System and method for simulating a discrete event process using business system data

• US 20040034857A1
• Filed: 08/19/2002
• Published: 02/19/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Capital Corporation (General Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Capital Corporation (General Electric Company)
• Inventors: Gambhir, Snehil, Mangino, Kimberley Marie, Bufi, Corey Nicholas, Dingman, Brian Nathan
• Granted Patent: US 7,533,008 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/104
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0637 Strategic management or analysis, e.g. setting a goal or target of an organisation; Planning actions based on goals; Analysis or evaluation of effectiveness of goals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/067 Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

The invention provides a method and system to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith. The system may comprise a model database to store a plurality of models, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters; a model portion in communication with the model database and configured to receive commands from a user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data; and a model server to perform a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model and to generate an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation.

Claims

1. A system to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith, the system comprising:

a model database to store a plurality of models, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters;

a model portion in communication with the model database and configured to receive commands from a user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data; and

a model server to perform a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model and to generate an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the model portion is a web server.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the model portion communicates with the business database system over a network.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the model portion also receives the input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters by interacting with the user.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the interacting with a user is performed over the Internet.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the model portion performs processing on the input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, the processing including determining relationships within the input data.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein the processing includes performing distribution curve fitting on the input data using a goodness of fit technique.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the processing performed by the system includes using process times information from the business database system, the process times information containing information relating to various jobs and tasks within respective jobs.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the processing generates results using the distribution curve fitting and by determining entity types.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the entity types are determined by determining the similarity of tasks within respective jobs.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the business database system includes at least one of a Workflow system, a Business Process Management (BPM) system, a financial business system, a CRM business system, a sales business system, and accounts receivable business system and an ERP business system.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein commands from a user are received through a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface located remote from the database.

13. The system according to claim 1, wherein the model database records and maintains links between corresponding information in the model database and the business database system.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the links between corresponding information in the model database and the business database system are used to augment future updates of the model database with new data samples from the business database system.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the model portion concurrently presents different model information to a user for comparison.

16. A method to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith, the method comprising:

storing a plurality of models in a model database, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters;

communicating with a model portion by a user, the model portion in communication with the model database and configured to receive commands from the user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data;

performing a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model; and

generating an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the model portion is a web server

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein the processing includes performing distribution curve fitting on the input data using a goodness of fit technique.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the processing performed by the system includes using process times information from the business database system, the process times information containing information relating to various jobs and tasks within respective jobs.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the processing generates results using the distribution curve fitting and by determining entity types.

21. The method according to claim 16, wherein the model portion concurrently presents different model information to a user for comparison.

22. A computer readable medium to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith, the computer readable medium comprising:

a first portion that stores a plurality of models in a model database, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters;

a second portion that communicates with a user, the second portion in communication with the first portion and configured to receive commands from the user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data;

a third portion that performs a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model, and that generates an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation.

23. A system to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith, the system comprising:

a model database to store a plurality of models, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters;

a web server in communication with the model database and configured to receive commands from a user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system over the Internet, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data; and

a model server to perform a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model and to generate an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation; and

wherein the model portion also receives the input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters by interacting with the user over the Internet; and

wherein commands from a user are received through a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface located remote from the database; and

wherein the model database records and maintains links between corresponding information in the model database and the business database system.

24. A method to simulate a process of discrete tasks having a plurality of available resources associated therewith, the method comprising:

storing a plurality of models in a model database, each model including a plurality of task and resource parameters;

communicating with a web server by a user, the web server in communication with the model database and configured to receive commands from the user, to retrieve one of the plurality of models and corresponding task and resource parameters in response to a user command, to receive input data corresponding to attributes of one or more task and resource parameters from a business database system, and to generate a simulation model based on the selected business database system and the input data;

performing a simulation of the process by processing the simulation model; and

generating an output data file containing output data representative of the simulation, and

wherein the processing includes performing distribution curve fitting on the input data using a goodness of fit technique,

wherein the processing performed by the system includes using process times information from the business database system, the process times information containing information relating to various jobs and tasks within respective jobs, the processing generating results using the distribution curve fitting and by determining entity types; and

wherein the model portion concurrently presents different model information to a user for comparison.