretical evaluation demonstrates that our approach improves upon existing work.\u3c/p\u3

Automatic root cause identification using most probable alignments

In many organizational contexts, it is important that behavior conforms to the intended behavior as specified by process models. Non-conforming behavior can be detected by aligning process actions in the event log to the process model. A probable alignment indicates the most likely root cause for non-conforming behavior. Unfortunately, available techniques do not always return the most probable alignment and, therefore, also not the most probable root cause. Recognizing this limitation, this paper introduces a method for computing the most probable alignment. The core idea of our approach is to use the history of an event log to assign probabilities to the occurrences of activities and the transitions between them. A theoretical evaluation demonstrates that our approach improves upon existing work

Matching of Events and Activities - An Approach Based on Constraint Satisfaction

International audienceNowadays, business processes are increasingly supported by IT systems that produce massive amounts of event data during the execution of a process. This event data can be used to analyze the process using process mining techniques to discover the real process, measure conformance to a given process model, or to enhance existing models with performance information. While it is essential to map the produced events to activities of a given process model for conformance analysis and process model annotation, it is also an important step for the straightforward interpretation of process discovery results. In order to accomplish this mapping with minimal manual effort, we developed a semi-automatic approach that maps events to activities by transforming the mapping problem into the optimization of a constraint satisfaction problem. The approach uses log-replay techniques and has been evaluated using a real process collection from the financial services and telecommunication domains. The evaluation results demonstrate the robustness of the approach towards non-conformant execution and that the technique is able to efficiently reduce the number of possible mappings

Conformance checking: relating processes and models, relating processes and models

This book introduces readers to the field of conformance checking as a whole and outlines the fundamental relation between modelled and recorded behaviour. Conformance checking interrelates the modelled and recorded behaviour of a given process and provides techniques and methods for comparing and analysing observed instances of a process in the presence of a model, independent of the model's origin. Its goal is to provide an overview of the essential techniques and methods in this field at an intuitive level, together with precise formalisations of its underlying principles. The book is divided into three parts, that are meant to cover different perspectives of the field of conformance checking. Part I presents a comprehensive yet accessible overview of the essential concepts used to interrelate modelled and recorded behaviour. It also serves as a reference for assessing how conformance checking efforts could be applied in specific domains. Next, Part II provides readers with detailed insights into algorithms for conformance checking, including the most commonly used formal notions and their instantiation for specific analysis questions. Lastly, Part III highlights applications that help to make sense of conformance checking results, thereby providing a necessary next step to increase the value of a given process model. They help to interpret the outcomes of conformance checking and incorporate them by means of enhancement and repair techniques. Providing the core building blocks of conformance checking and describing its main applications, this book mainly addresses students specializing in business process management, researchers entering process mining and conformance checking for the first time, and advanced professionals whose work involves process evaluation, modelling and optimization

Conformance checking:relating processes and models, relating processes and models

\u3cp\u3eThis book introduces readers to the field of conformance checking as a whole and outlines the fundamental relation between modelled and recorded behaviour. Conformance checking interrelates the modelled and recorded behaviour of a given process and provides techniques and methods for comparing and analysing observed instances of a process in the presence of a model, independent of the model's origin. Its goal is to provide an overview of the essential techniques and methods in this field at an intuitive level, together with precise formalisations of its underlying principles. The book is divided into three parts, that are meant to cover different perspectives of the field of conformance checking. Part I presents a comprehensive yet accessible overview of the essential concepts used to interrelate modelled and recorded behaviour. It also serves as a reference for assessing how conformance checking efforts could be applied in specific domains. Next, Part II provides readers with detailed insights into algorithms for conformance checking, including the most commonly used formal notions and their instantiation for specific analysis questions. Lastly, Part III highlights applications that help to make sense of conformance checking results, thereby providing a necessary next step to increase the value of a given process model. They help to interpret the outcomes of conformance checking and incorporate them by means of enhancement and repair techniques. Providing the core building blocks of conformance checking and describing its main applications, this book mainly addresses students specializing in business process management, researchers entering process mining and conformance checking for the first time, and advanced professionals whose work involves process evaluation, modelling and optimization.\u3c/p\u3