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Model-based development of a course of action scheduling tool

  • SPECIAL SECTION CPN 06
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Abstract

This paper shows how a formal method in the form of Coloured Petri Nets (CPNs) and the supporting CPN Tools have been used in the development of the Course of Action Scheduling Tool (COAST). The aim of COAST is to support human planners in the specification and scheduling of tasks in a Course of Action. CPNs have been used to develop a formal model of the task execution framework underlying COAST. The CPN model has been extracted in executable form from CPN Tools and embedded directly into COAST, thereby automatically bridging the gap between the formal specification and its implementation. The scheduling capabilities of COAST are based on state space exploration of the embedded CPN model. Planners interact with COAST using a domain-specific graphical user interface (GUI) that hides the embedded CPN model and analysis algorithms. This means that COAST is based on a rigorous semantical model, but the use of formal methods is transparent to the users. Trials of operational planning using COAST have been conducted within the Australian Defence Force.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science, University of Aarhus, IT-Parken, Aabogade 34, 8200, Aarhus N, Denmark

    Lars M. Kristensen & Peter Mechlenborg

  2. Command and Control Division, Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Edinburgh, SA, 5111, Australia

    Lin Zhang

  3. Land Operations Division, Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Edinburgh, SA, 5111, Australia

    Brice Mitchell

  4. Computer Systems Engineering Centre, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA, 5095, Australia

    Guy E. Gallasch

Authors
  1. Lars M. Kristensen
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  2. Peter Mechlenborg
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  3. Lin Zhang
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  4. Brice Mitchell
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  5. Guy E. Gallasch
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lars M. Kristensen.

Additional information

The work of Lin Zhang was done while he was with the Command and Control Division of the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation.

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Kristensen, L.M., Mechlenborg, P., Zhang, L. et al. Model-based development of a course of action scheduling tool. Int J Softw Tools Technol Transf 10, 5–14 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10009-007-0053-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10009-007-0053-y

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