Enterprise Distributed Object Computing Research Articles

Ontology-based process model for business architecture of a virtual enterprise

As new collaborative business models emerge, considerable research is being carried out on Virtual Enterprise (VE) as an alternative to secure competition. To operate a VE, a common framework that must be shared between participants is needed to implement a seamless business process. This paper focuses on an ontology-based process model that provides a common semantic and communication protocol. The suggested process model has a single integrated meta-model that describes the internal and intra business process of a VE. The internal process is the formal process of each business partner and is described using the Collaborative Component Architecture (CCA) of Enterprise Distributed Object Computing (EDOC). On the other hand, the intra process is a collaborative process that can be modified by the business scenario and is described using a Role Activity Diagram (RAD). The suggested process model is applied for the collaborative design chain process of the automotive-part industry as a case study.

A collaborative design framework for the Korean automotive parts industry

In the automotive industry, although small enterprises that supply car parts participate in the design phase of new car development, they do not communicate with each other for developing parts or modules because of the lack of a common communication protocol. In order to provide solutions to such problems, there has been an emergence of collaboration solutions among participants. Moreover, collaborative product lifecycle management (CPLM) is suggested as an alternative for providing such collaboration solutions. In order to develop CPLM, a framework that supports the understanding and sharing of business processes across business boundaries is necessary. Such a framework includes a reference model, business process model, and business process. The reference model explains the business domain, and it must be shared among participants for a common communication purpose. The business process model describes the collaborative design process, which can be defined by common principles in a meta-model. This paper suggests a new reference model for the design chain in the Korean automotive parts industry. Under a collaborative environment, the design process of the reference model may be classified into the mechanical and human-driven processes. In order to define both process types, a new integrated process model that combines the Component Collaboration Architecture (CCA) model of Enterprise Distributed Object Computing (EDOC) and Role Activity Diagram (RAD) models is suggested. We also introduce model driven approach (MDA) of Object Modelling Group (OMG) in order to describe an abstract level for common communication among business partners.

A model-driven development framework for enterprise Web services

The growing scale and complexity of the enterprise computing systems under distributed and heterogeneous environments present new challenges to system development, integration, and maintenance. In this paper, we present a model driven Web service development framework to combat these challenges. The framework capitalizes on the unified modeling language (UML) profile for enterprise distributed object computing (EDOC), MDA (model-driven architecture) and Web services. Within the framework, firstly, a general PIM (platform independent models) is created using the EDOC CCA structural specification and CCA choreography specification which defines the general functions of a system. Secondly, the general PIM is broken down into sub-PIMs according to functional decomposition, each of which can provide service independently and will be implemented in a Web service. Thirdly, all of the PIMs are transformed to Web service interface models for publication and invoking. Afterward, transform each PIM to a BPEL specified Web service orchestration model. Finally, supported by model transform techniques, the sub EDOC PIMs are implemented into Web services on specific platforms. Automatic model transformation is the key to this framework, therefore, the transformation from EDOC CCA models to WSDL specified Web service interface models and the transformation from EDOC CCA models to BPEL specified Web service orchestration models are deeply discussed, and the detailed transformation rules are proposed. A case study is also provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of these rules and the merits of this framework.

A modeiing approach for designing a value chain of virtual enterprise

As the advent of digital economy changes business environment dramatically, virtual enterprise (VE), in general the interactions among business partners in a value chain, has become a key factor to survive under the competitive business environment. VE reveals that more complex and dynamic business processes should be considered as assembled service components in order to integrate the collaborative business processes. Therefore, a formal standard schema for describing and managing the business processes is required. In this paper, we propose a consistent modeling approach that combines enterprise modeling and simulation modeling to design a value chain of a VE. This methodology will provide designers with insight into the business processes of a VE and help identify and resolve unpredictable bottlenecks on the execution of virtual business processes. This paper also illustrates an implemented modeling tool which is based on the generalized model suggested by the working group of the international conference on enterprise integration and modeling technology (ICEIMT) and notations by the object management group (OMG)’s unified modeling language (UML) profile for enterprise distributed object computing (EDOC).

2005 EDOC: meeting the challenges of enterprise computing

An increasing demand for interoperable applications exists, sparking the real-time exchange of data across borders, applications, and IT platforms. To perform these tasks, enterprise computing now encompasses a new class of groundbreaking technologies such as Web services and service-oriented architecture (SOA); business process integration and management; and middleware support, like that for utility, grid, peer-to-peer, and autonomic computing. Enterprise computing also influences the processes for business modeling, consulting, and service delivery; it affects the design, development, and deployment of software architecture, as well as the monitoring and management of such architecture. As enterprises demand increasing levels of networked information and services to carry out business processes, IT professionals need conferences like EDOC to discuss emerging technologies and issues in enterprise computing. For these reasons, what started out as the Enterprise Distributed Object Computing (EDOC) conference has come to encompass much more than just distributed objects. So this event now used the name International EDOC Enterprise Computing Conference, to recognize this broader scope yet also retain the initial conference's name recognition.