Workflow Analysis Patents (Class 705/7.27)
  • Publication number: 20150032499
    Abstract: Methods and systems for mapping an event type to an activity in a business process model are disclosed. In accordance with one such method, the event type and the activity are tokenized by determining event tokens for event type labels in the event type and determining activity tokens for activity labels in the activity. In addition, a score matrix is generated for pairs of the event tokens and the activity tokens indicating a degree of similarity between the event token and the activity token in each of the pairs. The method also includes determining whether the event type and the activity are correlated by determining scores of the pairs of event tokens and activity tokens that are ranked highest in said score matrix. Further, a mapping report indicating whether the event type and the activity are correlated in the business process model is output.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 23, 2013
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Matthew J. Duftler, Amos A. Omokpo, Aubrey J. Rembert, Szabolcs Rozsnyai
  • Patent number: 8943508
    Abstract: When a service is requested at a platform in a collaborative services environment, a service orchestration engine accesses a service definition from a repository and schedules a number of tasks at a number of end points in accordance with a number of end point profiles and a number of policies associated with the end points.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Ram Ravishankar, Sham M. Vaidya, Paul van Riel
  • Patent number: 8942839
    Abstract: The description refers to a method, computer program product, and computer system for displaying a chart for production planning. The chart includes a timeline, a material area associated with each of one or more materials and a resource area associated with each of one or more resources. The chart also includes a material sufficiency indicator provided within one or more of the material areas to indicate whether or not a sufficient amount of the associated material is available at one or more identified times to meet a demand of the one or more scheduled operations. The chart includes a scheduling hint that is displayed within a material area when an operation identifier has been selected. The scheduling hint identifies one or more portions within the material area for a material as providing either sufficient material or insufficient material for performance of the operation associated with the selected operation identifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: SAP SE
    Inventors: Bernhard Lokowandt, Stefan Siebert
  • Publication number: 20150025932
    Abstract: In one example, a system is provided. The system includes a portable, in-field unit including: a tag reader to acquire an ID tag identifier from a tag located in or on a physical item positioned within functional range of the in-field unit tag reader; a digital processor arranged for executing software code stored in the in-field unit responsive to the acquired ID tag identifier, the stored software code including—a customer application layer; and a database adapter component configured to provide database services to the processor; wherein the database services include accessing a stored database to acquire stored data associated with the acquired ID tag identifier.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 21, 2014
    Publication date: January 22, 2015
    Inventors: David Justin Ross, Bryan J. Turner, Christopher Traina, George Harbachuk, Diego Saavedra, Richard Clark Teudt, Kevin Saur
  • Publication number: 20150025931
    Abstract: A method and apparatus to determine: (a) the likelihood and timing for a sales opportunity to become a sale based on analytical models that incorporate the history of sales stage evolution and other covariates; and (b) the expected number of sales from invisible opportunities prior to a target date. Additionally, the method and apparatus is configured to predict an expected amount of revenue and/or an amount of resources given a current sales history.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2013
    Publication date: January 22, 2015
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Ta-Hsin Li, Nan Shao
  • Patent number: 8937618
    Abstract: Systems and methods for graphical representation of corporate networks are provided. The graphical representation may be used to present corporate information, e.g., corporate reporting structure, employee keywords, etc. The graphical representation may include nodes whose sizes are based on the corporate data, such as the number of direct reports, or frequencies of keywords appearances. The graphical representation may also include multi-layer corporation information. Further, the graphical representation may present a subset of corporate data in response to user inputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2015
    Assignee: SAP Portals Israel Ltd
    Inventors: Tamir Erez, Evgeny Himmelreich
  • Patent number: 8935174
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer program product are present for analyzing voyage efficiency. Historical data for a completed voyage of a ship is obtained. A baseline voyage solution for a completed voyage is generated with a software application executing on a processor unit using a model of the ship and the historical data. The baseline voyage solution is compared to an actual voyage solution used for the completed voyage to form a comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Henry Chen, Philip J. Ballou, John R. Murk
  • Patent number: 8935173
    Abstract: Executing a business process can include providing a context data object including a payload data structure for storing a payload data and automatically splitting an annotated context data object into one or more utility data objects. Responsive to creating a second utility data object, a pre-processing task can be injected into the business process, the pre-processing task using a copy of a first mapping to read data from the predefined data structure instance and to store the read data as payload data in the payload data structure of the first utility data object. Responsive to creating a third utility object, a post-processing task can be injected into the business process. The post-processing task can use a copy of the second mapping to write the payload data of the first utility data object to elements of a predefined data structure instance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Gerd Breiter, Matthias Kloppmann, Thomas Spatzier
  • Publication number: 20150006238
    Abstract: The proper visualization of a business process plays a key role in analyzing, changing, simulating and monitoring the business process. Most BPMS systems today, provide a modeling environment where the business user can define and visualize business processes as BPMN diagrams. Some more advanced systems (such as Sawion Business Manager) enable monitoring of the business process at run-time via a color-coded view of the process diagram. While process diagram is an important view of the process, it lacks the level of abstraction needed to provide information in an optimal way to the business users. The proposed visualization, called the 360 degree view provides an optimal view of a business process without losing important details about the process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 5, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Applicant: AUREA SOFTWARE, INC.
    Inventor: Kamyar Jambor-Sadeghi
  • Publication number: 20150006237
    Abstract: Some embodiments include a method of operating an enterprise content curation system. For example, the method can include recording an association between a content item with a first contributor account in response to receiving a first content contribution activity; receiving a command to share the content item with a second contributor account; recording a second content contribution activity associated with the second contributor account; and computing an impact score for the first contributor account based on the second content contribution activity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 23, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventors: Etai Beck, David Brutman, Zvika Menachemi
  • Publication number: 20140379416
    Abstract: In a first enterprise joined in a distributed, federated network of second enterprises, a system is provided for managing data flow between enterprises, the system including a data management server in the first enterprise having access to sets of rules for managing data flow to and from the first enterprise, a first data interface in the first enterprise dedicated to data transfer to a paired second dedicated data interface at a neighboring second enterprise in the federation, wherein the first data interface manages data sent to the second interface and/or data incoming from the second interface according to the sets of rules for managing data flow.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2014
    Publication date: December 25, 2014
    Inventors: Herbert Ristock, Brian Galvin
  • Publication number: 20140379415
    Abstract: A social collaboration workflow system embeds social collaboration functionality into the workflow process. The system identifies a location of a user device, and identifying a current activity associated with the user device based on the identified location. The system displays instructions for performing the current activity to a user interface on the user device, and displays an activity feed comprising a set of previously submitted activity feed posts that are related to the current activity to the user interface. The system determines whether the current activity has changed to a new current activity. If the current activity has changed, the system displays instructions for performing the new current activity to the user interface, and displays a new set of previously submitted activity feed posts that are related to the new current activity to the user interface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2014
    Publication date: December 25, 2014
    Inventors: Srinivas Yelisetty, Alex Kass, Brett Goldstein, Masoud Loghmani, Gurdeep Singh Virdi
  • Publication number: 20140365266
    Abstract: Method and system for performing an evaluation of an enterprise process. The method includes receiving process data for a plurality of activities associated with the at least one enterprise process. The process data depicts a current state of the at least one enterprise process. Based on the process data, a plurality of lean metrics for each of the plurality of activities is calculated. Upon calculating the plurality of lean metrics, a lean maturity assessment is performed to evaluate the enterprise process by comparing the current state of the enterprise process with a target state of the enterprise process based at least on the process data and target data depicting the target state of the enterprise process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2014
    Publication date: December 11, 2014
    Inventors: Rajesh Sethi, Ramaswamy Srinivasaiah Raghavendra
  • Publication number: 20140365267
    Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods for global enterprise workflow management are disclosed. The system may include a communications module, memory, and processor for executing a method of managing job information. The system receives job information and uses a model to identify a desirable resource to execute the job. Then the system sends the job information to the identified resource for execution. The resource may send back information associated with the running and/or completion of the job. Various models may be used in identifying a desirable approach, including a cost model, a staffing model, and other models.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2014
    Publication date: December 11, 2014
    Inventors: Thomas J. Brock, Pramod C. Madala
  • Patent number: 8910166
    Abstract: A workflow scripting system is described herein that combines the features of workflows and scripts by automatically translating between the two models. Using the system, a script author can create workflows on the fly using familiar scripting language, and a workflow author can use scripting steps to perform actions. Workflows run in this manner can be setup to execute in their own process to improve robustness or efficiency. Operations in an enterprise environment frequently take a long time and are subject to interruptions. By adding reliability concepts of workflows to a shell environment, users of the system can write scripts to address common needs of large-scale computing environments. Thus, the workflow scripting system blends the available resources provided by workflow and scripting environments to provide a host of powerful, advanced capabilities to IT personnel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Miriam Rosenberg, Bruce G. Payette, Jeffrey P. Snover, Rahim Maknojia, Christine Moeller, Narayanan Lakshmanan, Hemant Mahawar, Constantin Oprea, Lee Holmes, Kenneth M. Hansen
  • Patent number: 8910278
    Abstract: What is provided are a system and method which enables an organization or user to manage computational services in a cloud computing network for security, compliance and governance. The management including creating a trusted virtual network including encrypted data storage, encrypted data transport, and trusted instances of servers all communicatively coupled together forming a trusted cloud computing environment that is associated with the organization. A web portal running on a web server provides a point of access to the cloud computing environment. A workflow is accessed to implement one or more policies in trusted computing environment to manage the trusted cloud computing environment, the workflow customized to the organization. The access control; and to the trusted cloud computing environment is used to ensure access by users authorized by the organization to ensure compliance with adopted standards.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: CloudNexa
    Inventors: Joel Davne, Andrii Volkov, Max Yankelevich, Mikhail Malamud
  • Publication number: 20140358625
    Abstract: An operating support system includes a control unit having: accepting the specifications required for a new case; searching a second database based on the accepted specifications; obtaining past cases similar to the extent that the specifications meet predetermined standards; extracting a record of the obtained case from a first database; determining the coefficient by which the presence/absence value is multiplied as the side effect degree for the extracted record; calculating the optimized side effect degree for each task of the obtained record, by calculating the sum of values obtained by multiplying the presence/absence value by the side effect degree for the tasks, and by calculating the difference between the calculated sum and the evaluation value; and comparing the magnitude relationship between the calculated side effect degree and a predetermined threshold to output the task corresponding to the side effect degree, as the task that is omittable in the new case.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2012
    Publication date: December 4, 2014
    Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yuki Shimizu, Masayuki Hariya
  • Publication number: 20140344006
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method, computer program product, and system for service catalog management. A computer identifies information corresponding to a plurality of service requests included on a service desk, wherein the identified information includes usage and financial information corresponding to the plurality of service requests. The computer determines a service offering candidate for inclusion in a service catalog, wherein the service offering candidate is determined from the plurality of service requests included in the service desk. The computer determines a fulfillment solution corresponding to the service offering candidate, wherein the fulfillment solution includes a workflow process for the service offering candidate, scripts for automating procedures, offering parameters, and costs associated with the service offering candidate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2013
    Publication date: November 20, 2014
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Ana C. Biazetti, Leucir M. Junior
  • Publication number: 20140344007
    Abstract: A method for controlling physical processes includes providing a process model for a physical process run by a processing plant, where the process model represents an interaction between a plurality of controlled process variables and provides a variability measure for at least a portion of the controlled process variables. The process model is used with software run on a computing device to simulate an updated operating point including an updated value or updated range for at least one selected controlled process variable, where the simulation generates a future risk profile and future profit profile for the selected controlled process variable. Risk/profit profile information is generated for the selected controlled process variable from the future risk profile together with information from the future profit profile into at least one of a combined text, numeric, and graphical representation which includes an alarm limit for the selected controlled process variable.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 20, 2013
    Publication date: November 20, 2014
    Applicant: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.
    Inventors: MAYANK SHENDE, RANGANATHAN SRINIVASAN, ANDREW JOHN TRENCHARD, ANDREW OGDEN-SWIFT
  • Publication number: 20140337085
    Abstract: The present invention generally relates to systems and methods for recommending specific service instances to fill a service workflow template and complete a user's service goal. Some embodiments utilize both a user trust network and a service trust network. Such embodiments perform a random walk on the service trust network and consider the opinions of trusted neighbors of the customer in the user trust network.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2013
    Publication date: November 13, 2014
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Lei Li, Tong Sun, Hua Liu
  • Publication number: 20140337084
    Abstract: A method is provided herein, comprising identifying activated business functions being part of a business application; tracing IT assets, each being a software and/or a hardware component, running over a computerized system; associating the traced IT assets with the identified activated business function; and constructing, based on reiterated tracing and associating with respect to the business functions, a representation of an association of the IT assets with the business functions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2013
    Publication date: November 13, 2014
    Applicant: VNT SOFTWARE LTD.
    Inventor: Ronen YOCHPAZ
  • Patent number: 8886549
    Abstract: The invention provides novel systems, methods and software for business activity monitoring. In one aspect of the invention, for example, events can be monitored and/or evaluated before the data is stored in a database. This can provide for real-time business activity monitoring and, in some cases, can prevent the database from becoming a bottleneck in the monitoring process. Merely by way of example, a business activity monitor process might be implemented in a middleware layer between an enterprise application and the database that is used to store data for the application.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: Oracle International Corporation
    Inventor: Rahul V. Herwadkar
  • Patent number: 8886553
    Abstract: In a method of a technology for visual workflow process notation and layout, a workflow process graphical user interface is generated. A plurality of activity nodes is arranged along a workflow path, with each activity node representing a work activity. The activity nodes are arranged on the workflow path in representation of an order of performance of work activities within the process of performing work. A material flow path is arranged adjacent to the workflow path. The material flow path is representative of a flow of a material through the work activities associated with the plurality of activity nodes. A resource allocation node is disposed adjacent to a portion of the material flow path and one of said activity nodes. The resource allocation node represents a resource utilized in performing a work activity, represented by the adjacent activity node, upon a material represented by the portion of the material flow path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2014
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Arthur R. Greef, Jens Olesen Lund, Christian Hagel-Sorensen
  • Publication number: 20140330614
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer-readable storage media for evaluating a validity of an extended status and action management (SAM) schema. In some implementations, actions include receiving the extended SAM schema, the extended SAM schema being stored as a computer-readable document in memory and being an extension of a core SAM schema, receiving one or more business functionalities, at least one business functionality including a plurality of status vectors along a core trace that can be achieved in the core SAM schema, the one or more business functionalities being provided in a computer-readable document stored in memory, and processing the extended SAM schema and the one or more business functionalities using a computer-executable model checking tool for evaluating a validity of the extended SAM schema.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 6, 2013
    Publication date: November 6, 2014
    Applicant: SAP AG
    Inventors: Jens Lemcke, Andreas Friesen, Bernhard Thimmel, Otfried Von Geisau, Piergiorgio Bertoli, Marco Pistore
  • Patent number: 8880418
    Abstract: A workflow server is connected with operating computer terminals through a network to manage workflow. The workflow server consolidates information necessary for processing multiple consecutive nodes to be processed by one participant operating one of the operating computer terminals, and sends the consolidated information to the operating computer terminal concerned.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Takaaki Nonaka
  • Publication number: 20140324515
    Abstract: A document tracking module is associated with a physical document utilized within a business organization. Physical movement of the document is monitored through different departments of the business organization using information derived from the document tracking module. A business process flow within the business organization is discovered from the monitored physical movement of the document through the different departments of the business organization. A business process model, including details of the discovered business process flow within the business organization, is generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2013
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Salil Ahuja, Amod V. Bhise, Pankuj Chachra
  • Publication number: 20140324511
    Abstract: A document tracking module is associated with a physical document utilized within a business organization. Physical movement of the document is monitored through different departments of the business organization using information derived from the document tracking module. A business process flow within the business organization is discovered from the monitored physical movement of the document through the different departments of the business organization. A business process model, including details of the discovered business process flow within the business organization, is generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2013
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Salil Ahuja, Amod V. Bhise, Pankuj Chachra
  • Publication number: 20140324518
    Abstract: A method of autotagging business processes for monitoring analysis of an IT system within an organization is provided herein. The method includes the following stages: modeling an IT system associated with one or more business processes, into a model representing the business processes as process instances; tracking a flow of information entities throughout nodes located along the process instances; extracting, at each one of the nodes, tags associated with each one of the information entities flowing through the process instance; aggregating over time, the extracted tags being associated with its respective node and process instance; and visually representing the aggregated tags in association with its respective business processes, based on the model.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2014
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Inventors: Haggai Roitman, Yossi Mesika
  • Publication number: 20140324516
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to determining a process outcome based on a computed probability and altering the path of a process instance based on an expediting rule. An aspect includes executing, by a processing device, a process instance in a process diagram, which includes a plurality of process steps. A condition associated with a first process step is identified. An outcome for the first process step is then determined based on a computed probability. Accordingly, the first process step is bypassed and the process instance is branched to a second process step based on an expediting rule. The expediting rule includes the condition and a branching action according to a selected outcome.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 13, 2013
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Philippe Bonnard, Steven J. Demuth, Rania Y. Khalaf, Geetika T. Lakshmanan
  • Publication number: 20140324517
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for assessing risks and efficiencies based on enterprise communications information. A method for assessing risks and efficiencies based on enterprise communications information may include: collecting information from digital data tools over at least one computer network into a storage database in a computer memory; executing instructions on a computer processor to synthesize the employee communications data into structured data; mining the structured data to generate exploratory data; performing analytics on the structured data to generate confirmatory data; disambiguating the confirmatory data and exploratory data; determining a business impact based on the exploratory and confirmatory data; and implementing a business process based on a quantification of said business impact.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2014
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Applicant: JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.
    Inventor: William V. Harris
  • Patent number: 8874476
    Abstract: A filing system is configured for automating filings through an electronic submission portal (such as a CM/ECF web portal) by acquiring relevant data from one or more sources (such as a user's system database) and then initiating and completing submission portal-compatible filings using the acquired data through the application of a variety of logic, document templates, rules, text, variables, macros, and/or search strings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: 4 S Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: W. C. Taylor, III, Michael S. Ackerman
  • Publication number: 20140316843
    Abstract: A facility for providing a workflow report document for a number of instances of a business process is described. In connection with information specifying the display of an arrangement of shapes each representing a constituent action of the business process, the facility provides information specifying the display in connection with shapes of the arrangement of at least one business process measure aggregated across all of the instances of the process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2013
    Publication date: October 23, 2014
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventor: Mai-lan Tomsen Bukovec
  • Publication number: 20140316844
    Abstract: A supply chain management system comprising: a system server comprising a central processor and a database; a plurality of user computers communicating with the system server over a network; the system server running a software process defining: an interface layer configured to communicate messages and business transactions bi-directionally between the user computers and the system server; and a services layer configured to apply business logic to the messages and business transaction and process them according to a predefined workflow of the supply chain management system, the services layer comprising a messaging engine module configured to send and receive messages triggered by the business transactions, the messages composed according to predefined system rules.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 9, 2014
    Publication date: October 23, 2014
    Applicant: Nipendo Ltd.
    Inventors: Alon ROSENBERG, Eyal ROSENBERG
  • Patent number: 8867346
    Abstract: Data flow analysis and routing processes include monitoring a process of a workflow, intercepting data traffic for data entered for the process, and identifying a communication path of a destination location for the data traffic. The method also includes verifying compliance of the process by applying business rules to the data, and notifying an entity of any non-compliance identified from the verification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2014
    Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P.
    Inventors: Narinder Ghai, Roger Aboujaoude, William J. Hanselmann, Michele Macauda, Sorabh Saxena, Malvinder Singh, Richard Williams
  • Patent number: 8868441
    Abstract: A change to a goal specified for an IT environment is to be made. Responsive to the changed goal, the IT environment is changed. This change is performed non-disruptively. Further, during the change, management to the existing goal is continued.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2014
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Mythili K. Bobak, Tim A. McConnell, Michael D. Swanson
  • Publication number: 20140310054
    Abstract: Disclosed are a method and a system for comparing established workflows against a workflow pattern to determine their degree of compatibility with this workflow pattern. In the method and system, compatibility scores between established workflows and a workflow pattern can be determined. To determine the compatibility score between a workflow pattern, which comprises first tasks, and an established workflow, which comprises second tasks, equivalent tasks in the established workflow can be identified. Then, dependency matrices can be constructed for the first tasks in the workflow pattern and the equivalent tasks in the established workflow. These dependency matrices can be compared in order to identify any dependency relation matches in corresponding task pairs. Values can be assigned to the dependency relation matches and compatibility scores can be determined based on the sum of those values.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 16, 2013
    Publication date: October 16, 2014
    Applicant: XEROX Corporation
    Inventors: Andres Quiroz Hernandez, JR., Yasmine Charif
  • Publication number: 20140310053
    Abstract: A system and method for providing a real-time business process suggestion and recommendation utilizing a business process modeler. A dynamic input from a business analyst can be incorporated utilizing a real-time suggestion engine. A real-time search can be performed by organizing a number of business processes in a tree structure where each leaf node represents a business process and each branch node represents a set of components that are shared by the business processes in a sub tree. A semantic execution path search can be performed to provide a real-time match between the partial business process and a catalogue of existing business processes by determining a constituent component and a score based on a reachability rule. The edges and/or components can be added and/or deleted to effectively organize the existing business processes based on previous suggestion to speed up a future suggestion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2013
    Publication date: October 16, 2014
    Applicant: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Hua Liu, Changjun Wu, Frank Goetz, Arun Bakthavachalu, Selvakumar Periasamy
  • Publication number: 20140310055
    Abstract: In one embodiment, a method for refining a business process model includes receiving business process data pertaining to a first phase of a business process definition from a first class of users, creating a model of a business process using the business process data received from the first class of users, receiving business process data pertaining to a second phase of the business process definition from a second class of users, and augmenting the model of the business process based on the business process data received from the second class of users. The method further includes iteratively refining the model of the business process in response to input provided by the first class of users and/or the second class of users.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 2, 2013
    Publication date: October 16, 2014
    Applicant: Siebel Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Manoj Das, John Liang, Peter Lim, Emanuel Gerald Noik, Doug Smith, Rahim Yaseen
  • Patent number: 8862493
    Abstract: In a computer-implemented process modeling and simulating environment, an analyzer receives a process model with parameters in combination with data from previous or planned process performances. An analyzer receives a simulation target from a user, calculates evaluation results that represent the influence of the parameters in view of the simulation target, and presents the evaluation results as indicators to the user. Upon receiving modifications to the performance data, the process is simulated with modified performance data. Alternatively, the evaluation results are converted to computer instructions to automatically modify the process parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: SAP AG
    Inventors: Mathias Fritzsche, Roger Kilian-Kehr, Wasif Gilani, Ralph Gerbig
  • Patent number: 8862491
    Abstract: A method and computer program product for integrating risk management concepts into a standard business process metamodel by defining a set of metamodel extensions to standard process modeling languages that incorporate risk information directly in the process model. The method includes collecting risk-relevant information for addition to a business process model, and enabling visualizing of a risk-extended business process model. using a notation to express notions as failure modes of resources, root cause events, and sources of execution failure and low job output quality directly in the context of process models. Additionally, the method enables the computation of risk-related impacts on the distribution of process performance measures using a Bayesian network model or a discrete-event simulation model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Eric W. Cope, Lea A. Deleris, Dominik Etzweiler, Jana Koehler, Jochen M. Kuester, Bonnie K. Ray
  • Publication number: 20140304028
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a method comprises processing parameters at a current node of a plurality of nodes in a process flow diagram. The method may further, in some embodiments, comprise receiving a signal at the current node from a first immediate preceding node of the plurality of nodes. The first immediate preceding node may be connected to the current node, in some embodiments. In some embodiments, the method may include: determining whether the current node is connected to a second immediate preceding node of the plurality of nodes in the process flow diagram, and in response to determining the current node is connected to the second immediate preceding node, determining whether to process parameters associated with the current node in absence of receipt of a signal from the second immediate preceding node or to wait to receive the signal from the second immediate preceding node prior to processing the parameters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 4, 2014
    Publication date: October 9, 2014
    Applicant: Avaya Inc.
    Inventors: Vishal Saxena, Anurag Aggarwal
  • Publication number: 20140304029
    Abstract: A comprehensive enterprise product management system to effectuate efficient product time to market. The system includes a process model and a data model. The process model consists of entities that represent typical concepts in a trade setting and relationships among these entities. The data model represents the complexity of a product, including defining the entities that comprise the product and the relationship among these entities. The process model and the data model accommodate the dynamic characteristics associated with both product definition and channels of trade.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 20, 2014
    Publication date: October 9, 2014
    Applicant: Dante Consulting, Inc.
    Inventors: Pierre Malko, John C. Gilbert
  • Publication number: 20140304027
    Abstract: A system and method for generating and searching workflow cluster profiles by generating a workflow similarity graph based on multiple workflows, generating a set of workflow clusters based on the workflow similarity graph, generating workflow cluster profiles for the set of workflow clusters, receiving a querying workflow, and comparing the querying workflow to the workflow cluster profiles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2013
    Publication date: October 9, 2014
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Changjun Wu, Hua Liu, Frank Goetz, Arun Bakthavachalu
  • Patent number: 8856770
    Abstract: In one general aspect, a computer system can include an existing process chain module configured to receive a plurality of segment definitions representing a plurality of existing segments defining an existing process chain implemented in a target system. The computer system can include a proposed process chain module configured to select, based on the plurality of segment definitions, a proposed process chain including a first proposed segment corresponding with an existing segment from the plurality of existing segments, and including a second proposed segment different from each existing segment from the plurality of existing segments. The computer system can include an operational relationship module configured to define an option for an operational relationship between the existing segment from the plurality of existing segments and the second proposed segment of the proposed process chain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: SAP AG
    Inventors: Roland Hoff, Bernhard Hartenstein
  • Patent number: 8856087
    Abstract: A data processing system accesses a group of events to identify a group of types of events and aggregates at least some of the events into a group of items. Each of the events is aggregated by binding another event to an event identified as a particular type of event based on a correspondence between the event and the particular type of event and binding additional information to the event identified as the particular type of event based on a relationship between the additional information and the particular type of event. The data processing system also rendezvous one of the items with an event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.
    Inventors: William S. Greene, Matthew C. Pierret
  • Patent number: 8856291
    Abstract: Techniques are described for providing clients with access to functionality for creating, configuring and executing defined workflows that manipulate source data in defined manners, such as under the control of a configurable workflow service that is available to multiple remote clients over one or more public networks. A defined workflow for a client may, for example, include multiple interconnected workflow components that are specified by the client and that each are configured to perform one or more types of data manipulation operations on a specified type of input data. The configurable workflow service may further execute the defined workflow at one or more times and in one or more manners, such as in some situations by provisioning multiple computing nodes provided by the configurable workflow service to each implement at least one of the workflow components for the defined workflow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: James P. Bartlett, Richard J. Cole, Adam D. Gray, Peter Sirota
  • Patent number: 8848214
    Abstract: An improved automated planning method and system includes the use of an automated planner for validating a workflow plan with respect to device capabilities. As such, the present invention provides for an improved method and system for implementing and managing workflow plans utilized in printing environments such as, for example, print shops. A plurality of device capability descriptions can be converted into a data indicative of facts and operators for utilizing in a knowledge-based reasoning system. Next, a workflow plan can be converted into properties indicative of a goal state. The goal state and the data indicative of facts and operators can then be utilized in association with a domain-independent or domain-dependent planner to determine if said workflow plan is valid and executable in order to thereby validate said workflow plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2014
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Kirk J. Ocke, Rong Zhou, Minh B. Do, Dale Ellen Gaucas, Michael David Shepherd
  • Publication number: 20140278723
    Abstract: A method of evaluating a workflow may include identifying a plurality of workflows. Each workflow may be associated with one or more users, and each workflow may represent a flow of data between a plurality of services via one or more execution paths. The method may include clustering, by a computing device, the execution paths associated with the plurality of workflows into a plurality of groups. The clustering may be based on the associated services. The method may include creating, by the computing device, a feature tree for each group, clustering, by the computing device, at least a portion of the users into a plurality of interest groups based on at least one of the feature trees, and for at least one of the interest groups, predicting, by the computing device, one or more preferences for one or more users in the interest group.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 13, 2013
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hua Liu, Tong Sun
  • Publication number: 20140278724
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method provides remote Security Validation as a Service (SVaaS) to one or more business process modeler clients. The method includes receiving on a cloud-based server, from a remote business process modeler client, a request for validation of a business process model and related information for a business process compliance problem including the business process work flow and security-related aspects of the business process. The method further includes sending the business process compliance problem from the server to a model checker for validation and receiving, at the server, validation results from the model checker and making the validation results available to the remote business process modeler client. The method can include enhancing the remote client with a connector module that is configured to collect information on the business process compliance problem and to communicate such information to the server.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Inventors: Luca Compagna, Serena Ponta
  • Publication number: 20140278726
    Abstract: The disclosed embodiments provide systems, methods, and articles of manufacture for managing workflow. Consistent with disclosed embodiments, a method may include receiving a communication from a customer, the communication being associated with a financial service account of the customer. The method may also include determining one or more document types associated with the communication, and comparing the one or more document types to at least one priority level hierarchy. Additionally, the method may include determining a document identification number for the communication based on the comparison, assigning the document identification number to at least one queue based on the document identification number, and providing access to a document associated with the communication to a first agent on a request for one or more document identification numbers from the queue. One or more second agents may additionally be denied access.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 13, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: Capitol One Financial Corporation
    Inventors: John Poole, Sanjiv Kochhar, Kevin Huls, Tonya Triebwasser, Soila Santos