Development of a Petri Net Markup Language-based Analysis Tool
1 Motivation
Explicit business processes are often expressed in a graphical notation [Wes19]. A plethora of business process modeling languages, e.g., the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN), the Unified Modeling Language Activity Diagram (UML AD), or Yet Another Workflow Language (YAWL), have been proposed and are widely used. Most of these business process modeling languages were inspired by Petri nets and add good ideas, but many are also considered semiformal and are therefore hard to analyze [Aal02]. Petri and workflow nets describe a good starting point for business process models as they provide a graphical representation. On the other hand, they have clear semantics, which enables the application of formal analysis techniques [Aal02]. Therefore, Petri and workflow nets have found wide applications in academia: In teaching, and research. Popular open-source Petri net editors, such as “Plat-form Independent Petri net Editor” (PIPE) or “TIme Petri Net Analyzer” (TINA), use or support the Petri Net Markup Language proposed by [WK03] as XML based file format. While many analysis algorithms for Petri and workflow nets are known, they are often built into and are coupled with a specific tool (e.g., in PIPE or WOFLAN) or are limited to Petri nets and do not support workflow-net specific analysis such as the free-choice property (e.g., in TINA).Therefore, the BPM research community could benefit from a Petri net analysis tool that overcomes the aforementioned limitations.
2 Problem Statement
The purpose of this Bachelor thesis is first to review existing Petri and workflow net analysis tools, their features and limitations, and second to implement an analysis tool that overcomes the identified limitations.
3 Requirements
- Understanding of basic principles of Business Process Management such as Petri and workflow nets
- Knowledge in the field of algorithmic complexity
Contact
bachelor.i17 [at] in.tum.de
References
[Aal02] Wil M. P. van der Aalst. “Making Work Flow: On the Application of Petri Nets to Business Process Management”. In: Application and Theory of Petri Nets 2002. Ed. by Javier Esparza and Charles Lakos. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2002, pp. 1–22. isbn: 978-3-540-48068-6. doi: 10.1007/3-540-48068-4_1.
[Bee+23] Mathias Weske. Business Process Management: Concepts, Languages, Architectures. Berlin, Heidelberg, GERMANY: Springer Berlin / Heidelberg, 2019. isbn: 978-3- 662-59432-2. (Visited on 05/03/2023).
[Cor+22] Michael Weber and Ekkart Kindler. “The Petri Net Markup Language”. In: Petri Net Technology for Communication-Based Systems: Advances in Petri Nets. Ed. by Hartmut Ehrig et al. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2003, pp. 124–144. isbn: 978-3- 540-40022-6. doi: 10 . 1007 / 978 - 3 - 540 - 40022-6_7. (Visited on 05/08/2023).