A Context-Aware Workflow Model with Time Management

Abstract

In the ambient intelligence field, workflow technology is gaining a lot of consideration. Ambient intelligence systems are composed of heterogeneous distributed devices. They are context-aware, and they can adapt to the context’s changes. Thus, context-aware workflow modeling is the main issue. Context-aware workflow management allows workflows to adapt dynamically to environmental changes; additionally, it depends heavily on time management. Generally, time violations require exception handling, which makes temporal constraint specification at design time a critical step. The method presented in this study for modeling context-aware workflows involves incorporating time-constraint information into the workflow specification. The main contribution is defining a formal spatio-temporal model that considers all feasible workflow executions. First, we specify the workflow using the algebraic language Time-AgLOTOS. Then, based on this specification, we build the corresponding labeled transition systems that illustrate the feasible executions. Finally, we give an example to demonstrate the usefulness of the research.