IDEF Business Process Diagrams

Design Elements — IDEF0

Design Elements — IDEF3 Object Schematic Symbols

Design Elements — IDEF3 Process Schematic Symbols

Design Elements — IDEF3 Referents and Notes

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IDEF Business Process Diagrams Examples

There are a few samples that you see on this page which were created in the ConceptDraw DIAGRAM application by using the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. Some of the solution's capabilities as well as the professional results which you can achieve are all demonstrated here on this page.

All source documents are vector graphic documents which are always available for modifying, reviewing and/or converting to many different formats, such as MS PowerPoint, PDF file, MS Visio, and many other graphic ones from the ConceptDraw Solution Park or ConceptDraw STORE. The IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution is available to all ConceptDraw DIAGRAM users to get installed and used while working in the ConceptDraw DIAGRAM diagramming and drawing software.

Example 1: Architecture Framework — IDEF0 Activity Diagram

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 20 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF0 Activity diagram is based on the "C4ISR Architecture Framework, Example Activity Diagram in IDEF0 Format.jpg" file from the Wikimedia Commons. The C4ISR Architectural Framework (C4ISR AF), also named as the Department of Defense Architecture Framework (DoDAF) was developed by the US Department of Defense in the 1990s. This framework or model helps the US Department of Defense facilitate governance at all levels and make the key decisions more effective. The main stages of the description and construction of the enterprise's architecture according to the DoDAF include direct request satisfaction, data collecting, processing data, producing response and dissemination intelligence. Besides that, the diagram includes the general information about the project’s name, its author, date of creation, node, title, viewpoints, etc. Despite all the complexity, this IDEF0 system architecture diagram communicates information in detail, moreover, it makes this effectively and professionally thanks to the common symbols and powerful drawing tools available from ConceptDraw's IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution.

Example 2: Completed Transition Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF3 Object Schematic Symbols and IDEF3 Referents and Notes libraries from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This sample demonstrates the IDEF3 Diagram showing a completed transition of a specific object through a business process. It was constructed on the base of the Wikimedia Commons file "5-21 Completed Transition Schematic.jpg". The Purchase Request (PR) form is a key document in a given process that is finally transformed into a Purchase Order (PO). The circles represent the objects, each circle includes the object's name along with its state, thus the prepared Purchase Request is indicated by the label "PR: Prepared", not prepared PR is represented as "PR: Unprepared", the approved PR is indicated by the label "PR: approved", the authorized PR is "PR: authorized" correspondingly, etc. The arrows with triangular filled-in heads connecting the circles describe the transition from one state to another. The IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution allows you to prepare the Process charts — diagrams that can represent a process at any level, from just a small component to a wide overview of the entire structure.

Example 3: Final Object Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF3 Object Schematic Symbols and IDEF3 Referents and Notes libraries from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 15 minutes creating this sample.

This sample illustrates the final object schematic and is designed on the base of “5-22 Final Object Schematic.jpg” illustration from the Wikimedia Commons. Expanding on the previous design of the Completed Transition schematic, now more functions of the process have been added to present a more complete view of the overall system. The context-setting information was added. Thus, you can see that the domain expert’s description points that the purchase requests related to the direct projects assume an authorization signature, the account managers and their designated backups need obligatory approval of all requests involving their projects. It is the most complete description of the process flow and object state transitions, the comments make it more detailed and comprehensive. The complete set of IDEF3 schematic symbols is available from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution and lets you represent accurately the principles of work of a certain system or organization in a form of IDEF3 Process Diagram, illustrate the integration definition.

Example 4: IDEF0 Diagram — Decomposition Structure

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 15 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF0 diagram presents an example of a simple decomposition structure that can be used to represent the system architecture. It is designed in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM process modeling software and based on the “6 Decomposition Structure.svg” illustration from the Wikimedia Commons and. The decomposition structure is an effective method of splitting a process or function into its constituent components that reflect the individual physical processes of interest and lets them be easily analyzed. It is a process allowing representing the model of the system in the form of a hierarchical structure of individual diagrams. The process of decomposition can be also made with a goal to get the compressed representation of the global function. The level of the process detailing is determined directly by the developer of a model, but in any case, this method makes the model's representation less overloaded and easy perceived, makes the interactions between the components easily observed because some of them may be critical for the process.

Example 5: IDEF0 Diagram — Detail Reference Expression Use

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This sample diagram demonstrates the detailed reference expression use and was designed on the base of the Wikimedia Commons file "7 Detail Reference Expression Use.svg". It is a sample of decomposition or partitioning the complex modeled function into the simple component functions composing it. This model uses a simple common IDEF0 syntax — five diagram's functions are represented by boxes, all data interrelated with these functions like the inputs, outputs, controls, and mechanisms are depicted by arrows. The inputs are shown by arrows entering the box on the left side, the outputs enter on the right one. The arrows entering the top display the controls and the bottom ones show the mechanisms. One can use the high-functional IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution in database design, object-oriented design, to show how differently components of a system interact with each other. The use of ConceptDraw DIAGRAM and the mentioned solution makes the communication functional and productive system architecture designs easy.

Example 6: IDEF3 Diagram — Object State Transition Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF3 diagram sample id based on the "6-4 Example IDEF3 Object State Transition Schematic.jpg" Wikimedia Commons file. It is an example of the process decomposition, the sequence of actions is consistently represented. Each action is depicted as a box, you can type in their specific names according to the modeled business process. The arrows connections depict the essential relationships between the actions, all links in IDEF3 are unidirectional. There are two different types of links in this diagram, with one arrow (Temporal pre­cedence) or two arrows (Object flow) and one can type in their names. The first type of link means that the previous action needs to be completed before the next action can begin, the second one means that the output of the previous action is the input of the next one. Each link is strict and precise, so the reason for its appearance is easily observed and understandable. You can see that in many cases the completion of one action initiates the start of another one.

Example 7: IDEF0 Diagram — Inter-box Connections

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF0 diagram sample was made on the base of the Wikimedia Commons file "12 Connections Between Boxes.svg". There are three functions depicted by boxes in this diagram – Keep Records, Deliver Products, and Do Billing. Each function has entered and outgoing arrows, the entered data are processed and the result is passed further. The tax requirements are the controls entering from the top to the Keep Records box. The Account Clerk is a mechanism providing the supporting means for performing the function connection and is pointed up from the bottom to the same box. The Files outgoing from the Keep Records contain the Customer Records and Price&Tax Tables, that are passed to the Deliver Products and Do Billing functions correspondingly. The Transactions are also passed from the Deliver Products function to the Do Billing function. The Ordered Products are the inputs entering the Deliver Products box from the left. The Account Entries and Invoices are the outputs that leave the boxes from the right side.

Example 8: IDEF3 Process Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This sample represents the IDEF3 diagram example and was made on the base of the Wikimedia Commons file “6-1 Example IDEF3 Process Schematic.jpg”. It is a typical simple example of an IDEF3 schematic that is modeled and read from the left to right, from the most left side element. All elements and all steps of the described scenario, and the precedence relationships are well observed. IDEF3 is a popular methodology that allows modeling and documenting the processes occurring in the system based on all known information about these processes. It allows showing the cause-and-effect relationships between the situations and events in a clear visual form. As for the application, the IDEF3 methodology is equally useful and widely used in the development of information systems and business process modeling. Design clear and informative IDEF0 and IDEF3 diagrams fast and easily using the IDEF notation and business process modeling notation objects offered by the ConceptDraw's IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution libraries.

Example 9: IDEF0 Diagram — Tunneled Arrows

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This sample represents the tunneled arrows on the IDEF0 diagram based on the Wikimedia Commons file "18 Example of Tunneled Arrows.svg". The main components of any IDEF0 diagram are functions and data that interrelate these functions. All connections between the boxes are visually marked with arrows. This diagram includes two parts – the parent diagram and the child diagram. Each of them contains three functions, the main functions are depicted at the left bottom corners of each diagram, each subsequent function is located on the right and below the previous one. The child diagram is composed for the second function of the top diagram. The tunneled arrows are the special type of arrows, which provide information at one level of decomposition and aren't needed at another one, parent or child level. One can see that the middle (C2) arrow entering the parent's second function isn’t shown on the child diagram and one of the arrows outgoing from the child’s second function isn’t also shown connecting to the parent box, so they are both tunneled arrows.

Example 10: IDEF3 Diagram — Enhanced Transition Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 15 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF3 diagram sample demonstrates an enhanced transition schematic. Being based on the Wikimedia Commons file “2-03 Example of an Enhanced Transition Schematic.jpg” this sample is made fully by means of ConceptDraw DIAGRAM business process modeling software and IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution tools. The IDEF3 diagram lets visually decompose the actions for detailed analysis, moreover, the actions can be decomposed as many times as needed. The actions are depicted by boxes, the diagram's circles denote states and the directed arrows indicate all possible logical transitions between these states. The "X" symbol in a circle denotes XOR operation and means that only one of the connected actions can be executed, only one previous process is completed and only one of the following processes is running. For additional clearness, each type of notation symbol is colored with its own color in the diagram. All IDEF3 notation symbols are available for use from the solution's IDEF3 Object Schematic Symbols, IDEF3 Process Schematic Symbols, and IDEF3 Referents and Notes libraries.

Example 11: Symbols Used for IDEF3 Process Description Schematics

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 15 minutes creating this sample.

This sample demonstrates a set of symbols used for the IDEF3 Process description schematics. It was made on the base of common IDEF notation and the Wikimedia Commons file "3-01a Symbols Used for IDEF3 Process Description Schematics.jpg". There are specified two groups - the process schematic symbols (UOB symbols, links and junction symbols) and object schematic symbols (object symbols and individual symbols, links, junctions and connecting symbols) because the IDEF3 descriptions can be developed from two different perspectives: process-centered and object-centered. Apart from them, the reference and notes symbols are included in the solution's libraries and represented in this diagram. They are common for the across processes and object schematics, and are used to depict the complex process descriptions and to show the cross-referencing between these approaches. The links symbols serve to connect the UOB boxes illustrating the dynamic processes. The junctions symbols depict the logic of the process branching.

Example 12: IDEF3 Diagram — Transition Schematic

This diagram was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM using the IDEF0 library from the IDEF Business Process Diagrams solution. An experienced user spent 10 minutes creating this sample.

This IDEF3 diagram sample was designed based on the Wikimedia Commons file "2-02 Example of a Transition Schematic.jpg". It is a simple Object schematic representing the scenario of materials order that is based on the business owner’s description. This sample can be considered as a Transition Schematic, it illustrates the nature and structure of object state transitions for occurrences of the order material scenario. The Purchase Request form is a key document in this process that is finally transformed into a Purchase Order (PO) by passing through the Order Material process. The objects of certain kinds in certain states are represented at the circles with indication of their types or classes and their states within a given process. The full set of possible states typical for a considered domain needs to be defined before modeling is initiated. The arrows connecting the circles depict transitions from one state to another.