Modeling Method Of Workflow Process Based On Extended UML Activity Diagram

Workflow is business process, and it is used to express transformation processamong activities. The Management of Workflow is related to the control andcooperation of workflow. The concern of workflow is the automation of managementprocess, which improves the level of productive organization and efficiency bytransmitting documents, information of tasks among the participants according to aseries of defined rules. The workflow model can be described in some aspects, whichincludes process model and organization model and data model and so on. The coreof workflow model is to define business process, i.e. modeling of workflow process,which includes essential activities that constitute process and ordering relationbetween activities.Currently, there are many modeling methods of workflow process, in whichmodeling business process by UML activity diagrams is an important one. UMLactivity diagram is suitable especially to model business process, which is dynamicand has small granularity. However, business process is very complex in realbusiness process. UML activity diagram is short in modeling business activity ofvary level and top level and big granularity; UML activity diagram lack capability ofinteract to external environment and can not make sure character of objects whichtake part in interaction. UML activity diagram cannot describe applied data used inbusiness process clearly. User cannot gain the information of object data by andlarge.Aiming at the short of modeling method of UML activity diagram, and oncondition of many article be read, this paper discusses the workflow technologyfirstly, then the author studies and analyses some kinds of modeling technology ofworkflow process. The author put emphases on UML activity diagram, and discussesadvantage and disadvantage of UML activity diagram. And on the base of thosestudies, this paper puts forward a modeling method of workflow process, whichextends UML activity diagram. The traits of this approach are followed:Business process is sorted as activities with different levels. Topper activitydiagram indicates business process with a large granularity and lower activitydiagram indicates business process with a small granularity and it is detail of topperactivity diagram. Then author put forward the idea of layered activity diagram todescribe business process with different level. Element of event is added in UML activity diagram,which can take part ininteraction to outside and to extend mechanism of event trigger and activity transfer.It can describe activation of activity and condition of transfer (event), and canincrease interact capability between process model and outside environment.Condition and result of element is added in UML activity diagram, which can makeOR-split more intuitionistic. Data element is added in UML activity diagram, which include information ofapplied data object and data flow. It can swell expressive capability. At the last, the paper presents two layered activity diagram with a hospitalmanagement system as instance of modeling method of extended UML activitydiagram. The extended UML activity diagram can express business process richer and candescribe the content of workflow process model roundly and can meet purpose ofworkflow process modeling.