Generating Test Cases Using Colored Petri Net

Abstract

A Petri Net is a graphical and mathematical modeling approach used to describe the transition of states for an information system. This paper presents a novel technique to generating test cases using a Colored Petri Net (CPN) model. The state space of a model based on CPN provides a solid basis for test cases generation in a form that can be easily manipulated. This technique is based on three testing coverage criteria according to the state space. The advantage of this approach is that the correctness of the specification based on CPN can be validated by simulation tools and the state space can be also generated by state space tools. The case for vending machine illustrates the effectiveness of this method.

Coloured Petri nets for abstract test generation in software engineering

“…The generation of abstract tests for embedded systems was also studied using simulation and state-space approaches [4,[45][46][47]. The simulation approach is applied for models with infinite or a too complex state-space [4,46].…”

“…The state‐space approach showed effectiveness through full state coverage, transition coverage, and transition pair coverage. However, from the level of complexity of the state‐space considered, it is unclear how the approach works for more complex systems [45]. Besides, it is also necessary to follow a specific modeling methodology [47].…”