Stochastic Performance Analysis of Distributed Activities

This paper analyzes stochastic performance of a distributed global activity, composed of sub-activities sequenced serially, probabilistically, or concurrently. We provide general formulas with which we calculate the performance of a composite activity based on the performance of the constituent sub-activities and the control structure. To do this, we model each sub-activity as a Partially Ordered Specification (POS), where each sub-activity is characterized by independent input events, dependent output events and the stochastic minimum delays between these events. This technique allows two or more subactivities to be combined hierarchically. Proofs of correctness for these formulas are given and a simple example is discussed throughout the paper.