UML 2 Tutorial - Analysis Diagram

Analysis Diagrams (Business Process Modelling)

Business Process

A Business Process is a stereotyped form of activity. It is shown as an arrow-shaped box, the shape implying a flow of control from left to right. UML activity elements may be nested inside the process element or it can contain a reference to an activity diagram..

Inputs

A Business Process is a stereotyped form of activity. It is shown as an arrow-shaped box, the shape implying a flow of control from left to right. UML activity elements may be nested inside the process element or it can contain a reference to an activity diagram..

The flow connectors in the above diagram have been stereotyped to show how the input is being used. The «supply» link indicates that the information is not consumed by the process; the «input» link indicates that the resource is consumed by the process.

Events

An Event is a trigger that initiates a business process. Events may originate from within a system, for example from the finishing if a task, or from some external source, such as a customer call. Examples of events might also come from receipt of an object, a notification or a signal, or from reaching a time or date. The event may be consumed or it may act as a catalyst. It is displayed as follows.

Outputs

A business process will typically produce one or more outputs of value to the business. An output may be some object, such as a report, or some more abstract concept such as a completed customer order. Outputs from a business process can be used as inputs or triggers for other business processes.

Goals

A business process must have some well-defined goal. A goal is shown as a rectangle with the name underlined and represents the business justification for performing the process.

Traceability

Traceability provides the linkage between a business process model and a software model and defines the way in which a business process is implemented by the software. The following diagram shows a business process that has been or will be implemented by a use case and a package.