D.1 Introduction

“Joining Process” is a generic container aimed at encapsulating various types of process definitions needed in a joining system. It ranges from a “simple joining program” to a “complex joining process with sub-processes”.

Each such joining process should be able to generate corresponding results.

Example – Single Processes:

In this scenario, it provides the possibility to send or receive the joining processes from a joining system and execute the joining processes. The outcome of the executed processes will be represented as Results.

Example – Combined Processes:

In this scenario, a Joining process describes what should be done on a particular level of the system. It should have the capability to delegate sub-processes to controllers that can perform the joining operation without connectivity (Example: Radio shadow). When the connection is reestablished, the controllers report the corresponding results to the primary controller which combines the various results and reports the total result.

Note:

This specification does not define the content of joining process(es). It is assumed that the joining process is retrieved from the joining system or created using another system such as a configuration application.

This specification describes how a joining process is managed, i.e., sending, and receiving a joining process.