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Journal ArticleDOI

Formalization and verification of event-driven process chains

15 Jul 1999-Information & Software Technology (Elsevier)-Vol. 41, Iss: 10, pp 639-650
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an approach to give formal semantics to Event-driven Process Chains (EPCs) by mapping EPCs (without connectors of type ∨) onto Petri nets.
Abstract: For many companies, business processes have become the focal point of attention. As a result, many tools have been developed for business process engineering and the actual deployment of business processes. Typical examples of these tools are Business Process Reengineering (BPR) tools, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, and Workflow Management (WFM) systems. Some of the leading products, e.g. SAP R/3 (ERP/WFM) and ARIS (BPR), use Event-driven Process Chains (EPCs) to model business processes. Although the EPCs have become a widespread process modeling technique, they suffer from a serious drawback: neither the syntax nor the semantics of an EPC are well defined. In this paper, this problem is tackled by mapping EPCs (without connectors of type ∨) onto Petri nets. The Petri nets have formal semantics and provide an abundance of analysis techniques. As a result, the approach presented in this paper gives formal semantics to EPCs. Moreover, many analysis techniques are available for EPCs. To illustrate the approach, it is shown that the correctness of an EPC can be checked in polynomial time by using Petri-net-based analysis techniques.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a new workflow language (YAWL) is proposed based on a rigorous analysis of existing workflow management systems and workflow languages, and a set of workflow patterns are collected.

1,225 citations

01 Jan 2002
TL;DR: This paper motivates the need for a new workflow language, specifies the semantics of the language, and shows that soundness can be verified in a compositional way.
Abstract: Based on a rigorous analysis of existing workflow management systems and workflow languages, a new workflow language is proposed: yet another workflow language (YAWL). To identify the differences between the various languages, we have collected a fairly complete set of workflow patterns. Based on these patterns we have evaluated several workflow products and detected considerable differences in their ability to capture control flows for non-trivial workflow processes. Languages based on Petri nets perform better when it comes to state-based workflow patterns. However, some patterns (e.g. involving multiple instances, complex synchronisations or non-local withdrawals) are not easy to map onto (high-level) Petri nets. This inspired us to develop a new language by taking Petri nets as a starting point and adding mechanisms to allow for a more direct and intuitive support of the workflow patterns identified. This paper motivates the need for such a language, specifies the semantics of the language, and shows that soundness can be verified in a compositional way. Although YAWL is intended as a complete workflow language, the focus of this paper is limited to the control-flow perspective.

977 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The practical relevance of BPM and rapid developments over the last decade justify a comprehensive survey and an overview of the state-of-the-art in BPM.
Abstract: Business Process Management (BPM) research resulted in a plethora of methods, techniques, and tools to support the design, enactment, management, and analysis of operational business processes. This survey aims to structure these results and provide an overview of the state-of-the-art in BPM. In BPM the concept of a process model is fundamental. Process models may be used to configure information systems, but may also be used to analyze, understand, and improve the processes they describe. Hence, the introduction of BPM technology has both managerial and technical ramifications and may enable significant productivity improvements, cost savings, and flow-time reductions. The practical relevance of BPM and rapid developments over the last decade justify a comprehensive survey.

739 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a mapping from BPMN to Petri nets, for which efficient analysis techniques are available, and implement a tool that, in conjunction with existing Petri net-based tools, enables the static analysis of BPMNs models.
Abstract: The Business Process Modelling Notation (BPMN) is a standard for capturing business processes in the early phases of systems development. The mix of constructs found in BPMN makes it possible to create models with semantic errors. Such errors are especially serious, because errors in the early phases of systems development are among the most costly and hardest to correct. The ability to statically check the semantic correctness of models is thus a desirable feature for modelling tools based on BPMN. Accordingly, this paper proposes a mapping from BPMN to a formal language, namely Petri nets, for which efficient analysis techniques are available. The proposed mapping has been implemented as a tool that, in conjunction with existing Petri net-based tools, enables the static analysis of BPMN models. The formalisation also led to the identification of deficiencies in the BPMN standard specification.

654 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose Configurable EPCs (C-EPCs) as an extended reference modeling language which allows capturing the core configuration patterns of enterprise systems.

574 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
01 Apr 1989
TL;DR: The author proceeds with introductory modeling examples, behavioral and structural properties, three methods of analysis, subclasses of Petri nets and their analysis, and one section is devoted to marked graphs, the concurrent system model most amenable to analysis.
Abstract: Starts with a brief review of the history and the application areas considered in the literature. The author then proceeds with introductory modeling examples, behavioral and structural properties, three methods of analysis, subclasses of Petri nets and their analysis. In particular, one section is devoted to marked graphs, the concurrent system model most amenable to analysis. Introductory discussions on stochastic nets with their application to performance modeling, and on high-level nets with their application to logic programming, are provided. Also included are recent results on reachability criteria. Suggestions are provided for further reading on many subject areas of Petri nets. >

10,755 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper introduces workflow management as an application domain for Petri nets, presents state-of-the-art results with respect to the verification of workflows, and highlights some Petri-net-based workflow tools.
Abstract: Workflow management promises a new solution to an age-old problem: controlling, monitoring, optimizing and supporting business processes. What is new about workflow management is the explicit representation of the business process logic which allows for computerized support. This paper discusses the use of Petri nets in the context of workflow management. Petri nets are an established tool for modeling and analyzing processes. On the one hand, Petri nets can be used as a design language for the specification of complex workflows. On the other hand, Petri net theory provides for powerful analysis techniques which can be used to verify the correctness of workflow procedures. This paper introduces workflow management as an application domain for Petri nets, presents state-of-the-art results with respect to the verification of workflows, and highlights some Petri-net-based workflow tools.

2,862 citations

Book
22 Mar 1985
TL;DR: The author presents an example for Applying S-Invariants: The Verification of Facts in C/E-Systems by Means of S- Invariants, a model based on the successful implementation of Nets Analysis in the context of Logic Circuits and Operating Systems.
Abstract: 1. Introductory Examples and Basic Definitions.- 1.1 Examples from Different Areas.- 1.2 Examples from Logic Circuits and Operating Systems.- 1.3 Non-Sequential Programs.- 1.4 An Example for Systems Analysis.- 1.5 Some Basic Definitions.- 1.6 Summary and Overview.- Exercises for Chapter 1.- 1. Condition/Event-Systems.- 2. Nets Consisting of Conditions and Events.- 2.1 Cases and Steps.- 2.2 Condition/Event-Systems.- 2.3 Cyclic and Live Systems.- 2.4 Equivalence.- 2.5 Contact-Free C/E-Systems.- 2.6 Case Graphs.- Exercises for Chapter 2.- 3. Processes of Condition/Event-Systems.- 3.1 Partially Ordered Sets.- 3.2 Occurrence Nets.- 3.3 Processes.- 3.4 The Composition of Processes.- 3.5 Processes and Case Graphs.- Exercises for Chapter 3.- 4. Properties of Systems.- 4.1 Synchronic Distances.- 4.2 Some Quantitative Properties of Synchronic Distances.- 4.3 Synchronic Distances in Sequential Systems.- 4.4 Synchronic Distances in Cyclic Systems.- 4.5 Facts.- Exercises for Chapter 4.- 2. Place/Transition-Nets.- 5. Nets Consisting of Places and Transitions.- 5.1 Place/Transition-Nets.- 5.2 Linear Algebraic Representation.- 5.3 Coverability Graphs.- 5.4 Decision Procedures for Some Net Properties.- 5.5 Liveness.- Exercises for Chapter 5.- 6. Net Invariants.- 6.1 S-Invariants.- 6.2 Nets Covered by S-Invariants.- 6.3 The Verification of System Properties Using S-Invariants.- 6.4 Properties of a Sender-Receiver Model.- 6.5 A Seat-Reservation System.- 6.6 The Verification of Facts in C/E-Systems by Means of S-Invariants.- 6.7 T-Invariants.- Exercises for Chapter 6.- 7. Liveness Criteria for Special Classes of Nets.- 7.1 Marked Nets, Deadlocks and Traps.- 7.2 Free Choice Nets.- 7.3 Marked Graphs.- Exercises for Chapter 7.- 3. Nets with Individual Tokens.- 8. Predicate/Event-Nets.- 8.1 An Introductory Example.- 8.2 Predicate/Event-Nets.- 8.3 An Organization Scheme for Distributed Databases.- 8.4 Facts in P/E-Nets.- 8.5 A Normal Form for P/E-Nets.- Exercises for Chapter 8.- 9. Relation Nets.- 9.1 Introductory Examples.- 9.2 Relation Nets.- 9.3 The Translation of P/E-Nets into Relation Nets.- 9.4 Calculation with Multirelations.- 9.5 A Matrix Representation for Relation Nets.- 9.6 S-Invariants for Relation Nets.- 9.7 An Example for Applying S-Invariants: The Verification of Facts.- 9.8 Relation Net Schemes.- Appendix. Mathematical Notions and Notation.- I. Sets.- II. Relations.- III. Mappings, Functions.- IV. Partial Orders.- VII. Vectors and Matrices.- Further Reading.- 1. Some Landmarks in the Development of Net Theory.- 2. Conferences on Petri Nets.- 3. Text Books.- 4. Bibliographies.- 5. References to Chapter 2.- 6. References to Chapter 3.- 7. References to Chapter 4.- 8. References to Chapter 5.- 9. References to Chapter 6.- 10. References to Chapter 7.- 11. References to Chapter 8.- 12. References to Chapter 9.- 13. Modifications and Generalizations of Place/Transition-Nets.- 14. Applications.- 15. Implementation and Automatic Analysis of Nets.- 16. Related System Models.

1,908 citations

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 1997
TL;DR: This paper focuses on a class of Petri nets suitable for the representation, validation and verification of business procedures and shows that the correctness of a procedure represented by such a Petri net can be verified by using standard Petri-net-based techniques.
Abstract: Workflow management systems will change the architecture of future information systems dramatically. The explicit representation of business procedures is one of the main issues when introducing a workflow management system. In this paper we focus on a class of Petri nets suitable for the representation, validation and verification of these procedures. We will show that the correctness of a procedure represented by such a Petri net can be verified by using standard Petri-net-based techniques. Based on this result we provide a comprehensive set of transformation rules which can be used to construct and modify correct procedures.

910 citations