Modeling complex information systems using parameterized Petri nets (PPNs)

A new class of Petri nets (PNs) called Parameterized Petri Nets (PPNs) is proposed and applied for the modeling, analysis, and simulation of complex dynamic systems. The PPN approach uses a hierarchical, dynamically reconfigurable organization to deal with the complexity characteristic of net representations through parameterization of transitions and the use of generalized or parameterized places in higher level nets. The parameterization capability of PPNs can be used to generate behavior sequences of different levels of abstraction/detail to be mapped into more specific sequences at a lower level of the hierarchy. The PPN system model structural properties are verifiable based on the corresponding simple PN model. The PPN methodology enables multiple simultaneous "points of view" regarding a system.