Activity Diagram

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 Activity Diagram
• Intended to represent the internal behavior:
– Of an operation
– Of a use case

• An activity diagram represents the execution of a process as a

sequence of steps (or activities)
• This diagram must represent the flow of activities (not of objects) in
detail
• Concepts :
− activity,
− transition,
− guard,
− swimlanes

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 Concepts

❑ Activity
• Represented by a rounded rectangle, stretched horizontally
• Each activity represents a particular step in the execution of the
including method.

❑Transitions : relate the activities

• Arrow from the current activity to next
• No internal transitions, nor started by events
• The transition is started when the current activity finishes; the
following activity starts

❑ Notation:

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 Concepts

Activity Check temperature

[Too hot] Check temperature

transition
[too cold]

Other Activity Heat Cool

[too cold] [too hot]

Heat Cool

❑ Specific activities:

begin end

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 Concepts

❑ Gards : [test]
• Boolean conditions, mutually exclusive, allow the transitions
between activities
• Condition represented by a diamond

Heat

Check temperature

Cool

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 Concepts

❑ Branching
• The diamond can also be used to represent branching

A1

A3

A2

At the end of A1 or A2, the control flow goes to activity A3

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 Concepts

❑ Synchronization bar

• Allows to open and to close parallel branches within a flow

execution of a method or a use case.

• Transitions at the beginning of the synchronization bar are started

simultaneously.

• A synchronization bar cannot be crossed until all the transitions in

entry on the bar were started.

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 Concepts

❑ Synchronization Bar

Cool Stop heating Open window

Stop heating Open window Check temperature

The transitions at the beginning of A synchronization bar is crossed

the synchronization bar are started when all the transitions in entry
simultaneously were started

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❑ Example

Fill order

[Not Subscriber]
Assign place
[Subscriber]

Calculate amount
Assign place Calculate reduction

Debit card

Calculate amount

Debit Card

Print Ticket

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 Concepts
❑ Swimlanes
• Column showing the various responsibilities within a mechanism of
an organization

• Each responsibility is ensured by one or more objects, and each

activity is allocated with a swimlane given

• Relative Position of the swimlanes is not significant

• A transition can freely cross the swimlanes

• We can replace the swimlanes of activities by life lines, as in the

case of the sequences diagrams

• An object can appear several times in the diagrams to increase its

legibility (his state is specified between []).

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 Concepts

❑ Swimlanes

Teacher Student Jury

Teach

Learn

Control the knowledge Compose

Evaluate

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 Concepts
❑ Swimlanes

:Consumer :Seller :Inventory management

Request service

pay Take order

Delivering packages

Print invoice
Take invoice and packages

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 Concepts
❑ Objects
• We can view the objects in an activity diagram
• The manipulation of objects allow to display the modification of their state

Consumer Seller Inventory management

Request Service : order

[done]

pay Take order Delivering packages

: order
[performed]
Print invoice

Take invoice & pakcages

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 Activity Diagram

❑ How to use an activity diagram

➢ To document a use case
– Clarify the use case
– Show use cases as activities
• Included
• Extending the current use case

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❑ How to use an activity diagram
Enter customer information
Print report

<<extends>> <<Constraint>> Choose payment method

{on the demand of
client}
Order Order product
Extension point:
after payment

Order product

Enter customer information [customer did not request ticket]

Choose payment method Print Ticket

[customer
request ticket]

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