In: Programming and Computer Software, Vol. 24, No. 4, pages 162-175. 1998.
Abstract: This paper is dedicated to the study of behavioral equivalences of concurrent systems modeled by Petri nets. The main notions of equivalence known from the literature are complemented by new ones and analyzed on the whole class of Petri nets and on the subclass of sequential nets (nets without concurrency). A complete description of relationships between equivalences is obtained. Whether or not equivalence notions are preserved under the refinement operation, which makes it possible to consider the behavior of nets at a lower abstraction level, is also analyzed.
Keywords: Petri nets, behavioral equivalences, concurrent systems.