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A Semantic Based Workflow Management in a Virtual Organization

A Semantic Based Workflow Management in a Virtual Organization. Yun-Heh (Jessica) Chen-Burger AIAI, CISA, The University of Edinburgh e-Science Workflow Workshop Dec 3-5, 2003 AIAI Commercial, AKT, CoAKTinG project. Work Areas. Visual and declarative BPM language: RACD, FBPML

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A Semantic Based Workflow Management in a Virtual Organization

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  1. A Semantic Based Workflow Management in a Virtual Organization Yun-Heh (Jessica) Chen-Burger AIAI, CISA, The University of Edinburgh e-Science Workflow Workshop Dec 3-5, 2003 AIAI Commercial, AKT, CoAKTinG project

  2. Work Areas • Visual and declarative BPM language: RACD, FBPML • Automatic modelling support • Model creation and documentation • Ontology based knowledge sharing • Analysis, critiquing and state-stepping • Workflow system • Guided modelling activities • Guided business operation • Visualisation aids • Process view, product view, agent status view • Process dependency view, information life cycle view • Provides support for virtual organisations

  3. Knowledge Based Support Framework for Workflow Workflow System I Model Translation Model Reuse Agent J1 Workflow System J Formal Representation Agent J2 Modellers GUI Models End User Broker State Stepping Agent K1 Verification, Validation Critiquing – Within a model And between models and ontology Semantic Web Language Publishing Workflow System K Agent K2 End User Distributed Environment KBST-EM

  4. AKT Research Map and Ontology • OWL Representation: • http://www.aiai.ed.ac.uk/~jessicac/project/akt/akt-map-owl.xml • http://www.aiai.ed.ac.uk/~jessicac/project/akt/akt-map-onto.xml

  5. The Three-Layered Business Process Modelling Approach Organisation/ Business/ Goal Model Application Layer Goals and Policies Operational Requirements Logical Layer Process/Data Model, Ontology Library of Modules System Layer System Requirements

  6. (Looping enabled) FBPML Notation [Screen Shot of KBST-EM]

  7. FBPML Process Ontology Skeleton • Nodes: • Primitive Activity • Activity • Role • Time Point • Junctions: • And-junction • Or-junction (inc. Xor-junction) • Links • Precedence-Link • Synchronisation-Bar • Action/Process Decomposition • Task decomposition • Alternative decomposition

  8. Action Types (selective) • Data manipulation actions • Create(Instance|Attribute|Relation) • Delete(Instance|Attribute|Relation) • Update(Instance|Attribute|Relation) • Conditional actions • Condition_action(Conditional_statement_list, Action_list) • User interfaces: • Report(Title, Content) • Read_user_input(Title, Input) • Control of system operation (execution route) • Construct issues (INCA ontology based) • Communication with external agents/brokers • Post_issue(Header, Issue_content), Receive_issue(Header, Issue_content) • Update_event_status(Event, Status) • Domain Functions • Update_cost_in_event(Event, Cost) • Update_solution_in_issue(Issue, Solution) • Update_solution_in_solution(Solution, Solution) • Store_customer_requirements(Requirement_content) • Calculate_total_cost(Solution, Cost) • Check_cost_constraint(Solution, Requirements, Cost, Result)

  9. Additional Primitives • Time and its manipulation • Trigger • Event • Conditional statements • Preconditions • Postconditions • Life cycle • Event life status and cycle • Process life status and cycle • Each node has attributes, e.g. • Process: Instance_Id, Process_type, Life_status, Priority, Average_time_cost, Begin/End_time, Service_Requester/Service_Provider, Trigger, Preconditions, Actions, Postconditions.

  10. Process Model at the Sales and Marketing Site [Screen shot from KBST-EM]

  11. Process Model at the Technical Site [Screen shot from KBST-EM]

  12. Notation for Ontology

  13. Domain Ontology [Extended based on AKT Ontology, Compatible with INCA Ontology]

  14. User Req Comp Spec BPM - 2 Com P-2 Abstraction of Collaboration ArchitectureIn the PC Configuration Domain Edinburgh: Costing Site Aberdeen: Tech. Site I-X Process Panel I-X Process Panel Com I-1 Com I-2 BPM - 1 KRAFT Constraint Solver Com P-1 Workflow Concept Mapping INCA-FBPM Ontology Constraint Ontology Mapped Ontology Partial Domain Ontology (tech) Partial Domain Ontology (S&M)

  15. Mapped to and Operated using IX Process Panel Web page and movie of live record: http://www.aktors.org/technologies/kraft-ix/

  16. Example start_junction( “Confirm Entering Clearing Process”). process( “Confirm Entering Clearing Process”, Instance, ccs(X), or(past_due_date(Student), not_successful(Student)), update_status(Student, “clearing”) ). link(“Confirm Entering Clearing Process”, “Execute Clearing Process”).

  17. Example Process process(Instance, 'Receive Customer Request'/1, created, Priority, _Begin_time/_End_time, 1, (Requester/Requester_type, edinburgh/pc_specification), [event_occ(Instance, customer_request_for_pc_specification, received/_, Priority, _Begin/_End, (Requester/Requester_type, _Provider/_Provider_type), _Event_content) ], [true], [cond_action([not_exist(instance_of(Requester, customer))], [create(instance_of(Requester, customer))] ), create(instance_att(Requester, event, Instance)), create(instance_of(Instance, event)) ], [exist(instance_of(Requester, customer)), exist(instance_att(Requester, event, Instance)), exist(instance_of(Instance, event)) ] ).

  18. Data Model and Ontology Process Model FBPML FBPML-DL Internal View of WFE The User External Event And Interactions IDEF Methods FBPML Process Model RAD PSL/PIF WSFL Process Agenda Process Execution BSDM-BM Think Workflow Engine Standardised Methods FBPML-DL Process, Event And Status System State data Persistent Information Storage World State Awareness Of Workflow Engine

  19. Characteristics of FBPML • Contains a process and data modelling languages, including ontology • Provides an abstraction that is separated from the actual implementation • Has precise execution semantics (that is grounded in data semantics) that supports generations of a workflow virtual machine at run time • Provides a visual presentation of the process model • Provides a visual presentation for the underlying Ontology • visual data modelling languages may be ER, UML Data Diagram, etc) • Has a notion of time that may be synchronised • Suitable for a distributed environment • Can link to organisation/business/goal model • Provides a suitable foundation for automatic V&V (static, simulation, within one model, between models), model critiquing, inferencing (e.g. dependencies), confirming with ontology, planning, scheduling, etc.

  20. Knowledge Grid Information Grid Computation/ Data Grid Three layer grid abstraction Data to Knowledge Control [Source: Richard Kenway]

  21. Semantic Grid Knowledge Grid Information Grid Computation/ Data Grid Relating workflow to the three layered grid abstraction Semantic Description Declarative Process Model Virtual Workflow Machine: Information/Message Passing, Process Execution Data to Knowledge Realisation of Workflow Data Transaction Transaction of Workflow [adapted from Richard Kenway]

  22. Workflow linking to SemanticWeb Technologies • FBPML-DL is mapped to OWL, including • Ontology • Domain model (data mode and instances) • FBPML is currently mapped to BPML/WSCI and DAML-S • To develop semantic grid, wisdom may be gained and lessons learned from experiences made from semantic web development… • Interoperability • Loose coupling of heterogeneous systems that are geographically disperse • Collaboration to achieve common and individual goals

  23. Semantic Web Layer Cake

  24. WS-CDL ebBPSS DAML-S/OWL-S ebMS [adapted from WS-CDL]

  25. Virtual Organisation with Workflow Systems Intelligent Agent i Constraint Solver w Internal Broker Y Intelligent Agent - z Problem Solver k Internal Broker j Workflow System - 2 Workflow System - 1 SWL Wrapper SWL Wrapper Independent Broker Y Cost Checker Database m Other Broker/ Agents … Database Problem Solver x (Sub-)Organisation A (Sub-)Organisation B

  26. Challenges and Issues for Standard Workflow Languages • Many emerging WF standard languages are competing • Rapid evolution on semantic web languages • Many layers of semantic web languages • Standard WF languages often lack visual representation • Lack of semantic support for workflow operations • Standard services ontology ? • Standard process ontology ? • Lack of explicit representation and organisation of data manipulated by processes • Lack of explicit representation of time and synchronisation of processes in addition to the beginning and ending of a process • Lack of explicit support to operating context • Lack of explicit representation and therefore transparent control of system environment that are being altered by processes • Lack of linking to organisation/role/capability model • Lack of explicit linking to goal/business model • Lack of guidelines for producing good process model and rich modelling examples

  27. End of TalkThank you for listening Yun-Heh Chen-Burger AIAI, CISA, The University of Edinburgh Workflow Handbook 2003, WfMC. Home page: http://www.aiai.ed.ac.uk/~jessicac PM: http://www.aiai.ed.ac.uk/~jessicac/project/pc-configuration-model/top-level.html WF: http://www.aktors.org/technologies/workflow/ WF: http://www.aktors.org/technologies/kraft-ix/

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