Workflow technology learning

Source: Internet
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One or more modeling technologies and tools are used to convert the actual business process to the formal definition that can be processed by the computer. The obtained definition is Process Model, Process Template, process metadata, and process definition. The process modeling methodology is worth thinking about: the underlying communication infrastructure for workflow system execution. Corbar, DCOM, and Java are optional, but there is no good solution in terms of distributed, security, fault tolerance, and reliability. Standardization Problems. Different vendors have different workflow models, definition languages, APIs, and cannot interoperate with each other. Although WfMC has worked on this issue, it is still very difficult to implement standards such as relational databases (relational database models and SQL languages. Today's work: APIFor different workflow systems, as well as between workflow systems and applications Exchange formats and protocols. Unified Workflow ModelTo enable the workflow definitions of different systems to use each other. Today's workflow model Problems: Lack of support process Definition, Process Evolution, Process Analysis. The core of the model is, of course, the process definition, including the basic activities of the process and the sequential relationship between activities. Most of the existing models are intuitively defined in graphic or text languages. This approach is essentially from the user's perspective. Unable to describe the nature of a workflow, More difficult to analyze and evaluate. WF-net has a formal mathematical descriptive narration, but it does not have sufficient ability to describe the workflow model. Due to the insufficient theoretical basis of the model, the key features of the workflow system are problematic. Workflow simulation problem: a workflow system without simulation is not in good condition, but there is no relevant stuff. Workflow Theory: Process Modeling Theory and modeling method. Studying workflow models that support transactions can solve some essential problems. Model Verification: How to verify that the model will not be deadlocked (if the model cannot be verified, the syntax of the model can be directly restricted to avoid deadlocks ). Integration of process models with other models: functional models, information models, resource models, organizational models, even economic models, and decision models exist in enterprise applications. These models describe different facets of the application field. Integration is not easy. The workflow model should include the start and end conditions of a process, which constitute the activities of the process and the navigation rules between the activities. You need to complete the tasks and applications that may be called, the reference relationship of the workflow machine and related data. Organizational structure, role in the organizational unit. Process Definition meta-model:

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Conversion Conditions: Provides navigation for process instance promotion, corresponding to the business rules and operation sequence in the business process. Number of conditions: flow condition (that is, the front and back conditions) and running condition execution condition. Workflow-related data: It is another basis for workflow instances to be promoted. For example, when a bank loan is made, more than 0.1 million of the applications must be submitted to the manager, and less than the application must be handled by the clerk. Research on Several instances:1. The modeling tool used by Exotica IBM's flowmark: http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/sg242184.html flowmark is based on the meta-model of the workflow management Alliance: Activity (one operation, function ); Control Flow; Data Stream(Ing between input and output data boxes); input/output data boxes; Start/start/end conditions of the activity. Flowmark has a conversion function from the transaction model to the workflow model (why is this function available? Because the goal of the advanced transaction model is similar to that of the workflow): the user creates a specification that contains the transaction model to be used and the transaction items to run. After the pre-processor confirms that it complies with the transaction model, convert the process model to flowmark Definition Language format, and then ...... Research Plan: flowmark operation interface (using its user hands ?), The functions and usage of the pre-processor and FDl in the conversion from the transaction model to the flowmark model can be used to process the pre-processing from the user's IPO input to the visual model conversion. Because flowmark uses the WfMC model, consider how to map FDL and xpdl from its flowchart to FDL. 2. Meteor its modeling tool divides the model into three parts: Flow designer: defines the relationship between activities. Data designer: defines the data required and transferred for running activities. It is implemented through data classes using OO technology. Task designer: includes five types of task designers: Non-transactional, transactional, web, man-machine complex, and two-phase commit. For this reason, five types of task designer are defined, describes how to activate different types of activities. The model is described in wil workflow intermediate language, which is similar to wpdl. Wil can record the precursor and successor relationships between activities, data objects transmitted between activities, definitions of data objects, descriptions of activities, and activity activation methods. Research Plan: Wil, how to integrate the three parts of the definition tool. What is the difference between meteor webwork and Wil-like wpdl Based on Web? How is the process designer, data designer, and task designer integrated? What is the relationship between process design and Task Design? Its latest progress: meteor-s http://lsdis.cs.uga.edu/projects/meteor-s/index.php 3. Wide, Based on Distributed Active Database technology. There are three models: organization, information, and process. They are extensions of the WfMC failover model. It not only defines the basic elements of a workflow (Three Models and Their Relationships), but also supports a wide range of organizational models, complex activity allocation constraints, dynamic control processes, and complex process structures, workflow transaction management. The organizational model and process model are strictly separated and connected through the authorization mechanism. Authorization is used to map the roles in the process model to the proxies in the organizational model.Organizational Model: organizational structure and resource information. Including: individual employees, positions, Working Groups for temporary purposes, and enterprise resource information. To express the relationships between the preceding elements, the following elements are defined: including, allocation, belonging, and substitution. In addition, the level chart of the position, acting as the operator of the activity ). Information Model: two types of data: Global (for all instances) and local (for one instance ). Activities in the process model: Pre-and Post-condition, operations in the activity, role restrictions, and exception handling. Hierarchical modeling is supported, that is, the activity is layered, and the bottom layer is called basic activity. The basic activity description describes the operations performed on the data in the information model or the external operations to be performed by the user. WIDE has its own descriptive language. Research Plan: WIDE's own descriptive language and wpdl ratio 4. the State and activity diagram-based mentor worker uses the state and activity diagram as the specifications of the model and uses statemate as the modeling tool. The user can use BPR tools, such as aris-toolset modeling, or other workflow modeling tools, such as flowmark, And the mentor can automatically switch to status and activity graphs. The activity in the activity diagram is similar to the activity in the workflow model. The directed arc represents the data flow direction and content between the activities. The state diagram reflects the flow of control information between the activities. In the status chart, the state transition is based on the ECA rule, and the nested state is agreed, and the state chart at the same level is allowed to run independently in parallel. Research Plan: How does one transform different models in the mentor? What is the semantics of an activity diagram? Whether the activity semantics in the UML2 activity diagram is similar to the activity semantics of the workflow model. The following are more detailed products than mixer, the above research nature: 5. IBM MQSeries workflow its process model includes: Program Activity, process activity, activity block, control flow, data flow. You can customize the icon style. 6. Metro of Action Technologies Based on WebAction metro4.0, A powerful process editor is one of its specific processes:Graphical, supports unpredictable process definitions, Workflow template and Protocol wizardTo quickly generate a process model.

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Research Plan: workflow template of Action Metro 4, how to design the process Editor interface in Web mode 7. jetform InTempo has Organization definition tools, role definition tools, process definition tools, etc. Research Plan: How InTempo integrates Organization definition tools, role definition tools, and process definition tools 8. pavone's espresso is based on IBM's Lotus Notes/Domino system,

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The Process Modeler consists of an organizational modeler, A Process Modeler, and a Notes database. For example, the workflow process model is simple in structure and one-way flow lines between the active nodes and nodes.

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The organization modeler is the following: person, department, workgroup, role, and material. The role has a worker number to dynamically determine the owner of an activity when the workflow is running.

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The so-called definition of a workflow in advance should be a workflow process model, and a path selection problem should be raised: Always are required, multiple choice is selected, exclusive choice is selected, condition is selected, and else is standby. Workflow version number management concept: Each predefined workflow can have multiple execution version numbers. Modifications to the execution version number do not affect workflow definition in advance. 9. cimflow has the following models: process model, organization model, resource model, and workflow-related data. Process Model: Node, connection Fox, status, condition. Nodes and connected foxes are represented by icons, and States and conditions are represented by attributes. The process model has three active nodes: Task(Manual, self-applied, and decomposed process ), Logic, Flag. Decomposition Process: assuming that the process is more complex than compaction, you can combine closely related nodes. Reuse of task nodes: The task node is the core of the process model. It is assumed that the internal structure of the task node can be unified, and the ing mechanism of output. Therefore, task nodes must be reused. Concept of reuse: An activity or process can be used in multiple different workflows. Users only need to reference existing activities or processes. An activity can appear in different workflows, it has nothing to do with the relevant precursor and successor. This is reuse. External activities or processes referenced by users No permission for Modification. System provision SearchFunction, that is, you can actively search for potential successor nodes for each activity. What types of nodes can be reused. In terms of programming, components and objects with unified interfaces can be reused, and internal attributes and interface attributes can be strictly distinguished. Therefore, I think the internal structure of the node is defined as the IPO structure. In this way, the association between nodes is associated by output and input, and internal details are encapsulated. Therefore, every reusable workflow is IPO, and its internal structure is also IPO. Logical Node: According to WfMC, there are six logical structures. Serial, and branch, and connection, or branch, or connection, and loop. In addition, cimflow defines empty nodes. Flag Node: Because the worker uses an active network diagram, you can choose any node as the entrance theoretically. Therefore, the Start Node is defined. In addition, due to the different operating paths of the actual business process, there will also be multiple outlets. The End Node is used to display the end Of the expression process. Connection arc in Process Model: Control the connection to Fox (conditional, unconditional), data connection FOX: the reason for introducing data connection Fox is that after an activity is completed, not only do you need to control the node to which the link Fox points to, but it may also provide data to other nodes. Therefore, it is represented by data connection fox. Status: This is a problem in the process model running process, but to solve the lack of State expression in the active network diagram, we will give it a clear idea. Possible States of an activity and transition between states, for example: Organization Model: Role: it is a general term for people who inherit from a skill and can complete a function. Resource Model: There were very few resource models in workflow products before 2000, which is related to the workflow originated from the active system of the office rather than the Enterprise. Introduce "resource type" and "resource individual" to represent the resource model. Research Plan: Is there a resource model in our system? Workflow-related data: A workflow system must provide users with the ability to define workflow-related data. Related data is actually a simplified information model, that is, there is only entity type, there is no inter-entity relationship. Workflow-related data in cimflow: simple variables and objects. The attributes of the object and the return value of the method are used as workflow-related data. Workflow-related data has a scope. Cimflow Modeling Process: 1. create a process model. 2. create a resource and organizational model. activity running role definition, manual activity: bind the corresponding User Interface Template; self-active activity, create a data object domain command line number ing, we also need to consider how to get the running return results from the application. 4. Save the workflow model. 5. Assign the workflow model to the workflow machine. Research Plan: Consider the modeling interface of our system from the modeling interface of cimflow. Implementation in cimflow: 1. Relationship between four models: Process Model "uses" other three models 2. Class Diagram in Process Model: wmprocess consists of wmnodelist and wmlinklist. 3. class diagram of the organizational model: 4. class diagram of the resource model: 5. class Diagrams of relevant data: Research Plan: cimflow papers, and whether cimflow implementation methods can be used for reference. Research Plan: Some possibly web-based workflowhttp: // Scheme Workflow Modeling Method1. Activity-Based Network: Based on the relationship between activities, most workflow systems can be converted to extended petri net for verification. 2. Based on the formal representation, Petri, Extended Petri, workflow network, 3. Based on the dialogue model, 4. Based on the state and activity diagram, between Petri and graphical (Activity Network ?) Compared with petrieasy, it is easier to understand than graphical, and easier to verify than graphical. It is more difficult to verify than Petri. 5. Based on transactions. Workflow Description Language: wpdl, PSL ß nistwfdl ß widewfsl workflow definition language, TSL task definition language: ß meteorc & Co w.c Workflow Model Research Workflow describes the business process first.Therefore, a lot of workflow models start from the process description and use a directed graph or a directed graph model that is more intuitive than timeline. The disadvantage is that it cannot handle complicated process logic. 1. IDEF methods are widely used in enterprise modeling and process modeling. Include: function modeling idef0, system function structure: function input and output, Operation Control, function delivery decomposition, and function operation sequence definition. Information Modeling IDEF1/1X, information entities in the system and their relationships, dynamic behavior modeling, idef2, process modeling, idef3: Scenario Description (Process Flow Network) or an object (object state transition diagram) to get a description of the process. Object-Oriented Modeling idef4 can use idef0, 1x, and 3 to create process models. 2. Step part 49 is defined in the neutral language express. Study Plan: how to convert express neutral language to other languages? 3. Workflow Model Based on dialog. Winograd and flores4. Petri Net-based ICN models. 5. WF-Net Based on Petri Net, that is, workflow network. 6. A model based on the active tree structure. 7. broker/services proxy/service model, Andreas geppert. In addition to the relationship between activities and activities, there are also: Information transmitted between activities, the running entities of activities, and resources required by activities. WfMC defines the workflow-related time, workflow control data, workflow owner, and role. Some of the above three parts are separated from the process model (WfMC does not, but is directly added to the process model ). Wide introduces the concepts of organization model, information model, and process model. To implement conversion between different models, Standardized descriptive language": WfMC: wpdl; IBM: FDL; meteor2: Wil. Research Plan: How do the descriptive languages of these specifications transform different models? Are you sure you want to see the next similar plan for MDA? Workflow Model of flowmark: The component element of the model: Process: defined to achieve a goal. (Target driver ?) Activity: Program Activity and process activity.

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Module: similar process. The difference is that the process can be used multiple times in different workflow processes. The module is not good, but only a process. The difference between the module and the process is: the code between begin and end, and the difference between the external link library. Control the connection arc and data connection arc: the output data box of the previous activity points to the input data box of the next activity. Condition: the transfer condition between activities (on the control link Fox), the start condition of the activity, and the end condition of the activity (therefore, activity has the difference between enable status and running status ). Flowmark is a typical Activity-based IPO ModelWith activity as the basic unit, connecting to Fox is the process logic, and the input and output data box is the interface of activity input and output, and adding the condition settings to achieve modeling. The following is an instance. Check an order, run the calculation price concurrently, find the inventory, verify the technical feasibility, and then make a decision. If there is no problem, "Prepare the validation File". If there is a problem, we recommend that you change the order. However, it does not show how to infer parallel or select logic when an activity has multiple successors. Research Plan: Study the IPO features of flowmark, such as Modeling Based on UML activity diagram and flowmark. Flowmark separates the control flow from the data flow? Flowmark activities are stateful, UML? Whether the time series capability in UML is better than that in UML, or how flowmark expresses different time series. Research Plan: To study the definition of wpdl and xpdl in depth. Research Plan: shows the differences between workflow-related data and workflow control data.

Workflow technology learning

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