Dynamic interface between BPSS conversation management and local business management

• US 20040034540A1
• Filed: 08/15/2002
• Published: 02/19/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: Commerce One Operations Incorporated (Proactis Holdings Plc)
• Inventors: Hsu, Meichun, Chen, Qiming, Mehta, Vinkesh
• Granted Patent: US 7,729,922 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

The present invention relates to devices and methods that coordinate an external conversation process between entities with an internal workflow of one of the entities. More particularly, it relates to devices and methods that are compliant with an inter-enterprise conversation process standard for routing electronic commerce documents between enterprises. Particular aspects of the present invention are described in the claims, specification and drawings.

Claims

1. A method of coordinating a choreographed exchange of messages in an electronic commerce conversation between a first party and a second party with a workflow process associated with the second party, the method including:

the second party receiving a message in the conversation, the conversation conforming to an electronic commerce conversation process standard;

verifying that the message conforms to the conversation process standard and to a history of the conversation;

reporting the message to a task activation data structure, wherein

the data structure is shared with the workflow processor associated with the second party and

the workflow processor uses the data structure to satisfy one or more activation conditions and to asynchronously activate tasks;

receiving a workflow message and using the workflow message to prepare a response to the message; and

updating the history of the conversation one or more times.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the message in the conversation further conforms to a conversation process agreement between the first party and the second party.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the workflow message is received by the second party from the workflow processor.

4. A method of communicating status information between a choreographed electronic commerce conversation process and an asynchronously operating workflow process, including:

posting at least one message from the conversation process to a task activation data structure accessible, wherein the message is verified to conform to a history of the conversation and to an electronic commerce conversation standard;

evaluating the posted message, asynchronously from the conversation process, as satisfying at least one task activation condition;

activating at least one workflow task; and

sending a workflow message from the workflow process to the conversation process corresponding to the activated workflow task.

5. A method of coordinating an electronic commerce conversation between enterprises, a workflow within an enterprise and one or more actions within the workflow, the method including:

processing a plurality of messages in the conversation between the enterprises in accordance with an electronic commerce conversation process standard;

for at least one message, posting at least a portion of the message from a conversation management process to a task activation data structure;

asynchronously from the conversation, using the data structure to track status of actions in workflow;

activating at least one action in the workflow when the posted portion of the message satisfies a task activation condition;

sending one or more messages to the conversation process corresponding to the activated action.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, prior to the posting step, verifying that the message conforms to the conversation process standard and to a history of the conversation.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the message further conforms to a conversation process agreement between the enterprises.

8. A computer-based conversation process driven asynchronous task activator, the device including:

at least one computer system, including resources to process logic;

a task activation data structure, accessible through the computer system;

conversation manager logic, operable on the computer system, that

processes a conversation with a trading partner, including messages, in conformance with an electronic commerce conversation process standard;

verifies that a particular message conforms to a history of a particular conversation and conforms to the conversation process standard;

generates at least one entry in the task activation data structure corresponding to the particular message;

process manager logic, operable on the computer system and in communication with the conversation manager logic, that

manages triggering of tasks in an internal workflow that is not generally exposed to the trading partner;

accesses the task activation data structure to determine whether any task activation conditions have been satisfied;

action manager logic, operable on the computer system and in communication with the process manager logic, that dispatches and invokes actions in the internal workflow.

9. The device of claim 8, further including shared message handling components accessible to and utilized by the conversation manager logic, the process manager logic and the action manager logic.

10. The device of claim 8, wherein the conversation manager logic utilizes first message handling components for external communications with the trading partner and the process manager logic and action manager logic use second message handling components for internal workflow communications with tasks and users.