Agent-Based System For Clinical Supplier.

BORANG PENGESARQN STATUS TESIS
JUDUL: AGENT-BASED SYSTEM FOR CLINICAL SUPPLIER
SESI PENGAJTAN: 2007/2008
Saya

EZATUN AIDAH BINTI MOHD.YUSOFF
(HURUF BESAR)

mengaku membenarkan tesis (PSM/Sarjana/Doktor Falsafah) ini disimpan di Perpustakaan
Fakulti Teknologi Maklumat dan Komunikasi dengan syarat-syarat kegunaan seperti
berikut:
1. Tesis adalah hakrnilik Universiti Teknikal Malaysia.MELAKA
2. Perpustakaan Fakulti Teknologi Maklumat dan Komunikasi dibenarkan membuat
salinan untuk tujuan pengajian sahaja.
3. Perpustakaan Fakulti Teknologi Maklumat dan Komunikasi dibenarkan membuat
salinan tesis ini sebagai bahan pertukaran antara institusi pengajian tinggi.
4. * * Sila tandakan (1)

/

SULK

(Mengandungi maklumat yang berdarjah
keselamatan atau kepentingan Malaysia seperti
yang termaktub di dalam AKTA RAHSIA
RASMI 1972)

TERHAD

(Mengandungi maklumat TERHAD yang telah
ditentukan oleh organisasilbadan di mana
penyelidikan dijalankan)

TIDAK TERHAD

PENYELIA)
(TANDATA~~GAN
Alamat tetap : C-01-20, Sri Akasia Auartment,

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Tmn Tampoi Indah 11.8 1200, Johore Bahru,

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MMC)

Nama Penyelia

Johor.

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CATATAN:

Tarikh :

** Jika tesis ini SULIT atau TERHAD, sila lampirkan swat daripada pihak
berkuasa.

Tesis dimaksudkan sebagai Laporan Projek Sarjana Muda (PSM)

I

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this project report entitled
AGENT-BASED SYSTEM FOR CLINICAL SUPPLIER (ASCS)
is written by me and is my own effort and that no part has been
plagiarized without citations.

STUDENT

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DEDICATION

This thesis is dedicated to my family, friends and lecturers whom have taught me
that everything is achievable as long as there are desires that bum inside.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First I thank Him from whom all flows.
A huge thanks goes to my beloved supervisor Puan Siti Azirah Asmai for her
continous supports and encouraging comments throughout the thesis's creation. Her
opinions, suggestions, discussions and critics always being the fundamental elements
for me to climb higher towards my goal in completing this thesis successfully. I
would like to thank her once again for showering me with her guidance. May god
blesses her.

I also grab this opportunity to express my thanks to my beloved parents and siblings
for never being hopeless towards me and believing in me. Thank you for your moral
supports and trusts. I do really appreciate that.

I owe millions of thanks toward all of my friends who contribute to help me
completing this thesis. Your opinions and all the time we had spent brainstorming
together are brilliantly helpful to provide me with better ideas.
Last but not least, my thanks are dedicated to all parties or persons that I have not
mentioned. Thank you for your supports.

ABSTRACT

Agent-Based System for Clinical Supplier (ASCS) is a web based application
that uses apache, MySql, and php scripting in its development. ASCS is designed for
lab and clinical suppliers and health institutions such as clinic, hospitals and
pharmacy. The ASCS provides suppliers to advertise their company and their
supplies to customers in more efficient ways. The suppliers benefit the ASCS
because they can be at the topmost if they have a well maintain performance in
maintaining their supplying services. Meanwhile, as for the health institutions, they
may search for lab and clinical supplies or supplier or obtain the best suppliers from
the DSS element in the system. However, they have to take part in contributing to
evaluate the supplier and their products by the rating process. Only registered users
can access to ASCS to use the services provided in the system. As a conclusion,
Agent-Based System for Clinical Supplier can be a reliable system for health
institutions to seek for reliable suppliers in providing continuous well performance
supplier's services when dealing with them. Besides that, suppliers may have chances
to expand their supply chain management and businesses. Users are able to access
the ASCS 24 hours a day anywhere and any time. The Agent-Based system for
Clinical Supplier can be helpful for both help institutions and clinical suppliers to
achieve their own objectives.

ABSTRAK

Agent-Based System for Clinical Supplier (ASCS) adalah sejenis aplikasi web yang
dibangunkan menggunakan Apache, MySQL, serta PHP. ASCS direka untuk
kegunaan pembekal barang makrnal dan klinikal serta institusi-institusi kesihatan
seperti kilinik, hospital dan farmasi. ASCS memberi peluang kepada pembekal untuk
mengiklankan syarikat mereke beserta barang yang dikeluarkan kepada pelanggan
dengan cara yang lebih efisien. Pembekal barang makmal dan klinikal mendapat
faedah daripada ASCS dengan cara menjadi pembekal paling teratas jika mereka
berkebolehan dalam membekalkan barangan dengan servis yang terbaik. Dalam pada
waktu yang sama, institusi kesihatan boleh membuat carian pembekal atau barangan
atau mendapatkan pembekal yang paling bagus term daripada sisyem melalui elemen
DSS. Walaubagaimanapun, pihak institusi kesihatan perlu mengundi pembekal dan
barangan untuk proses pengundian. Hanya pengguna yang berdaftar sahaja yang
dibenarkan untuk mengakses sistem ini. Konklusinya, Agent-Based System for
Clincal Supplier mampu untuk menjadi medium bagi institusi kesihatan untuk
menemukan pembekal barangan yang bagus untuk barangan yang mereka mahu.
Selain itu, pihak pembekal juga berpeluang untuk memgembangkan bisnes mereka.
Akhir sekali, sistem ini arnat berguna bagi pembekal barang makrnal dan klinikal
serta pihak institusi kesihatan untuk mencapai objektif masing-masing.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER

SUBJECT
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ABSTRACT
ABSTRAK
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLE
LIST OF FIGURES

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Project Background
1.2 Problem Statement
1.3 Objective:
1.4 Scope:

1.5 Project significance
1.6 Expected Output
1.7 Conclusion

CHAPTER I1

LITERATURE REVIEW AND PROJECT
METHODOLOGY
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Facts and findings
2.2.1 Domain
2.2.2 Existing System
2.2.2.1 Manufacturing Chemist
2.2.2.2 Globalspec

PAGE
iv
v
vi
vii

X

xii

2.2.2.3 Orthopaediclist
2.2.3 Technique
2.3 Project Methodology
2.4 Project Requirement
2.4.1 Software Requirement
2.4.2 Hardware Requirement
2.4.3 Other Requirement
2.5 Project Schedule and Milestones
2.6 Conclusion

CHAPTER I11

ANALYSIS
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Problem Analysis
3.3 Requirement analysis
3.3.1 Data Requirement
3.3.2 Functional Requirement
3.3.3 Non-functional Requirement
3.3.3.1.1 Standard
3.3.3.1.2 Performance & Throughput
3.3.3.1.3 Integrity
3.3.3.1.4 Security
3.3.3.1.5 Manageability
3.3.3.1.6 Usability
3.3.3.1.8 Reusability
3.3.3.1.9 Operational
3.3.3.1.10 Cultural & Political
3.3.4 Others Requirement
3.3.4.1 Software Requirement
3.3.4.2 Hardware Requirement
3.4 Conclusion

CHAPTER IV

DESIGN
4.1 Introduction
4.2 High-Level Design
4.2.1 System Architecture
4.2.2 User Interface Design
4.2.2.1 Navigation Design
4.2.2.2 Input Design
4.2.2.3 Output Design
4.2.3 Database Design
4.2.3.1 Conceptual and Logical Database
Design
4.3 Detail Design
4.3.1 Software Specification
4.3.2 Physical Database Design
4.4 Conclusion

CHAPTER V

IMPLEMENTATION
5.1 Introduction

17

5.2 Software Development Environment Setup
5.3 Software Configuration Management
5.3.1 Configuration environmental setup
5.3.2 Version Control Procedure
5.4 Implementation Status
5.5 Conclusion

CHAPTER VI

TESTING
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Test Plan
6.2.1 Test Organization
6.2.2 Test Environment
6.2.3 Test Schedule
6.3 Test Strategy
6.3.1 Classes of Tests
6.4 Test Design
6.4.1 Test Description
6.4.2 Test Data
6.5 Test Results or Analysis
6.6 Conclusion

CHAPTER VII

PROJECT CONCLUSION
7.1 Observation on Weaknesses & Strengths
7.1.1 Strengths
7.1.2 Weaknesses
7.2 Proposition for Improvements
7.3 Contribution
7.4 Conclusion
REFERENCES
APPENDICES

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE

TITLE

Table 2.1

Comparisons of Systems

Table 2.2

Software Requirement

Table 2.3

Hardware Requirement

Table 3.1

User Input Data

Table 3.2

Items Input Data

able 3.3

Product Input Data

Table 3.4
Table 3.5

Order Input Data
'

Feedback Input Data

Table 3.6

Data Dictionary for Users

Table 3.7

Data Dictionary for Items

Table 3.8

Data Dictionary for Product

Table 3.9

Data Dictionary for Order

Table 3.1 0

Data Dictionary for Feedback

Table 3.1 1

Functional Requirements

Table 3.12

Agent-Based Terminology and Coding Standard

Table 3.13

Performance & Throughput Systematic Qualities

Table 3.14

Integrity Systematic Qualities

Table 3.15

Security Systematic Qualities

Table 3.16

Manageability Systematic Qualities

Table 3.17

Usability Systematic Qualities

Table 3.1 8

Maintainability Systematic Qualities

Table 3.19

Reusability Systematic Qualities

Table 3.20

Operational Systematic Qualities

Table 3.2 1

Cultural and Political Systematic Qualities

PAGE

Table 3.22

Software Requirements

Table 3.23

Hardware Requirements

Table 4.1

Input Design

Table 4.2

Output Design

Table 4.3

List of Cart Information

Table 4.4

List of Credit Card Information

Table 4.5

List of Email Information

Table 4.6

List of User Feedback Information

Table 4.7

List of Forum Information

Table 4.8

List of Product Information

Table 4.9

List of Topic Information

Table 4.2

System Input Design

Table 4.3

Data Dictionary for User

Table 4.4

Data Dictionary for Item

Table 4.5

'

Data Dictionary for Product

Table 4.6

Data Dictionary for Order

Table 4.7

Data Dictionary for Feedback

Table 5.1

Version Control for ASCS

Table 5.2

Implementation Status for Each Module

Table 6.1

System Configuration and Specification

Table 6.2

Test Schedule

Table 6.3

Test Description

Table 6.4

Test Case Results

LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE

TITLE

Table 2.1

Index of Manufacturing-Chemist.infoWebsite

Figure 2.2

Index of Globalspec Website

Figure 2.3

Index of Orthopaediclist.com Website

Figure 2.4

Project Milestones

Figure 2.5

Project Gant Chart

Figure 3.1

Activity Diagram of the Current System

Figure 4.1

ASCS Three-Tier Application

Figure 4.2

ASCS Three-Tier Architecture

Figure 4.3

ASCS System Packages

Figure 4.4

High-Level Class Diagram of ASCS

Figure 4.5

Sign-In Prototype for ASCS

Figure 4.6

Create New User Prototype for ASCS

Figure 4.7

After Creating New User Prototype

Figure 4.8

After Signing-In Prototype

Figure 4.9

Supplier Search Prototype

Figure 4.10

Supply Search Prototype

Figure 4.1 1

ASCS Navigation Design

Figure 4.12

Logical Database Design

Figure 5.1

Deployment Diagram for ASCS

PAGE

LIST OF' ABBREVIATION

ASCS
CSC

csu
DBMS
DSS

ERD
GUI
LAN
MYSQL
OOAD

---

Agent-Based System for Clinical Supplier

----

Computer Software Unit

-----

Computer Software Component
Database Management System
Decision Support System
Entity Relationship Diagram
Graphical User Interfaces
Local Area Network
My Structure Query Language

PHP

---

Hypertext Pre-processor

PSM

--

Projek Sarjana Muda

RUP

----

Rational Unified Process

SSADM
UML

Object-Oriented Analysis and Design

Structured System Analysis and Design Method
Unified Modeling Language

LIST OF APPENDICES

APPENDIX

TITLE

Appendix C

To-Be-System Activity Diagram

Appendix D

To-Be-System Use Case

Appendix E

To-Be-System Sequence

Appendix F

Unit Test Cases Form

Appendix G

System Test Cases Form

Appendix H

Test Data

Appendix I

User Manual

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Project Background
Supply Chain Management (SCM) is extremely important to the manufacturing
and retailing industries. Profitability of companies in these two industries depends on
the efficiency and effectiveness on they manage their supply chains. Information
technology has been a key element in supporting supply chain management. As the
access to the internet becomes easier, users are able to access real-time data and use
decision support tools to support their decision making. With the enhancement of the
blooming information technology development, agent-based system is founded to assist
improving the Supply Chain Management. To implement the agent-based system, the
agent technology is indeed to be applied. Agent technology is applied where an
executable content serves the need of a client or perform a set of tasks on behalf of the
client. In other words, clients do not need much effort in performing a task since an
agent will solve it on behalf of the client.
Hence, with the blends of Decision Support System and agent technology itself,
the Agent-Based System for Clinical Suppliers is crucial to provide better decisions for
its users to obtain the best clinical suppliers and manage for the better supply chain. The
target users for the systems consist of three parties which are the health organizations,

manufacturing organization and the administrator of the system. The users for the health
organization are hospitals and clinics who make orders of clinical supplies to support
their business needs whilst the manufacturing organization is the suppliers who provide
those clinical supplies such as antibiotics, medical electronics equipment and the list
goes on. In the other hand, the administrator is responsible to manage and handle the
system to operate with error-free. The administrator has a full access to the system and
has the power of controlling the other users' activities.
Since this project is a new system to be developed, there are several things that
can be encountered by developing this project. Basically this system is based on agent
technology and supports the decision making by implementing the DSS. This project
generates knew knowledge about the significance of the agents and the DSS itself. The
types of agents and approaches of the DSS can be discovered by core studies and
continuous understanding about the related fields and topics. Therefore, this project
gives the opportunity to develop a system that can provide improved services to its
users. Besides that, the skills of software development can be applied during the
development of the project. This is varied from the style of writing the codes to the
implementation of the appealing views or the sense of the human computer interaction
between users of the system with the system. Last but not least, this project provides
chances to develop a web application that will satisfy its users regarding of its good
performance.
There are several problems that lie upon the customers; which are the hospitals
or clinics and also suppliers that invoke the needs of this system. The search process of
suppliers involves manual business process which is very inefficient and ineffective.
The procedures are time consuming and increase search costs. Moreover, the manual
business process of searching for the suppliers does not promise customers to obtain
potential and reliable suppliers. And as for the suppliers, obtaining a trustful good
medium to expose their selves among their customers is a little bit constraining since
there are so many suppliers competing to win customers.

This project which is the Agent-Based System for Clinical Suppliers provides
solutions for the outlined problems by providing the Web-Based system that can
automate the manual business process of searching for the suppliers efficiently which is
way faster and more convenience. Secondly, this system will act as an agent and
supports for decision making. Therefore, customers are able to rely on the system for
suggesting them the most potential and reliable suppliers. Meanwhile, suppliers are able
to expose their capabilities among its customers since the system will suggest the most
potential suppliers with good performance to customers.

1.2 Problem Statements
By binding to the manual business process of seeking for the suppliers,
customers find it is very inconvenient because it takes an amount of time to search for
the customers manually from any across of the publishing or mass media materials that
match with the items that customers want to order. This process will consume time and
the search costs will increase simultaneously as the manual searching is still running.
Even though customers will eventually obtain the suppliers for the clinical supply needs,
however customers prone to face later problems such as delay time of the ordered items
since customers are not acknowledged which is the best supplier to choose. Moreover,
there are huge counts of the existed clinical suppliers and later increase the complexity
to choose for the best supplier. As for the suppliers, competence among them selves
cannot be avoided and they must compete to be at the topmost. Suppliers do not have a
brighter opportunity to expose and introduce them selves to the customers. Having a
chance to get publicized and well known among customers needs certain amount of
time with addition of providing the best service to their customers. The traditional form
of exposing them selves by commercializing them selves in any form of mass media
communication takes step by step procedures and consumes time and money.
Sometimes, some of the potential suppliers are "ignored" by customers since they do
not sound convincing enough.

1.3 Objective
After collecting and analyzing the problems arise from the manual business
process, several objectives of developing the Agent-Based System for Clinical
Suppliers are identified which are:

1.3.1 To reduce customer's mental effort to search for the best clinical suppliers
Customers can search for suppliers that supply for the clinical supplies desired
that is way easier and convenient using this agent based system that comprises of the

DSS that supports for decision making. The system will seek for the best, suitable,
reliable and most potential suppliers to suggest to the customers. Hence, customer will
obtain the suppliers without high degrees of mental efforts.

1.3.2 To obtain the optimal costs of finding the supplier
Normally customers have to contact more than one supplier to assure that they
provide the right supplies, supply the correct amount of products etc. Customers have to
confirm everything is well plan to avoid later problems or miscommunications. The
more assurance of the customers made between the suppliers, the more costly for the
customers to spend for reaching the suppliers. In the other hands, customers can obtain
the best and reliable clinical supplier suggested from the system that is changing
according to time after time.

1.3.3 To reach the reasonable times spend for searching the best clinical supplier
The manual way to seek for suppliers is very tedious process. Customers have to
spend an amount of time searching for the suppliers from the advertisements through

the newspaper or short listing several suppliers from the internet and contacting them
before running negotiations with the suppliers. However, by using this system, the
procedure to search for the best supplier is very less and simple because customers only
need a few clicks through the Graphical User Interface (GUI) and the best suppliers will
be decided and suggested by the system

1.3.4 To provide brighter opportunity and trustful exposing medium for

suppliers
Advertising the suppliers to gain for customer's attention in any form of
advertisements such as in the newspaper needs procedures to be taken, spend some
money on it and patients to wait for the ads to be published and also wait for the
customers to contact them. There are in some certain cases where the popularity of the
suppliers are not at the satisfying average and suppliers will increase competency
among other suppliers even though the "unpopular" supplier is able to give better
service than other suppliers. This system provides better opportunity for suppliers to
expose their capabilities to customers and those maintainable performances of suppliers
will always get on the topmost since the system will suggest for the best clinical
suppliers to the customers.

1.4 Scopes
This system is designed for the administrator who will manage the system.
Other target users are hospitals or clinics or any other health institution to obtain
suppliers in clinical supplies in a specific state in Malaysia. They are the customers that
will use this system which is an open source or a Web-Based system and is used on
Windows XP platform. Last but not least are the clinical suppliers who will supply their
products to the customers. The system is being developed using the Object-Oriented

Analysis and Design Methodology (OOAD). The system's modules comprises of three
main things which are:-

1.4.1 Login
The login module tells the system to which extend of the target users can
manipulate the system. Administrator of the system can have a full access of the system
and grant access to the customers or suppliers. Customers or suppliers are only allowed
to do certain actions in the system as what have been permitted by the administrator.
Customers and suppliers information will be kept in the database for reference and other
tasks.

1.4.2 Clinical Supplies Searching Agent
This module ensure the search agent to enable customer searching for the types
of the clinical supplies that they are interested in, where they have to make the type of
supplies selections that is provided by the system. Supplies details are also available.

1.4.3 The Supplier Suggestion Agent
After customers have done the clinical supplies searching, the agent will
persuade for the potential suppliers according to the supplies chosen. Foremost, the
agent also helps customers to choose the best suppliers among other suppliers by
suggesting the very best supplier according to its performance history etc. However,
customers are free either to accept the agent's suggestion or choose another supplier.
However, not all of the clinical suppliers in a specific state will be publicized in
the system after the search process, but the system only allows the registered suppliers

to be exposed to the users. This is to ensure security so that the suppliers are not frauds.
Whilst the unregistered customers cannot do the search process but can only view the
system.

1.5 Project Significant

1.5.1 Develop Self-skills and Apply Knowledge
Full commitments towards this system's development is the critical contribution
to the producing the high quality outcomes. Good interactions between supervisor and
commitments to work plan will lead to the successful project task. The implementation
of the knowledge is applied via this project. Furthermore, the skills of developing the
project can be polished.

1.5.2 Provide Facilities to Customer and Suppliers
Customers can reduce cost and mental effort of searching for the clinical
suppliers. The agent based technology system assists in searching for the suppliers and
the DSS supports for decision making gives total convenience to customers whilst
supplier can easily find customers that interested in their clinical supplies without
sacrificing more time and money using the traditional way to obtain customers.

1.5.3 Implement Better Services
This system will give a better service for customer to find for reliable clinical
suppliers according to the desired selection of the clinical supplies types. This system
also promotes a reliable platform and trustful medium for customers to search for the

potential and best suppliers without any doubt. Meanwhile, suppliers have the better
options to be in the centre of customer's demands because the system will present the
actual topmost suppliers simultaneously as the time passes by.

1.6 Expected Output
At the end of the project development, a Web-Based application that implements
the agent-based technology and DSS will be filly developed and operates its function
successfully. The Agent-Based System for clinical suppliers will solve the problems of
decision making for selecting the best potential clinical suppliers. It is hoped that this
system promoted for better and faster communication between the customers and
suppliers while eliminating the problems that will be encountered when using the
traditional business process.

1.7 Conclusion
The Agent-Based System for Clinical supplies is mainly about obtaining
supplies item in clinical field such as medications for hospital's and clinic's use. This
system will use the system as an agent to support for the client's task, which is to find
the suitable suppliers that may fulfill the hospital's or clinic's order's requirement. It
also will use an agent technology in assisting and simplifying person-to-person
communication for information gathering tasks, by just relying on the system to do the
supplier finding job. It is an open source system that is a Web-Based system and can be
accessed by health institutions which are normally hospitals and clinics to find for best
clinical suppliers. The process of searching and obtaining the best supplier for the
customers will be in convenience since this system provides Decision Support System;
which means they will be given the best searched result instead of doing the searching
task continuously or manually. Basically this Chapter One have discussed about Project
Background, Problem Statement, Objective, Scope, Project Significance, Expected

Output and Conclusion. The Literature Review and Project Methodology will be
discussed in the next chapter which is the Chapter Two.

CHAPTER I1

LITERATURE REVIEW AND PROJECT METHODOLOGY

2.1

Introduction

This chapter tells the reader in details about Literature Review and Project
Methodologies. Literature review describes the background of the project proposed
which is the Agent-Based System for Clinical Suppliers. Besides that, this chapter
provides summary and evaluation of the previous research or work that is the same or
related to the project which will be developed. The purpose of literature review is to
justify the exact choices of research or a project. Secondly, it exposes the importance of
the topic or the system to be developed. Next, in order to understand the project, literature
review will assist to gather the background information needed. Apart of that, it functions
as the key to show readers that the developer of the system is familiar with significant
and the latest research that is relevant to the topic. Besides that, literature review provides
chances to discover what has been investigated and what has not and also to discover
how a project is related to the work of others.
Methodology is a method or process of activities that is used to develop system.
Methodology has phases which crawls phase by phase to develop a system until it
completely finished. Each step of this phase is shown by modeling it. Normally only the
end goal of the process is manifested as a physical work product. In software, the
analysis and design activities are normally governed by a specific methodology. There