State Transition Diagram

Definition

A state transition diagram is a design diagram work product that documents the state model of a class or type (interface) of business objects.

Objectives

The typical objectives of a state transitiondiagram is to:

• Document the behavior of a class or type (interface) in terms of its state model.

Benefits

The typical benefits of a state transition diagram are to:

• It provides a more formal definition to the business terms defined in the glossary.

Contents

The typical contents of a state transition diagram include icons representing:

• States.
• The transition relationships between these states.

Stakeholders

The typical stakeholders of a state transition diagram are:

• Producers:
  • Requirements Team
  • Software Development Team
• Evaluators:
  • Project Manager
  • Technical Leader
• Approvers:
  • Project Manager
  • Technical Leader
  • Customer Representative
• Maintainers:
  • Software Development Team
• Users:
  • Architecture Team

Phases

• Business Strategy: Completed
• Business Optimization: Not Applicable
• Initiation: Completed
• Construction: Maintained
• Delivery: Maintained
• Usage: Maintained
• Retirement: Archived

Preconditions

State transition diagrams can typially be started if the following preconditions hold:

• The initiation phase has started.
• The requirements team is adequately staffed and trained in requirements analysis.

Inputs

The typical inputs to a state transition diagram include:

• Work Products:
  • Application Vision Statement
• Stakeholders:
  • TBD

Guidelines

• TBD

Conventions

State transition diagrams are typically constrained by the following conventions:

• Work Flow
• Content and Format Standard
• Inspection Checklist

Examples

• Example State Transition Diagram