Modeling Guidelines for SysML Activity Diagram

The activity diagram is used to describe the flow of control and flow of inputs and outputs among actions. OMG Systems Modeling Language (OMG SysML™) Version 1.6

The following guidelines apply to all Activity Diagram types

Actions

• CallOperationAction
  Actions on Entry is published as tagged values and are displayed by default in MagicDraw.
• Action Display
  In Rhapsody you can have a Name and a Label for a Action and State. In MagicDraw the default information to display on an action is the Action Body, not the Action Name or Label. If there is no Action defined for the Element in the Action then the Element displays no text
• Accept Event, Action/Accept, Time Event
  The publisher can select to display the Name of the Accept Event Action on the Diagram. Therefore, if the action is not populated the element on the diagram is defaulted.
• Actions tied to Control Flows
  Rhapsody allows the user to assign an Action to a Control Flow. This is not possible in MagicDraw. To ensure data is not lost the information is transformed to a Stereotype for that Element in MagicDraw.
• SendAction/Send Signal Action
  Rhapsody defines the Send Action based on the Event while MagicDraw and SysML define the SendSignalAction tied to signals.
  For example,
  • In Rhapsody the SendAction called takeCup has the Event evTakeCup.
  
  • Also in Rhapsody you can select to display the name of the SendAction takeCup or display the name of the Event evTakeCup, or both.
  
  • The Publisher transforms the SendAction to a SendSignalAction UML defines A SendSignalAction as an InvocationAction that creates a Signal instance and transmits it to the target object...
  • So in MagicDraw, the SendSignalAction is linked to a Signal
  
  • In MagicDraw, we can only display the name. The Publisher can not control the display of the SendSignalAction.

Diagram Frame and Heading

The following guidelines apply to the diagram frame:

• Diagram Frame is not shown by default due to automatic sizing, justification and routing functionality
• act is the abbreviated diagram type (Show Abbreviated Type Property + Show Diagram Type Property)
• Activity is the Context type (Show Context Type Property) "Activity Name" is the Context Name (Show Context Name Property)
• ActivityName is the Diagram Name (Show Diagram Name Property)
• The Context (Type and Name) between Rhapsody and MagicDraw are different.
• An Activity Diagram is owned by an Activity in MagicDraw

Element from a different Activity cannot appear in the diagram of another Activity

The source tool allows for this type of display where the target tool does not. A reference is required.