Data processing: structural design – modeling – simulation – and em – Simulating nonelectrical device or system
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-05
2001-04-10
Teska, Kevin J. (Department: 2123)
Data processing: structural design, modeling, simulation, and em
Simulating nonelectrical device or system
Reexamination Certificate
active
06216098
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to simulation tools, and more particularly to tools for modeling human activities that may occur in a business, school, or other social setting.
Two types of models of work are now generally incorporated in business modeling tools: work flow models and business process models.
Work flow models describe a flow of information and representational materials (e.g., forms) through an organization. Work flow models generally represent the idealized procedures of standard policies and plans, rather than what people actually do.
Business process models describe organizations and functional transformations at a high level. Business process models are often framed in terms of role relationships of people, tasks, and information, such as customer-supplier, process-activity, or role-actor, or in terms of conversations for action (request-negotiate-perform-close). Business process models emphasize event-triggered interdependencies: for example, when an order arrives on a fax, a person in a given role processes the order.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The methods and apparatus of the invention are embodied in a simulation tool, which is a programmed computer system environment for creating, manipulating, running, and presenting models. The tool is called Brahms and its models are called Brahms models. The examples and discussion in this specification will use models of workplaces for purposes of illustration, and many of the advantages of the invention relate specifically to workplace simulation. However, the tool and its technologies are suitable for modeling other kinds of social situations.
The Brahms simulation engine is a computer program that interprets or runs models. A model may be written in a representation language or it may be built interactively by a model builder through a graphical user interface. A model may represent different types of objects (e.g., workers, customers, orders, physical resources, documents) and their instances. The simulation is distributed through the activities of the agents and the operation of physical artifacts such as telephones, information processing systems, faxes, and products of the workplace being simulated.
In general, in one aspect, the invention features a method of modeling behavior of a subject interacting with a world. The method includes storing in a computer memory a model having elements including an agent modeling the subject and having one or more beliefs and facts modeling objective observable aspects of the world. A belief is a unit of information held and used internally by the agent. The behavior of the subject is modeled by one or more frames for the agent to perform, each frame being a workframe modeling a time-consuming portion of the activity or a thoughtframe modeling a non-time-consuming portion of the activity. Model elements also include a detectable modeling acquisition of information and response to information by the subject. The detectable is associated with a workframe and is operative during the whole, or a specified portion, of the time the associated workframe is active. (A workframe is considered active for an agent from the time the agent begins performing to the time the agent completes performing the workframe.) The detectable has a fact template: any facts matching the fact template are detected by the agent to form beliefs of the agent; an agent obtains information in this way while the associated workframe is active. The detectable also has a detectable type defining the effect of an agent belief satisfying the detectable (matching the detectable fact template) during the time the detectable is operative.
Preferred embodiments of the invention include one or more of the following features. Conditions to be satisfied before the agent may begin performing a frame are defined as preconditions of the frame. Each workframe has a priority for comparison with priorities of other workframes. Running the model on the computer over a period of simulated time includes selecting for each of the times in the period one of the frames to be the working frame; maintaining a context of active workframes (those workframes that have started but not completed or terminated working), the context representing what the subject is doing at any time in the simulation; and performing the working workframe until the working workframe completes or another workframe is selected to be performed in place of the working workframe. Another workframe is selected when a detectable effect causes an impasse in the working workframe, a detectable effect completes or aborts the working workframe, or a higher-priority workframe interrupts the working workframe.
The model elements include a detectable having a type causing performance of an associated workframe to be interrupted by an impasse until beliefs of the agent change. The model elements include a detectable having a type causing performance of an associated workframe to be aborted and a type causing performance of the workframe to be completed by going directly to perform any consequences of the workframe. A first detectable associated with a first workframe is operative the entire time the first workframe is active, and a second detectable associated with a second workframe is operative a specified portion of the time the second workframe is active. The model elements include a consequence associated with a frame, the consequence modeling changes in facts of the model or beliefs of the agent resulting from the behavior of the associated frame, and running the model includes executing consequences of frames to change facts of the model or beliefs of the agent. The model elements include a primitive activity (an atomic activity-modeling construct that is not decomposed into other activities and has a time duration), a composite activity (an activity-modeling construct defined by one or more workframes), and a workframe, the time-consuming behavior of which is defined by one or more primitive activities and one or more composite activities. A primitive activity has a time duration defined as a specific quantity or a random quantity and a priority used to calculate the priority of any workframe that includes the primitive activity. A primitive activity has a touched object (a reference to an artifact object of the model), and having a touched object models that an artifact is touched in the course of performing the primitive activity. The touched object is associated with the primitive activity and may be used for statistical purposes and generating object flows.
The model elements include a workframe having an activity of communicating a belief from one agent to another agent; a workframe having an activity of communicating a belief by broadcasting the belief; a workframe having preconditions and a do-once attribute set true, the workframe being performed only once for an agent for each distinct binding satisfying the workframe's preconditions; a detectable associated with a composite activity and having a type causing performance of the composite activity to be terminated when the detectable is satisfied; a geography defining locations in the modeled world and relationships between locations; a fact of a location of the agent in the geography, as to which the agent has a correct belief; and a workframe performing a primitive move activity having a goal location defined in the geography causing an agent to move to the goal location if the agent is not already there. The model is run by executing a simulation engine implementing semantics for primitive activities including primitive activities to communicate a belief and to create an artifact object.
The model elements include groups representing functions performed by agents that are members of the groups. Groups have group elements that may include initial beliefs associated with the group's functions, frames modeling behavior common to the function, and membership in other groups from which initial beliefs, frames, or group membership are inherited. An agent member of a gro
Clancey William J.
Sachs Patricia
Sierhuis Maarten
Torok David M.
van Hoof Ron J. J.
Fish & Richardson P.C.
Institute for Research on Learning
Knox Lonnie A.
Teska Kevin J.
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