Process mining : extending the alpha-algorithm to mine short loops

Abstract

The deployment of Workflow Management systems is a timeconsuming and error-prone task. A possible solution is process mining, which automatically extracts workflow models from event-data logs. However, the current research in process mining still has problems in mining some common constructs in workflow models. Among these constructs are short loops, which are loops of length one and two. For instance, the α-algorithm was proven to mine sound Structured Workflow nets without short loops. In this paper, we present a new algorithm (the α-algorithm) that can handle short loops, and we prove that it correctly mines all sound Structured Workflow nets. The α-algorithm is based on the α-algorithm and is implemented in the EMiT tool.