International Business Machines Corporation

Jana Koehler

Jochen M Kuester

Michael S Wahler

Rainer F Hauser

Jussi H Vanhatalo

Thomas Gschwind

Bonnie Kathryn Ray

Lea A Deleris

Ksenia Ryndina

Eric W Cope

Dominik Etzweiler

Frederick Y Wu

Santhosh Babu Kumaran

Shubir Kapoor

Simon D Moser

Hagen Voelzer

Olaf W Zimmermann

Christian Facciorusso

Janette Siu Jong Wong

Felix Feger

Wolfgang Bernhard Kleinoeder

Oleksandr Maystrenko

A method and computer program product for extending a business process model. The method includes specifying first elements representing performance measures and objectives of a business process which may be compromised by risk events; specifying second elements representing contextual information describing circumstances which may be relevant to a failure mode of the process, said contextual information comprising a type and state of: resources to support the process, of jobs and artifacts that undergo the process; and, a type and state of environmental factors; specifying third elements representing errors which may occur during process execution; specifying fourth elements representing causal relationships among risk events related to the resources, activities, and said environmental factors that may influence process execution; and providing a set of metamodel extensions to a standard process modeling language that incorporate said specified first second third and fourth elements directly in the business process model.

Method for creating and expressing risk-extended business process models

A computer-implemented method for assisting a user in applying a business process pattern. In some embodiments, the computer-implemented method includes providing a graphical user interface (GUI) adapted for displaying a first representation of a business process and for allowing user editing of the business process. The computer-implemented method also includes receiving a user selection of a fragment of the business process as displayed in the first representation. In some embodiments, the computer-implemented method includes calling a second representation of the business process, the second representation including a hierarchy of fragments of business process, and checking whether the fragment selected by the user corresponds to one of the fragments of the second representation. The computer-implemented method may also include instantiating a business process pattern using the selected fragment if the fragment selected corresponds. The selected fragment is re-usable within the business process pattern.

Computer-implemented method and systems for assisting a user in applying a business process pattern

A method of generating code from a class model for a modeled system. The class model specifies a plurality of elements of a modeling language and dependencies between elements of a plurality of elements. In operations the method analyzes the class model to identify a first possible source of under-specification with respect to the modeled system in the class model by using pattern recognition to find an occurrence of a first problem pattern of a plurality of problem patterns in the class model, the plurality of problem patterns are then stored in a repository. The method also includes identifying a set of constraint patterns where the at least first constraint pattern is linked in the repository to the first problem pattern. A user may then select a constraint pattern which is utilized in instantiating constraints and generating code based on the class model and the instantiated constraints.

Generating constraints in a class model

A method and computer program product for integrating risk management concepts into a standard business process metamodel by defining a set of metamodel extensions to standard process modeling languages that incorporate risk information directly in the process model. The method includes collecting risk-relevant information for addition to a business process model, and enabling visualizing of a risk-extended business process model. using a notation to express notions as failure modes of resources, root cause events, and sources of execution failure and low job output quality directly in the context of process models. Additionally, the method enables the computation of risk-related impacts on the distribution of process performance measures using a Bayesian network model or a discrete-event simulation model.

System and method for creating and expressing risk-extended business process models

A system and associated method for hierarchically decomposing a workflow graph G into a process structure tree PST. The workflow graph G is a two-terminal graph parsed into a tree T having triconnected components. Boundary pairs of all triconnected components in T are computed and fragments are discovered with boundary pairs. T is restructured into PST pursuant to categories of triconnected components in T. PST is deterministic and modular. PST represents a block-based process model that has fine blocks of execution units. PST is computed in time linear to the number of edges in G.

System and method for hierarchically decomposing process model

Methods and systems are provided for automatic identification of an insertion point. Comparison defining the correspondence between elements of models is done. The sequence order of elements in the second model is analyzed to identify predecessor and successor elements of the element t. The comparison is used to identify a set of transferred predecessors (P), comprising elements of the first model which correspond to predecessor elements (P) in the second model, and a set of transferred successors (S) comprising elements of the first model which correspond to successor elements (S) in the second model. Then, positions of the elements x, y in the sequence order of the first model are compared with the positions of elements in the sets of transferred predecessors and successors (P, S). An edge between the elements x and y is identified as an insertion point.

Automatic insertion point identification in model merging operations

A method of automatic pattern based editing of business models on a canvas of business model editing application includes receiving a request to automatically edit a business model, constructing an initial current set C of elements from the business model, constructing an initial next set N of elements from the business model, and connecting elements between the initial current set C and the initial next set N until all elements in both the initial current set C and the initial next set N have been connected. The connecting is based on at least connecting elements sequentially if the elements exist from left to right on the canvas, and connecting elements in parallel or using a decision and merge combination if the elements exist from top to bottom on the canvas.

Method of automatic pattern based editing of business models

A method for generating an executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic process model comprises the following steps. First, the unstructured cyclic process model is transformed into a preliminary workflow code. Then, from the preliminary workflow code the executable workflow code is generated by eliminating unstructured cycles.

Method for generating an executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic process model and method for executing a workflow code of an arbitrary process model

Techniques for composition of model transformations from a predetermined set of model transformations. A state machine is provided in memory. The states are defined in the state machine in terms of predetermined model attributes. In response to specification of a target state for an input model to be transformed, an execution sequence in the state machine, between a start state corresponding to the input model and an end state corresponding to the specified target state, is selected. Each transformation in the selected sequence is then successively executed on the input model. After executing each transformation in the selected sequence, the transformed input model state is compared to the model state defined in the state machine to determine if the selected sequence is inoperable for the input model. If so, an alternative execution sequence in the state machine, between the input model state and the specified target state, is selected.

Automatic composition of model transformations

A method for generating an executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic process model. The method comprises the following steps. First a continuation equation system is generated from the unstructured cyclic process model. Then, the executable workflow code is generated from the continuation equation system, wherein therefore, the continuation equation system is solved by means of transformation rules.

Method for generating an executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic process model

A method for modeling business transformation includes steps of: constructing a first analysis model based on at least one legacy-business-process-model; and analyzing the first analysis model in conjunction with at least one business-process-reference-model. The method further includes deriving a second analysis model in response to analyzing the first analysis model in conjunction with the at least one business-process-reference-model and refining the second analysis model to obtain a design model.

Method for modeling business transformation

A method for generating a BPEL4WS executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic business process model. The method inputs a graphical representation of the business process model using a graphical modeling language. The graphical representation comprises activities, decisions and an unstructured cycle including more than one entry or more than one exit to an activity or a decision. The method assigns continuation semantics to the graphical representation which comprises partitioning the activities and the decisions of the graphical representation into the past, present, and future. The method assigns a continuation variable to a start and an end of the graphical representation and assigns a continuation variable to each activity and each decision that has more than one incoming link or more than one outgoing link.

Method for generating a business process execution language for web services executable workflow code from an unstructured cyclic business process model

A system and method that implements top-down and bottom-up model-driven transformations between platform-independent (business view) modeling approaches and platform-specific (IT architectural) models. On the business level, business view models may be expressed in, but not limited to ADF or UML2, whereas on the IT architecture side, service-oriented architectures with Web service interfaces and processes are specified in business process protocol languages including, but not limited to, BPEL4WS, or workflow definitions. An architecture and a transformation method based on typed information flows automatically transforms platform-independent business models into executable information technology (IT) architecture specifications constrained by a specific IT platform, and vice versa. The models generated span the entire life cycle of a software system and ease the software production, deployment and maintenance tasks. That is, the different models generated for the same system are 'linked' in a way that relevant changes in one model may be propagated to the other models to keep the model set consistent.

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Oberrieden, Switzerland

Jana Koehler