Intermediate Events

An Intermediate Event represents a point in the process where something occurs after a process starts and before it ends. It affects the flow of the process.

It evaluates conditions and situations that cause events or fulfills conditions that start another process.

Intermediate events can be catching or throwing events.

A catching event waits for an event to occur and reacts to it. A throwing event triggers the event based on the type of event.

An Intermediate Event can have multiple incoming and outgoing Sequence Flows.

When adding an Intermediate Event to your diagram, make sure that:

  • It has at least one incoming Sequence Flow.

  • It has at least one outgoing Sequence Flow.

Intermediate Events appear as circles with a double edge. The marker changes according to the type of Intermediate Event. Catching event markers are white, throwing event markers are black.

Intermediate Events with event markers.

Intermediate Event

An Intermediate Event is a throwing event.

Use it to indicate that something has changed in the process.

A basic Intermediate Event.

Message Intermediate Catch Event

Use a Message Intermediate Catch Event to receive a message. This event pauses the process until it receives a specific message or changes the process flow when the messaged isn’t received.

A Message Intermediate Catch Event.

Message Intermediate Catch Event attributes

Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

  • Message Reference

    The ID of the Message that is sent or received by the Task.

    Click to view the list of message IDs and select an ID.

 

Define this attribute in the Output of the Attributes panel:

  • Output

    The Data Output sent by the element.

    • To add a Data Output, click Add.

    • To remove a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list then click Remove.

    • To complete or edit a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list and fill in these fields:

      Field Description
      Name The name of the Data Output.
      Description A description of the Data Output.
      Item Definition The data type of the Data Output.

    Message Intermediate Throw Event

    Use a message intermediate throw event to send a message.

    A Message Intermediate Throw Event.

    Message Intermediate Throw Event attributes

    Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

    • Message Reference

      The ID of the Message that is sent or received by the Task.

      Click to view the list of message IDs and select an ID.

     

    Define this attribute in the Input tab of the Attributes panel:

    • Input

      The Data Input received by the element.

      • To add a Data Input, click Add.

      • To remove a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list then click Remove.

      • To complete or edit a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list and fill in these fields:

        Field Description
        Name The name of the input.
        Description A description of the input.
        Item Definition The data type of the input.
        Default value The default value of the input.

      Timer Intermediate Catch Event

      A Timer Intermediate Catch Event acts like a stopwatch. When the process arrives at this event, a timer starts and the process is paused for a specified time before starting up again.

      A Timer Intermediate Catch Event.

      Timer Intermediate Catch Event attributes

      Define this attribute in the Timer tab of the Attributes panel:

      • Timer Event Definition

        Define the timer conditions for timer events.

        Refer to the ISO 8601 standard for date, time and duration format.

        To set the Timer Type:

        • Click and select the timer type:

          Type Description
          None No timer type specified.
          Recurring date Repeated on a specific day and time in a cycle — for example, "every Monday at 9am".
          Fixed date A specific date and time — for example, "31 December 2021".
          After duration The time from the moment the process reaches the event to the moment the trigger is fired — for example, "5 minutes".

        Escalation Intermediate Throw Event

        When a process arrives at an Escalation Intermediate Throw Event this triggers an escalation. The escalation can be caught by a Boundary Event or Subprocess with the same Escalation.

        An Escalation Intermediate Throw Event.

        Escalation Intermediate Throw Event attributes

        Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

        • Escalation Reference

          The ID of the Escalation the event is referencing.

         

        Define this attribute in the Input tab of the Attributes panel:

        • Input

          The Data Input received by the element.

          • To add a Data Input, click Add.

          • To remove a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list then click Remove.

          • To complete or edit a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list and fill in these fields:

            Field Description
            Name The name of the input.
            Description A description of the input.
            Item Definition The data type of the input.
            Default value The default value of the input.

          Signal Intermediate Catch Event

          Use a Signal Intermediate Catch Event to receive a specific signal. This event pauses the process flow until it receives a signal.

          A Signal Intermediate Catch Event.

          Signal Intermediate Catch Event attributes

          Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

          • Signal Reference

            The ID of the Signal that’s broadcast.

            Click to select a Signal ID.

           

          Define this attribute in the Output tab of the Attributes panel:

          • Output

            The Data Output sent by the element.

            • To add a Data Output, click Add.

            • To remove a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list then click Remove.

            • To complete or edit a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list and fill in these fields:

              Field Description
              Name The name of the Data Output.
              Description A description of the Data Output.
              Item Definition The data type of the Data Output.

            Signal Intermediate Throw Event

            Use a Signal Intermediate Throw Event to send a specific signal.

            A Signal Intermediate Throw Event.

            Signal Intermediate Throw Event attributes

            Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

            • Signal Reference

              The ID of the Signal that’s broadcast.

              Click to select a Signal ID.

             

            Define this attribute in the Input tab of the Attributes panel:

            • Input

              The Data Input received by the element.

              • To add a Data Input, click Add.

              • To remove a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list then click Remove.

              • To complete or edit a Data Input, select the Data Input from the list and fill in these fields:

                Field Description
                Name The name of the input.
                Description A description of the input.
                Item Definition The data type of the input.
                Default value The default value of the input.

              Conditional Intermediate Catch Event

              Use a Conditional Intermediate Catch Event to trigger an event when a given condition evaluates to true. It pauses the process flow until the condition is fulfilled.

              A Conditional Intermediate Catch Event.

              Conditional Intermediate Catch Event attributes

              Fill in this field in the Attributes tab:

              • Add condition

                Select the type of condition:

                • None: No condition defined.

                • Binary: Define a condition expression by comparing two Data Elements or values.

                  Operands are the two Data Elements/values you want to compare. Operator is the comparison operator you use.

                  Fill in these fields:

                  Field Description
                  First operand Click to select a Data Element.
                  Operator Click to select an operator.
                  Second operand Select a Data Element or insert a value.

                  Defining a condition on a Sequence Flow.

                • Free: Define a condition according to your requirements. There are no limitations on the language or expression. This condition is not executable.

                  Fill in these fields:

                  Field Description
                  Language There is no default language. Use the language you prefer.
                  Expression Boolean type expression. The condition must evaluate to true.

                 

                Define this attribute in the Output tab of the Attributes panel:

                • Output

                  The Data Output sent by the element.

                  • To add a Data Output, click Add.

                  • To remove a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list then click Remove.

                  • To complete or edit a Data Output, select the Data Output from the list and fill in these fields:

                    Field Description
                    Name The name of the Data Output.
                    Description A description of the Data Output.
                    Item Definition The data type of the Data Output.