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BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

BPMN Series
What is Needed for Process Automation?
Good e-Learning’s complete guide to BPMN 2.0
by Gregor Polančič

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Introduction
BPMN Task

In the past, much of the BPMN standard was focused on non-executable Task

BPMN. Task

• Process diagrams described logic in a way that could be read

and understood by humans.

At the time, the only way to execute BPMN models was to map them to
BPEL (Business Process Execution Language) notation
<process>
<receive createInstance="yes" />
BPEL
<switch>
<case name="usa">
<invoke name="install_firmware" />
</case>
<case name="france">
<invoke name="install_firmware" />
</case>
</switch>
<reply variabele="status" />
</process>

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BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

BPMN 2.0 Models can be Executable

BPMN Task

BPMN v2.0 contains greater support for executable models Task

Task

BPMN 2.0 defines both:

• A common executable conformance sub-class, and
• execution semantics for each element

Vendors of modeling tools are now able to establish executable models /…/
<exclusiveGateway gatewayDirection="Diverging" id="sid-258D9D8C-
with BPMN 2.0 03A9-43B4-9481-B71EE7C4464B" name="">
<extensionElements>
<signavio:signavioMetaData metaKey="bgcolor"
metaValue="#ffffff"/>
</extensionElements>
<incoming>sid-487E9DE0-9488-469B-865C-
32A923523565</incoming>
<outgoing>sid-550AC674-2A66-49BC-B6B2-
56C342666E4F</outgoing>
<outgoing>sid-B535865E-A80E-4147-A083-
A92044C10BCD</outgoing>
</exclusiveGateway>
/…/
BPMN

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Common Executable Conformance Sub-Class Elements

• Sequence Flow (unconditional) • Call Activity
• Sequence Flow (conditional) • Data Object
• Sequence Flow (default) • Text Annotation
• Sub-Process (expanded) • Data Association
• Exclusive Gateway • Message Start Event
• Parallel Gateway • Message End Event
• Start Event (None) • Terminate End Event
• End Event (None) • Catching message Intermediate Event
• Event-Based Gateway • Throwing message Intermediate Event
• User Task • Catching timer Intermediate Event
• Service Task • Boundary error Intermediate Event

Note that these elements also have visual representation (icons)!

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

BPMN 2.0 Process Automation

Additional information must be added if we want to
execute a BPMN 2.0 model

Such information includes:

• process variables
• task input and output data
• performers and user interface
• conditional expressions for gateways
• event definitions and messages
An example of how a task
in BPMN in represented
as a web-form.

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Process Variables
Typically, process variables can be defined globally or
locally

• If we define a variable globally, each activity or

event has access to the data
• If we define a variable locally, only a specific
activity has the access to a variable

Variables can usually be one of the following types:

• String An example of how
• Integer various data types can
• Double be represented in the
final application.
• Boolean
• Date-time

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Tasks
Tasks are tightly coupled with variables
• e.g. variables are presented in the task in form of an input fields and
can be set (write) or get (read).

Common executable conformance sub-class defines two task types:

• User task
• Service task

Depending on the vendor, more types of tasks can be supported for the
execution of BPMN models.

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

User Tasks
A User task is usually represented in the form of a web or desktop
application‘s user interface

Data displayed will depend on the global or local variables

Each user task must also define a performer

i.e. a person who executes the task

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Service Tasks
A Service Task represents a web service or an automated application

Vendors usually create an automated application using different types of

programming or script languages

Similarly to user task, service task is also tightly coupled with variables

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Gateways
Only three types of gateways are defined in a common executable
conformance sub-class, namely:
• Exclusive gateway Exclusive
• Parallel gateway
• Event-based gateway

Exclusive and event-based gateways commonly check for a condition or

Parallel
event on each outgoing sequence flow
• Because of this, vendors must provide a way to set conditions on
each outgoing sequence flow

Event-based

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BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Events and Messages (1/2)

Intermediate Intermediate
Start End
catch throw
The following events are supported by the common executable
conformance sub-class:
• None start None start None end

• None end
Message Catch Throw Message end
• Message start start message
intermediate
message
intermediate

• Message end
• Terminate end Catch timer
intermediate
• Catching message intermediate
• Throwing message intermediate Boundary
error
• Catching timer intermediate intermediate

• Boundary error intermediate

Terminate
end

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BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Events and Messages (2/2)

None start and end events start or end a process Terminate end events terminate a currently active
without any specific conditions application

Executing throw (intermediate or end) message Catching timer intermediate events are triggered
events are realized by mapping pool’s variables to when a defined date-time variable is fulfilled.
messages
Boundary error events catch exceptions that usually
Executing catch (start or intermediate) message occur in automated applications
events are realized by mapping messages to pool’s
variables

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BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

Summary
With the introduction of the BPMN 2.0 specification, In order to make a BPMN model executable,
vendors can now create software that enables additional information must be added to the model
business process model to be executed (e.g. process variables, task input and output data,
performers and user interfaces)
The BPMN 2.0 specification provides a subset of
BPMN elements that need to be supported as well
as their semantics

© Good e-Learning 2014. All rights reserved.

BPMN Series What is Needed for Process Automation?

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