Solution Language white paper. with examples Version 2.3

Transcription

1 Solution Language white paper with examples Version 2.3 Release date: Document history: Version 2.0: Version Version 2.2: Authors: Hannu Lehikoinen, M.Sc., Insoft Oy Mikko Tervonen, Lic.Tech., Insoft Oy Copyright Insoft Oy All rights reserved. Document number S Insoft Oy Kiilakiventie 1 FI Oulu FINLAND web: Mind map is a registered trademark of Buzan Organization. Solution Language is a registered trademark of Insoft Oy.

2 Solution Language white paper with examples V2.3 1 Table of contents 1. Introduction Solution Language Mind map Activity map Innovating with Solution Language Mind mapping Main idea Topics Sub topics Association between topics Activity mapping Unit Sub units Communication Activity Refining activity Comment texts Detailed planning with activity maps User interface External interface External system State Sub state Defining timing Communication Examples Mind mapping examples Personal use Educational use Professional use Business process planning Information system planning Embedded system development Activity mapping examples Health care Online auction Logistics system Business process Information system Summary References Trademarks... 31

3 Solution Language white paper with examples V Introduction Solution Language is a new way to innovate. The language is graphical and suits to all kind of innovation, planning and development ranging from corporate and business use to educational, personal and family use. The language utilizes effectively the fact that brain has superior capacity to handle images, colors and shapes compared with textual and numerical information. Solution Language presents ideas visually in colored maps in a natural and concrete way using actual, real-world concepts and activities. The language stimulates innovation. The idea will be documented immediately. Easy and natural notation results in effective communication, collaboration and sharing of ideas between people participating in innovation.

4 2. Solution Language Solution Language white paper with examples V2.3 3 The idea is developed, refined and communicated from two perspectives: topics and activities. The language stimulates creativity by providing versatile means to dig into an idea and divide it into smaller parts and solve them. The intelligence is created similarly as in brain by collecting pieces of information and associating them. This results in more creative, more manageable and more predictable innovation process. Figure 2-1. Two perspectives during innovation.

5 Solution Language white paper with examples V Mind map Idea processing starts by creating a mind map. The main idea - the goal of the innovation is presented with central image in the mind map. The topics presenting actual, real-world concepts radiate from the main idea as branches. A topic may further branch to sub topics, which present topics of lesser importance. One topic leads to next and so on until the whole idea is presented visually. Colors, innovative track shapes and text styles enrich the visual appearance of the mind map. Mind map is an excellent way to collect information from the domain of the idea. Every piece of the idea will be considered. The idea can be analysed in broader perspective. The most suitable brainstorming and innovation techniques can be effectively utilized. Mind map is an easy and fast way to document and communicate ideas. Mind mapping has been developed by Tony Buzan /1/. Personal target measures Measures Waist circumference Blood pressure HRR Natural energy comsumption Energy of food Energy balance Sex Length Weight Energy consumed in exercising Energy consumed Person Age Protein Lipids Carbohydrate Colesterol Amount Composition Energy Develop Fitness Food Exercising Speed/ Intensity Sport Duration Running Walking Nordic walking Swimming Golf Aerobics Minerals Figure 2-2. Mind map of the idea.

6 Solution Language white paper with examples V Activity map If the idea deals with subjects like business processes, logistics systems, information systems or embedded systems, understanding also the behavioural aspects of the idea is essential. Solution Language extends mind maps with activity maps for innovating activities. Presenting activities in activity maps resembles the same easy and real-world oriented style as presenting topics in mind maps. Activity map shows units - the functional constituents of the idea, communication of the units and activities of the units. Figure 2-3. Units, communication and activities.

7 3. Innovating with Solution Language Solution Language white paper with examples V Mind mapping Main idea The goal of the innovation is presented in the mind map with main idea as shown in Figure 3-1. The main idea symbol is an ellipse. The main idea presents a new idea or an improvement to an existing subject. Figure 3-1. Presenting the main idea Topics The topics belonging to the domain of the main idea radiate from the main idea. The topics are presented with named, tapered, smoothly curving tracks. Colors and images from the domain of the idea can be used to enrich mind maps. Figure 3-2 presents the main topics of Business startup. Figure 3-2. Presenting main topics.

8 Solution Language white paper with examples V Sub topics Figure 3-3 shows how topics can be refined with sub topics. The topic Business idea has been refined with sub topics Product idea and Business focus. Also other main topics have been refined. Product idea Personnel plan Business focus Operations plan Business idea Product plan Business startup Initial business plan Financial plan Advisory board plan Product launch plan Detailed business plan Product Strategic position Mission Target markets Competition Location Figure 3-3. Refining topics. Figure 3-4 shows another example of mind mapping. Topics Exercising, Food and Person are the main topics. Exercising topic has been refined with sub topics Duration, Sport and Speed/Intensity. Sport topic has been further refined with

9 Solution Language white paper with examples V2.3 8 sport items Running, Walking, among others. Refinements may continue to required amount of levels. The topics belonging to same hierarchy tree can be presented with the same track color to visualize the entirety. The width of the track, text size and text font can be used to emphasize the importance of the topic. Figure 3-4. Partial mind map of develop fitness Association between topics The topics Goods receiver and Goods sender have been associated in the topic Transportation in Figure 3-5. Association is formed by repeating exactly the same topic elsewhere in the mind map. Association can be shown visually by drawing relationship line between associated topics. Relationship line is a dotted line.

10 Solution Language white paper with examples V2.3 9 Goods sender Goods receiver Transportation Transporting goods Forwarder Freight Freight Goods sender Goods receiver Goods Name Description Weight Job status Figure 3-5. Associations between topics.

11 Solution Language white paper with examples V Activity mapping Solution Language contains mind map style notation also for ideating and planning functional and dynamic aspects of the idea. Activity mapping can be used as a standalone notation or together with mind maps Unit A unit is a real world subject like person, group, organization, part of system or alike. A unit is a functional constituent of the idea. Units can operate concurrently. The way how units are used in activity maps resembles much the way how topics are used in mind maps. Figure 3-6 shows how units can be defined in activity maps. Client and Supplier are units. Unit symbol is a rectangle with rounded corners. A unit may contain sub units and other activity mapping elements. Supplier unit contains Sales and Distribution units. Client Figure 3-6. Units.

12 Solution Language white paper with examples V Sub units A unit can be refined by creating new, refining unit inside the unit being refined. Units can nest to any amount of levels. In Figure 3-6 unit Supplier has been refined with two sub units: Sales and Distribution Communication Communication is presented with arrow headed lines. Communication message can be named. PURCHASE, GOODS and CANCELLATION present communication in Figure Activity Activities present the functionality of units. Activities can operate concurrently. Activity is presented with a circle symbol. Activities occur concurrently unless explicitly defined to be sequential. Concurrency means that activities execute at the same time. Two activities of Figure 3-7 are concurrent. Figure 3-7. Concurrent activities. Sequential activities are performed in predefined order. In Figure 3-8 activity Send doctor request is made first and activity Receive appointment then. Sequence on which the activities have been placed defines sequential operation and the arrowhead of the sequence defines the direction of the operation. Activities are placed on the sequence in the desired order.

13 Solution Language white paper with examples V Figure 3-8. Sequential activities. Activities can be conditional as Figure 3-9 shows. After Check freight activity has been done either Accept delivery or Make complaint will be made depending if the condition OK or Not OK becomes true. A condition is shown with a text, which is located on or beside a sequence. Receive freight Check freight Not OK OK Make complaint Accept delivery Figure 3-9. Conditional activities.

14 Solution Language white paper with examples V Refining activity Figure 3-10 presents how activity Buy goods has been refined. The activity to be refined and the refining sequence are connected together with a relationship, which is a dotted line. Refinements may nest to any amount of levels. Refined activity can be marked with a link qualifier inside the activity symbol. Link qualifier is a small, fixed sized filled circle. Refinements of the activities can be presented in the same activity map or in a separate activity map. Figure Refining activity with sub activities. 3.3 Comment texts In Figure 3-11 comment User story: Resend missing or erroneous goods explains activity Process complaint. Comment symbol is a rectangle with folded upper right corner. Comment can be attached with a relationship to symbol, to which the comment belongs. Figure Comment text.

15 4. Detailed planning with activity maps Solution Language white paper with examples V Mind mapping and activity mapping presented in previous chapter cover everything that is needed in normal idea capturing and planning. This chapter presents how activity mapping technique can be used in detailed planning, analysis and development. 4.1 User interface User interfaces are presented with interaction symbol, which consists of two nested rectangles. In Figure 4-1 Online shop is an user interface, which is entered after activity Show available goods has been done. Based on selections made by the user during the interaction, the activities of the Figure 4-1 will be executed. The sequences starting from the interaction could have conditions. In this case the conditions have been left away deliberately. Figure 4-1. User interface.

16 Solution Language white paper with examples V External interface External interface is shown with interaction symbol. In Figure 4-2 Anti slipping and Distance radar are interfaces and they send ASN ON and DISTANCE messages to unit Cruise controller. Figure 4-2. Interfaces. 4.3 External system External system is presented with a unit symbol. Figure 4-3 presents how the activity Make payment uses external system Bank by exchanging Payment message. Figure 4-3. External system.

17 Solution Language white paper with examples V State Activity map waits for events or messages in a state. In Figure 4-4 Cruise controller has two states Power On and Power Off. Initially Cruise controller goes to Power Off state. When message PWR ON is received, Cruise controller changes to Power On state. If PWR ON message is received when Cruise controller is in Power On state, nothing happens. Figure 4-4. States. Figure 4-5 presents an alternative method for presenting messages. The functionality of the activity maps presented in Figures 4-4 and 4-5 is the same. Power on/off Cruise controller PWR ON PWR OFF Power Off Power On Figure 4-5. A messages trigger sequences. 4.5 Sub state Sub states present hierarchical control. In Figure 4-6 the execution arrives initially to state Power Off. After Cruise controller receives PWR ON message,

18 Solution Language white paper with examples V the execution goes to Power On state. State Power On has been refined and the refinement contains sub states Controlling speed with pedals and Controlling speed automatically. Initially the refinement goes to state Controlling speed with pedals. If message SET arrives, activity Save target speed will be executed and the refining map goes to state Controlling speed automatically. While execution is in state Controlling speed automatically and message ACC is received, activity Increase target speed will be executed. When execution is in the refinement and PWR OFF message is received the execution returns to Power Off state, no matter what the refinement is doing. Message PWR OFF has thus higher priority than any message handled by the refinement. Refinements may be nested to any amount of hierarchy levels. Figure 4-6. Refining state with sub states. 4.6 Defining timing Figure 4-7 presents refinement of state Controlling speed automatically, which was introduced in Figure 4-6. The refinement contains state Idle. After time 200ms has elapsed from arriving to state Idle, activities Get current speed and

19 Solution Language white paper with examples V Get target speed will be executed. This execution is repeated with 200ms interval as long as the execution stays in Idle state. This relative timing is defined with timing statement After 200ms in the condition of the sequence. Absolute timing can be defined with timing statement At T1 in the condition of the sequence. Controlling speed automatically Get current speed SPEED < Target Speed SPEED == Target Speed Accelerate After 200ms Get target speed SPEED > Target Speed Idle Slow down Figure 4-7. Presenting timing.

20 Solution Language white paper with examples V Communication Figure 4-8 presents how communication is defined. Activity Check transportation status in unit Goods sender sends message STATUS QUERY to unit Forwarder. Message is defined with an arrow headed line. The name of the message is located on or beside the message line. If the receiver of the message returns some information after the message has been received, the said information can be shown as a return value. Job status is a return value in Figure 4-8. Return value is presented with a return qualifier, which is attached to message line. Return qualifier is a small, filled circle. The name of the return value can be located on the return qualifier or beside the return qualifier. Figure 4-8. Presenting communication messages.

21 Solution Language white paper with examples V Examples 5.1 Mind mapping examples Personal use Figure 5-1. Setting personal goals.

22 Solution Language white paper with examples V Educational use Figure 5-2. Teaching essay writing.

23 Solution Language white paper with examples V Professional use Strengths User friendly interface Weaknesses Competitor1 Key features Browser based Strengths Weaknesses Competitor2 Competitive analysis Key benefits PDA, mobile and PC Increases motivation for fitness development Product description Easy, proven approach Archives results Planning sales Communication Price quotations Purchase orders Sales contracts Sales lead Prospect Contacts made Volume licensing agreements Figure 5-3. Planning sales strategy.

24 Solution Language white paper with examples V Business process planning Chair Voting member Members Task Working group member Member Working group Issues Documents voting Voting manager Status Issues Voting list Deadline Figure 5-4. Planning business process.

25 Solution Language white paper with examples V Information system planning Figure 5-5. Information system development.

26 Solution Language white paper with examples V Embedded system development Figure 5-6. Embedded system development.

27 5.2 Activity mapping examples Solution Language white paper with examples V Health care Doctor's office Patient Figure 5-7. Health care activities.

28 Solution Language white paper with examples V Online auction Figure 5-8. Online auction.

29 Solution Language white paper with examples V Logistics system Goods receiver Forwarder Goods sender Figure 5-9. Logistics system.

30 Solution Language white paper with examples V Business process Voting member Working group Voting manager Figure Business process.

31 Solution Language white paper with examples V Information system Financial partner Logistics partner Online shop Customer Figure Information system.

32 Solution Language white paper with examples V Summary Solution Language has been optimised for innovating and planning. Graphical notation used is natural, easy and self-explanatory. Everything appearing in the maps originates directly from the real-world. The notation supports levelled thinking, so that ideas and subjects can be presented always on the right level of accuracy. Ideas and innovations can be evaluated, processed and documented efficiently with Solution Language. The graphing notation stimulates persons and teams in innovation and gives a new perspective to ideas. Due to easy visual notation everyone can participate in the innovation process. 7. References 1. Buzan, T., The Mind Map Book, New York: Penguin, Lehikoinen Hannu, Tervonen Mikko, Solution Language Specification, vers. 2.3, Insoft Oy, Lehikoinen Hannu, Tervonen Mikko, Solina Help Library, Online Help, vers , Insoft Oy, 2013 Trademarks Mind map is registered trademark of the Buzan Organization. Solution Language is registered trademark of Insoft Oy.