Method of constructing process workflow having decision subprocesses and routine subprocesses and combining subprocesses to form one unit process

• US 7,409,686 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2003
• Issued: 08/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: SOLIZE Corp.
• Original Assignee: SOLIZE Corp.
• Inventors: Yamada, Shinjiro, Ohmori, Tomohito, Kuwabara, Michiyo, Nakao, Masayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): An; Meng-Al T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zhe; Mengyao
• Application Number:
  US10/640,145
• Publication Number:
  US 20040049487A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,819 Days
• Field of Search: 718/102, 717/120, 717/121, 717/123, 717/149, 705/11, 705/8, 704/245, 703/7, 703/14, 703/24, 706/60
• US Class Current: 718/102
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/04 Inference or reasoning models
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

Disclosed is a method of constructing and executing a process. A conventional process is minutely divided into minimum unit subprocesses, and the minutely divided subprocesses are classified into a decision subprocesses and a routine subprocess by whether they require decision-making. Any subprocess which is executable using the setup condition in a specific decision subprocess is classified into the routine subprocess in such a manner that the classified routine subprocess follows on the specific decision subprocess. One or a series of decision subprocesses are combined with one or a series of routine subprocesses which are executable on the condition of the completion of the decision subprocesses to form one unit process, and a job-support computer program is created to allow the plurality of subprocesses included in the one unit process to be successively executed. A plurality of subprocesses which are executable in accordance with common input data are detected from the minutely divided minimum unit subprocesses, and a job flow is constructed to allow the respective jobs in the plurality of subprocesses to be simultaneously initiated and executed in parallel. The present invention can drastically reduce the lead-time of a process while facilitating execution of the entire process with high efficiency.

Claims

1. A method of constructing and executing a process, comprising the steps of:

(a) minutely dividing a process into a plurality of unit subprocesses consisting of one or more decision subprocesses requiring to set up an unknown condition in the execution of each of jobs thereof and one or more routine subprocesses executable according to a predetermined procedure without any decision-making, and storing information on said minutely divided subprocesses into a storage section of a computer in the form of computer-readable data;

(b) classifying any subprocess which is executable using the setup condition in specific one of the decision subprocesses into the routine subprocess in such a manner that said classified routine subprocess follows on said specific decision subprocess, and storing the information on said classified subprocesses into the storing section of said computer in the form of computer-readable data;

(c) combining one or a series of the decision subprocesses with one or a series of the routine subprocesses which are executable on the condition of the completion of corresponding said decision subprocesses to form one unit process, in accordance with the data produced in said steps (a) and (b), creating a job-support computer program to allow said plurality of subprocesses included in said one unit process to be successively executed under the support of said computer, and storing said computer program into the storing section of said computer; and

(d) setting up said unknown condition as an input of said computer in the decision subprocess, and running the computer according to said computer program, whereby all of the routine subprocesses included in said one unit process are successively executed under the support of said compute to complete said process.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein a single standardized condition is preset as a condition for decision-making, and said job-support computer program is configured to display on said computer whether said standardized condition is satisfied, whereby the subprocess otherwise being classified into the decision subprocess can be handled as the routine subprocess to reduce the number of the decision subprocesses.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein a plurality of options concerning said condition for use in the decision subprocess are prepared as a standardized condition to allow said decision subprocess to be executed by selecting one of said options on said computer.

4. The method as defined in claim 3, wherein one of said plurality of options which could otherwise be prepared as a standardized condition is preset as the condition for decision-making in at least one of the decision subprocesses, whereby said subprocess otherwise being classified into the decision subprocess can be handled as the routine subprocess to reduce the number of the decision processes.

5. The method as defined in either one of claim 1, wherein if some jobs between said plurality of subprocesses included in said one unit process consisting of said decision and routine subprocesses are executable in parallel, said job-support computer program in said step (c) is configured to allow said jobs to be executed in parallel.

6. The method as defined in either one of claim 1, wherein input information required for initiating the job in each of the subprocesses and output information to be created after the completion of said job are specified to construct a job flow such that one subprocess using the output information from another subprocess as the input information for initiating the job in said one subprocess successively follows on said another subprocess, and said job flow is incorporated into said computer program.

7. A method of constructing and executing a process, comprising the steps of:

(a) minutely dividing the process into a plurality of unit subprocesses consisting of one or more decision subprocesses requiring a decision-making for executing each of jobs thereof and one or more routine subprocesses executable according to a predetermined procedure without any decision-making, and storing information on said minutely divided subprocesses into a storage section of a computer in the form of computer-readable data;

(b) classifying any subprocess which is executable using the setup condition in specific one of the decision subprocesses into the routine subprocess in such a manner that said classified routine subprocess follows on said specific decision subprocess, and storing the information on said classified subprocesses into the storing section of said computer in the form of computer-readable data;

(c) combining one or a series of said decision subprocesses with one or a series of said routine subprocesses executable on the condition of the completion of corresponding said decision subprocesses to form one unit process, in accordance with the data produced in said steps (a) and (b), creating a job-support computer program to allow said decision and routine subprocesses included in said one unit process to be successively executed, so that said plurality of unit processes can be executed in a predetermined sequential order under the support of said computer, and storing said computer program into the storing section of said computer; and

(d) running the computer according to said program, whereby one of the unit process is executed under the support of said computer, and the unit processes following on the executed unit process are executed under the support of said computer according to said program in the same way to complete said process.

8. A computer program product stored in a computer storage media comprising a job-support computer program wherein the job-support computer program comprises:

first computer-readable digital data representing a known process which is minutely divided into a plurality of minimum unit subprocesses, wherein said plurality of minutely divided minimum unit subprocesses are classified into a decision subprocess requiring a decision-making for executing a job therein and a routine subprocess which is executable according to a predetermined procedure without any decision-making;

second computer-readable digital data representing a process wherein one or a series of the decision subprocesses are combined with one or a series of the routine subprocesses executable on the condition of the completion of corresponding said decision subprocesses to form one unit process, in accordance with said first and second data, so as to allow said plurality of subprocesses included in said one unit process to be successively executed;

third computer-readable digital data representing a plurality of parametric conditional values for an initial condition for a decision job in each of said decision subprocesses, and a plurality of standardized jobs corresponding, respectively, to said plurality of conditional values;

fourth computer-readable digital data representing a job flow constructed to allow the decision job in each of the decision subprocesses to be executed by setting up the initial condition for the decision job in accordance with the digital data of said standardized jobs;

fifth computer-readable digital data representing the minimum unit subprocesses executable in accordance with common input data, wherein said minimum unit subprocesses are extracted from said plurality of minutely divided minimum unit subprocesses and classified through the analysis of said plurality of minutely divided minimum unit subprocesses; and

sixth computer-readable digital data representing a job flow constructed to allow the respective jobs in said plurality of subprocesses which are executable in accordance with common input data to be simultaneously initiated and executed in parallel, wherein a job sequence for said unit subprocesses is constructed in accordance with said fifth computer-readable digital data representing said job flow to allow all of said subprocesses to be successively executed.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the job-support computer program is configured to provide a window for prompting a user to enter a condition required for executing the decision subprocess, on the screen of said computer.

10. The computer of claim 8, wherein the job-support computer program is configured to provide a window for prompting a user to enter a condition required for executing the decision subprocess, on the screen of said computer.