Quality Glossary Definition: Flowchart Show Also called: process flowchart, process flow diagram Variations: macro flowchart, top-down flowchart, detailed flowchart (also called process map, micro map, service map, or symbolic flowchart), deployment flowchart (also called down-across or cross-functional flowchart), several-leveled flowchart A flowchart is a picture of the separate steps of a process in sequential order. It is a generic tool that can be adapted for a wide variety of purposes, and can be used to describe various processes, such as a manufacturing process, an administrative or service process, or a project plan. It's a common process analysis tool and one of the seven basic quality tools. Elements that may be included in a flowchart are a sequence of actions, materials or services entering or leaving the process (inputs and outputs), decisions that must be made, people who become involved, time involved at each step, and/or process measurements. When to Use a Flowchart
Flowchart Basic ProcedureMaterials needed: Sticky notes or cards, a large piece of flipchart paper or newsprint, and marking pens.
Flowchart Considerations
Flowchart Examples1. High-Level Flowchart for an Order-Filling Process
Commonly Used Symbols in Detailed FlowchartsOne step in the process. The step is written inside the box. Usually, only one arrow goes out of the box. Direction of flow from one step or decision to another. Decision based on a question. The question is written in the diamond. More than one arrow goes out of the diamond, each one showing the direction the process takes for a given answer to the question. (Often the answers are "yes" and "no.") Delay or wait Link to another page or another flowchart. The same symbol on the other page indicates that the flow continues there. Input or output Document Alternate symbols for start and end pointsDevelop a FlowchartUse the flowchart template (Excel) to create a graphical representation of the steps in a process to better understand it and reveal opportunities for improvement. Flowchart resourcesYou can also search articles, case studies, and publications for flowchart resources. BooksMapping Work Processes The Quality Toolbox ArticlesFlowcharting With Excel (Quality Management Journal) A method is presented for teaching flowcharting using Microsoft Excel. While the focus is on the academic environment, the method is relevant for corporate trainers and novice users. Flowcharting is treated as a graphical language with its own vocabulary and syntax. Suggestions and precautions enhance the legibility and communicative power of the tool. In addition, extensions are offered to allow customization of individual process maps to specific user needs. Back To Basics: Flowcharts For A Smooth Ride (Quality Progress) A flowchart might be one of the more basic of the seven tools of quality, but it is a very useful one. Flowcharts, also known as process maps, help paint a picture of a process to sort out steps and missteps. CoursesASQ Quality Tools - Flowchart Adapted from The Quality Toolbox, Second Edition, ASQ Quality Press. View Discussion Improve Article Save Article Like Article A compiler is system software that translates the source program written in a high-level language into a low-level language. The compilation process of source code is divided into several phases in order to ease the process of development and designing. The phases work in sequence as the output of the previous phase is utilized in the next phase. The various phases are as follows: Lexical Analysis Phase: In this phase, input is the source program that is to be read from left to right and the output we get is a sequence of tokens that will be analyzed by the next Syntax Analysis phase. During scanning the source code, white space characters, comments, carriage return characters, preprocessor directives, macros, line feed characters, blank spaces, tabs, etc. are removed. The Lexical analyzer or Scanner also helps in error detection. To exemplify, if the source code contains invalid constants, incorrect spelling of keywords, etc. is taken care of by the lexical analysis phase. Regular expressions are used as a standard notation for specifying tokens of a programming language. It is basically a sequence of characters that are treated as a unit as it cannot be further broken down. In programming languages like C language- keywords (int, char, float, const, goto, continue, etc.) identifiers (user-defined names), operators (+, -, *, /), delimiters/punctuators like comma (,), semicolon(;), braces ({ }), etc. , strings can be considered as tokens. This phase recognizes three types of tokens: Terminal Symbols (TRM)- Keywords and Operators, Literals (LIT), and Identifiers (IDN). Let’s understand now how to calculate tokens in a source code (C language): Example 1: int a = 10; //Input Source code Tokens int (keyword), a(identifier), =(operator), 10(constant) and ;(punctuation-semicolon)Answer – Total number of tokens = 5 Example 2: Answer – Total number of tokens = 14 LexemeIt is a sequence of characters in the source code that are matched by given predefined language rules for every lexeme to be specified as a valid token. Example: main is lexeme of type identifier(token) (,),{,} are lexemes of type punctuation(token)PatternIt specifies a set of rules that a scanner follows to create a token. Example of Programming Language (C, C++):
Difference between Token, Lexeme, and Pattern
The output of Lexical Analysis Phase:The output of Lexical Analyzer serves as an input to Syntax Analyzer as a sequence of tokens and not the series of lexemes because during the syntax analysis phase individual unit is not vital but the category or class to which this lexeme belongs is considerable. Example: z = x + y; This statement has the below form for syntax analyzer <id> = <id> + <id>; //<id>- identifier (token)The Lexical Analyzer not only provides a series of tokens but also creates a Symbol Table that consists of all the tokens present in the source code except Whitespaces and comments. |