Zero latency enterprise enriched publish/subscribe

• US 20020165903A1
• Filed: 12/07/2001
• Published: 11/07/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Valtrus Innovations Limited (f/k/a Dolya Holdco 9 Limited) (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Battas, Gregory, Zargham, Bahman
• Granted Patent: US 7,856,420 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

Solutions for reducing latencies in enterprise operations and business processes adaptation particularly as related to enriched publish and subscribe are proposed by the present invention. These solutions are implemented in a zero latency enterprise (ZLE) framework that allows the enterprise to integrate its services, applications and data in real time. Namely, an enterprise equipped to run as a ZLE is capable of integrating, in real time, its enterprise-wide data, applications, business transactions, operations and values. An operational data store operates as an information broker between the applications such that applications publish messages to the central repository and subscribe to messages from the central, rather than exchange request-response messages directly with each other. Thus, enriched publish and subscribe improves information synchronization between applications and reduce the number of request-response messages the applications would otherwise exchange. Consequently, an enterprise conducting its business as a ZLE exhibits superior management of its resources, operations and customer care.

Claims

1. A method for enriched publish and subscribe in an enterprise running as a zero latency enterprise (ZLE), the enterprise experiencing a plurality of events occurring in association with business transactions conducted at a plurality of sites across the enterprise, the method comprising:

initiating, in real time, a process responsive to an event, the process including

publishing to a central repository one or more messages prompted by that event containing information from that event, respective information from the plurality of events being aggregated in the central repository where the aggregated information can, in real-time, be accessible and available for extraction and analysis from across the enterprise,

updating the aggregated information with information from the published messages,

enriching new messages with information from that event and/or corresponding information extracted from the central repository, and

subscribing to the enriched new messages.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein the central repository operates as an information broker between applications such that applications publish messages to the central repository and subscribe to messages from the central, rather than exchange request-response messages directly with each other.

3. A method as in claim 2, wherein for a particular number (N) of applications, a combined number of the published and subscribed messages can be reduced from twice that particular number (2N) to a total number of 4 or 5 messages.

4. A method as in claim 1, wherein the central repository provides a coherent view, in real time, of the aggregated information from across the enterprise, the process being founded on the coherent view of the aggregated information.

5. A method as in claim 2, further comprising:

predefining a schema for each of the applications, the schema identifying which of the plurality of events and types of data changes its respective application is interested in, the schema further identifying any information its respective application needs for performing tasks related to such events; and

storing each schema in the central repository for later use in enriching the new messages.

6. A method as in claim 2, wherein the applications cause the updating of aggregated information at the central repository upon a change of information in their environment.

7. A method as in claim 1, wherein the published messages and subscribed messages are formatted in XML.

8. A method as in claim 1, wherein the central repository is based on a database which can be updated with information from new events while being queried and which can send the enriched messages to multiple subscribers, thereby leveraging an innate parallelism, scalability and reliability of the database.

9. A method as in claim 1, wherein the central repository includes relational database management functionality that caches and queues the published and subscribed messages.

10. A method as in claim 1, wherein the enriched new messages to which an application subscribes can include extracted information that was previously published to the central repository by other one or more applications.

11. A system for providing enriched publish and subscribe in an enterprise running as a zero latency enterprise (ZLE), the enterprise experiencing a plurality of events occurring in association with business transactions conducted at a plurality of sites across the enterprise, the system comprising:

means for initiating, in real time, a process responsive to an event, the means for initiating the process including

means for publishing to a central repository one or more messages prompted by that event containing information from that event, respective information from the plurality of events being aggregated in the central repository where the aggregated information can, in real-time, be accessible and available for extraction and analysis from across the enterprise,

means for updating the aggregated information with information from the published messages,

means for enriching new messages with information from that event and/or corresponding information extracted from the central repository, and

means for subscribing to the enriched new messages.

12. A system as in claim 11, wherein the central repository operates as an information broker between applications such that applications publish messages to the central repository and subscribe to messages from the central, rather than exchange request-response messages directly with each other.

13. A system as in claim 11, wherein the central repository is based on a database which can be updated with information from new events while being queried and which can send the enriched messages to multiple subscribers, thereby leveraging an innate parallelism, scalability and reliability of the database.

14. A method as in claim 11, wherein the central repository includes relational database management functionality that caches and queues the published and subscribed messages.

17. A system as in claim 16, wherein the ODS is configured with a cluster-aware relational database management (RDBMS) functionality that is capable of handling

periodic queries,

message queueing and store

state engine operations, and

handling transactions, including insertion, updating and deletion of transactions.

18. A system as in claim 16, wherein the consolidated information can, in real-time, be accessible and available for extraction and analysis from across the enterprise, the ODS providing for a coherent view of the consolidated information, in real time, from across the enterprise.

19. A system as in claim 16, wherein the particular information for enriching messages subscribed to by an application can be information previously published by another application.

20. A system as in claim 16, further comprising:

a ZLE enriched publish-subscribe service provider module that is associated with the ODS and to which each one of applications can register with its predefined schema, the schema identifying which of a plurality of events associated with the business transactions and which types of data changes its respective application is interested in, the schema further identifying the particular information needed by its respective application.

21. A system as in claim 16, wherein for a particular number (N) of the applications, a combined number of the published and subscribed messages can be reduced from twice that particular number (2N) to a total number of 4 or 5 messages.

22. A system as in claim 16, further comprising:

an inference-based rules engine that finds an appropriate business rule, regardless of the complexity of rules or the size of any rules set, the inference-based rules engine facilitating a rules service that integrates the rules and policies of the enterprise in the ODS; and

a process-flow engine that manages a flow of the business transactions, processes, and messages between the applications integrated via the ZLE framework.

15. A computer readable medium embodying computer program code configured to cause a computer to perform steps for providing enriched publish and subscribe in an enterprise running as a zero latency enterprise (ZLE), the enterprise experiencing a plurality of events occurring in association with business transactions conducted at a plurality of sites across the enterprise, the steps comprising:

initiating, in real time, a process responsive to an event, the process including the steps of

publishing to a central repository one or more messages prompted by that event containing information from that event, respective information from the plurality of events being aggregated in the central repository where the aggregated information can, in real-time, be accessible and available for extraction and analysis from across the enterprise,

updating the aggregated information with information from the published messages,

enriching new messages with information from that event and/or corresponding information extracted from the central repository, and

subscribing to the enriched new messages.

16. A system for enriched publish and subscribe operations associated with business transactions conducted by an enterprise running as a zero latency enterprise (ZLE), the system being implemented in a ZLE framework and comprising:

one or more applications via which the business transactions are conducted; and

an operational data store (ODS), the ODS being operatively communicative with the one or more applications such that the applications are capable to publish messages to and subscribe to messages from the ODS, the ODS being configured

to operate as a dynamic central repository that consolidates information from across the enterprise and supports business transactional access to real time information from any of the one or more applications,

to know what particular information any one of the applications needs in order to accomplish its task, the particular information enriching messages to which the applications subscribe, and

to update the consolidated information with information from messages published by the applications.