NL1002154C1 - Computer Aided Software Engineering tool - Google Patents

Abstract

The Computer Aided Software Engineering - CASE - tool assesses the value of and the effectiveness of items of business information. The tool produces text and graphic images on a computer screen. The tool supplies a virtual atlas of charts which show: The business hierarchy, An overview of essential information output and the necessary classes of internal and external data, Attributes of each class of data Relationships between classes of data and associated applications.

Description

Inclusion of the 'Business Information Mapping' method in a CASE tool

The invention relates to supporting the Business 5 Information Mapping method by a CASE tool. A CASE tool is understood to mean: an automated tool for supporting the development of information systems (CASE stands for "Computer Aided Software Engineering"). For "CASE tool", the following should be read: "Any automated tool". Supporting the method mentioned implies that the CASE tool, in addition to any other methods, also supports the Business Information Mapping method, with its characteristic drawing techniques, way of thinking and working method.

As far as is known, the Business Information Mapping method was first put into practice by the EDP audit group of the company PVF Nederland N.V., located in Amsterdam. It is the intention to publish the method, with as many as 15 authors, it seems possible, Messrs. Cents, Den Engelsman, Van der Kamp and Verhoef. The method, the name of which has not yet been definitively established, is characterized below.

The Business Information Mapping method 20 Business Information Mapping is a method for mapping the information provision of an organization based on business processes. Characteristic of the method is that "vertical" is thought, right through all abstraction levels. For example, cross-connections are made between company level, information level and physical level.

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Constituent parts

The method includes the following elements: • The considered business processes, possibly contained in a hierarchy of business processes. Each business process is identified. If desired, a brief description of the business process is given and the triggers of the business process are mentioned.

• The essential output of each business process, this is the output that is at least necessary to achieve the objective of the business process. For example, output documents, output files, and permanent files to be mutated are named and, optionally, sample copies of the output are archived.

The term "output" can possibly be divided into "conceptual output" and "physical output". The conceptual output is almost the same as the purpose of the relevant business process. The principle is applied that each business process should have only one goal - if not, the business process must be redefined. The concept of "conceptual output" supports the maintenance of this principle.

• The attributes that are part of the essential output. One business process can have multiple executions, each of which is parsed separately.

The object-oriented classes, in an abstract sense, needed to generate said output 20, in other words, which provide the attributes to compose the output. The classes are seen as the internal data sources.

"Internal" is here: internally the area of attention considered, normally this is the organization whose information provision is mapped. The classes are described not only as an output generator, but also as part of inheritance structures.

The term 'class' is taken from the publication 'Object-orientation - Definition and coherence of concepts from the object-oriented domain' from 1993 by D. Schuyl-Laros and G. van Roekel of the Object-oriented Methods 3 working group of De Dutch Database Club of the Dutch Society for Informatics (NGI). The term "attribute", as a building block for a class, mentioned in this publication is equated in this connection with the term "attribute".

5 · The external data sources needed to generate the named output, in other words, providing the attributes to assemble the output.

• The information systems, existing and / or planned, that represent the abstract classes in practice. This also includes manual administrations.

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Operation

The method works as follows: 1. Determine the (hierarchy of) business processes to be examined in concept 2. Determine the required classes, with their inheritance structure, in concept 15 3. Determine the essential output of each business process and correct the distribution of business processes if necessary 4. Make an inventory of all attributes in the different outputs. 5. Determine from which classes and / or external data source each attribute originates and correct the division of classes if necessary. 6. Mirror each class on the corresponding information systems.

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The atlas produced by the method

The atlas can include the following "maps": 1. A hierarchy of business processes.

2. An overview of the essential output and the required classes 5 and external data sources per business process. An example of this form of a Business

Information Map, in which the output of a business process is related to the classes and external data sources that provide the attributes that make up the output, is given in figure 1. In the figure 'Employer' is an external data source, 'Person' and 'Beneficiary his classes and "Distribution" and 10 "Specification" are the essential output. The arrow from "Person" to "Beneficiary" realizes the principle of "late bonding".

3. Overviews of the attributes for each named class and with each mentioned output. For each attribute can be mentioned the origin and the way in which the data was obtained (for example by telephone, via diskette or via a form).

15 4. One or more inheritance structures including the classes.

5. The relationship between a class and its applications. See figure 2. This figure is an example of a Business Information Map showing all information systems that contribute to the realization of a certain class. The information systems also include manual records, spreadsheets, etc.

20 6. The relationship between an application and associated classes.

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Added value

The added value of the Busieness Information Mapping method compared to existing methods is threefold: 1. Existing methods for linking business processes to the provision of information (for example James Martin, information cross) are more inventive and lack the emphasis on the 'why', the goal. , the essential output of the business process, lack emphasis on the effectiveness of information provision.

2. With regard to the provision of information, the method is limited to robust elements. These are elements that are not subject to much change, namely 10 business processes, the execution of business processes (in information science), attributes, abstract classes and external data sources. The only exception in this regard are information systems. These are therefore included in the method as a border area.

Existing methods to map the information provision at a global level have the drawback of losing current events. For example, a rectangle-and-arrows scheme of information systems quickly becomes obsolete.

3. The 'map' of the information provision produced with Business Information Mapping is simple and clear.

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Extension to the method

So far, the Business Information Mapping method has used classes. By having or not possessing certain characteristics or attributes, these classes can be seen as populations. Populations, however, can be distinguished, besides characteristics, by the value of characteristics. A further

subdivision of classes at the lowest level in the inheritance structure results. An example is given in figure 3. In this figure, an existing inheritance structure with the classes or populations PERSON and CUSTOMER is extended with the populations' CUSTOMER earning more than f 50,000 / yr 'and' CUSTOMER not earning 1 o more than f 50,000 / yr '. The classic inheritance between PERSON and CUSTOMER

is indicated by a solid line, the breakdown based on the value of a characteristic in the two CUSTOMER populations is indicated by a broken line.

The "pseudo-classes" thus created are used in the Business Information Maps in the same way as classes. The use of "pseudo-classes" ensures a more precise delimitation of the area of interest considered and thus a refinement of the Business Information Maps and a more targeted use of the method.

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Disadvantages of existing tools

The current CASE tools have the disadvantage that the Business Information Mapping method is not sufficiently supported. This is reflected in the following points: 1. The drawing techniques and multimedia techniques of existing CASE tools focus on one abstraction level per drawing technique, for example at company level or information level.

Matrices in which business processes, departments, data etc. are related to each other are an exception. The disadvantage of a matrix, however, is the limited 'visual ability' - a matrix is more of a list than a drawing - and its inventorying character.

Another exception are schemes that describe the administrative organization and refer to information systems. The disadvantages of this are that reference is made to information systems instead of classes - which are more robust and abstract (so often less in number) than information systems - and that the emphasis is not on the output of the business process, such as Business Information Mapping requires.

2. The database structure of existing CASE tools is often not set up on Business Information Mapping, nor can it be set up on this method itself, because such an action adversely interferes with the available drawing techniques. For example, the 20 element "output" at company level is a different element from "output" at information level. Business Information Mapping requires that "output" at the corporate level and information level be identical, that it concerns only one element of "output" that is used at both the business and information level.

3. The Business Information Mapping method, as outlined earlier, is not supported.

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Inclusion of the Business Information Mapping method in a CASE tool as a solution

The following points explain how Business Information Mapping can be included in a CASE tool without experiencing the disadvantages of the existing 5 tools. The points below are in line with those in the previous paragraph.

1. Business Information Mapping requires drawing techniques that relate elements from different levels of abstraction in one drawing, as shown in figures 1 and 2 with the relationship between business and information level, respectively. between information and physical level.

10 In addition, classic hierarchical schemes are used to make the classification of business processes visible and to reflect the inheritance structure of object oriented classes. In addition to the existing methods and as an "extra" in Business Information Mapping, the inheritance structure at the bottom can be expanded with populations that are distinguished from each other by the value of a characteristic, as shown in figure 3.

2. The database structure of the CASE tool should contain the elements listed on page 1 under the heading 'constituent parts', without any redundancy in this regard (compare the 'exports' under point 2 of the previous paragraph) 20 3. The CASE tool user should be guided 'by the hand' when creating Business Information Maps. The necessary controls can be built in, such as "A business process may only have one goal, one conceptual output. If not, business processes should be organized differently. ”And“ Every attribute on the output must come from somewhere. ”And“ A class on the bottom 25 level of inheritance is always represented by one or more information systems, whether automated or be manual. ”Some controls, such as the former, will have to work immediately and have a prohibition effect, others, such as the other two, may optionally be used as an ex-post check.

Claims (2)

1. Drawing techniques and other presentation techniques such as overviews and multimedia, characterized in that the link is made between a business process and the information provision required for the essential output of this business process, the information provision formulated in terms of attributes or characteristics, object oriented classes and external data sources. , as shown in Figure 1 and described on page 3. Conclusion 3: Drawing techniques and other presentation techniques such as overviews and multimedia, characterized in that the connection is made between a class and the 20 information systems - automated or not - that contribute to the concrete realization of this class, as shown in figure 2 and is described on page 4. Conclusion 4: Drawing techniques and other presentation techniques such as overviews and multimedia, characterized in that the link is made between an information systems and the classes that are concretely realized with them (the opposite of claim 3) t, 1 -ij ^, Conclusion 5: Drawing techniques other presentation techniques such as overviews and multimedia, characterized in that an object-oriented inheritance structure at the bottom (the most detailed side) is extended with populations or 'pseudo-classes' that are distinguished from each other by the value of one or more characteristics, as in figure 3 is displayed and described on page 5. Conclusion 6: A database structure of the CASE tool, characterized in that the term 10 'export' at company level is equated with the term 'export' at information level. The "output" of a business process and the "output" of an information process are therefore identical in the database structure. Conclusion 7: 15 A CASE tool characterized in that the user of the CASE tool is automatically supported when working on Business Information Mapping. This includes a "help" function, techniques that make it easier for the tool user (similar to "wizards" and "templates" in a word processor) and automated checks. 20 Conclusion 8: A CASE tool characterized in that the user, the reader, of the Business Information Maps stored and / or produced in it has a good overview and easy access to the Business Information Maps. Consideration is given to various search entries (for example, via business process, via output, via class, via information system), user-definable cross-references, a search function and an index. "" «