Deriving Consistent GSM Schemas from DCR Graphs

Case Management (CM) is a BPM technology for supporting flexible services orchestration. CM approaches like CMMN, an OMG standard, and GSM, one of CMMN’s core influences, use Event-Condition-Action rules, which can be inconsistent due to cyclic inter-dependencies between the rules; repairing such an inconsistent case management schema is difficult. To avoid the problem of inconsistencies altogether, we provide a technique for automatically deriving consistent GSM case management schemas from higher-level business policies defined as DCR graphs, an alternative CM approach. Concretely, we define a behaviour-preserving mapping that (1) removes the burden from the modeller of GSM schemas to prove consistency and define the ordering of rules, (2) provides high-level patterns for modelling GSM schemas, and (3) gives a way to define a notion of progress (liveness) and acceptance for GSM instances. The mapping is illustrated by a running example of a mortgage loan application; and a prototype implementation available at http://dcr.itu.dk/icsoc16.