| Author | Tuladhar, Anu |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.CS-09-14 |
| Subject(s) | Workflow
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| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Computer Science, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Thesis ; no. CS-09-14 |
| Abstract | Traditional workflow has successfully been implemented in different business process to ensure all the set of procedures are followed correctly to achieve certain goal. It has been used as a new means of programming, which means building application while modeling the workflow. But as we move gradually from the desktop environment towards the pervasive environment, like other applications, the workflows too need to be context-aware and adaptable. In the previous customization approaches, in a running workflow, the adaptation of a context sensitive task is done by replacing one of predefined sub processes depending adaptation rule and the value of context variable at the execution time. This curbs the flexibility of adaptation, making the method only suitable for inflexible workflows to achieve the desired effect. In many cases, the tasks in the substitute workflow may vary and may be needed to be dynamically generated depending on the contexts. This research proposes a framework of incorporating the flexibility in the workflow to add the dynamically generated alternative substitute workflow process at the execution time using customization approach. XML Process definition language (XPDL) is used to represent modeling context sensitive task of the workflow. We introduce a Domain Logic component which is responsible for generating dynamic substitute sub process workflow depending on the context and the nature of the domain process. A case study of dynamic route selection in a warehouse environment is implemented using the proposed architecture. The process of fetching the input resource from warehouse to machine is a critical process as failure to queue the resource on time could result in delay of the entire production. During the process of fetching input resource, the workers may face different bottlenecks such as obstruction of path by different dynamic obstacle like other workers. The proposed framework dynamically adapts the predefined route of the worker to reach destination with new dynamically generated optimum route with respect to the location context of a random obstacle. Evaluation results suggest that adaptation method used in proposed solution is better in terms of nature of substitutes and selection of substitutes when compared with other workflows. However it lacks predictive adaptation strategy which saves time by knowing the task in advance that needs to be adapted. Some workflows use correction method that handles faults when some tasks are unavailable which is better than the customization approach used in the proposed solution. However, it should be noted that the importance of the criteria depends on the nature of the problem domain. The architectural evaluation suggest that the proposed solution was not much reusable compared with the other workflow as the solution was tightly coupled with the workflow engine. |
| Year | 2009 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Thesis ; no. CS-09-14 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Information and Communications Technologies (DICT) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Computer Science (CS) |
| Chairperson(s) | Janecek, Paul |
| Examination Committee(s) | Dailey, Mathew;Vatcharaporn Esichaikul |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Asian Institute of Technology Fellowship |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2009 |