Coordination platform and method for dynamic aggregation of services

• US 20040148334A1
• Filed: 01/28/2003
• Published: 07/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SBC Properties, L.P. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Properties, L.P. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gorti, Sreenivasa R., Arellano, Javler B.
• Granted Patent: US 7,441,038 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A platform for dynamic aggregation of user services includes an agent coordination logic module. The agent coordination logic module determines whether the implementation of an independent web service can be coordinated with the implementation of another independent web service to provide an enhanced web service. The agent coordination logic module dynamically coordinates implementation of the web service by an agent with the implementation of another web service by another agent according to ontological descriptions of the web service and the other web service.

Claims

1. A platform for dynamic aggregation of user services, the platform comprising:

an agent that broadcasts a message when the agent implements an independent web service, the message including information used to determine whether another web service is to be implemented.

2. A platform for dynamic aggregation of user services, the platform comprising:

an agent coordination logic module that determines whether the implementation of an independent web service can be coordinated with the implementation of another independent web service to provide an enhanced web service, the agent coordination logic module dynamically coordinating implementation of the web service by an agent with the implementation of another web service by another agent according to ontological descriptions of the web service and the other web service.

3. The platform for dynamic aggregation of user services of claim 2, the platform further comprising:

a registration module that registers the service when the platform for dynamic aggregation of user services determines that the agent implementing the service is in the same domain as the platform for dynamic aggregation of user services.

4. The platform for dynamic aggregation of user services of claim 3,

wherein the registration module registers the other service when the platform for dynamic aggregation of user services determines that the other agent implementing the other service is in the same domain as the platform for dynamic aggregation of user services;

and,

wherein the service and the other service are only coordinated when they are both registered.

5. The platform for dynamic aggregation of user services of claim 2, wherein the agent coordination logic module makes the determination by comparing the ontological description of the web service with the ontological description of the other web service.

6. A method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents, the method comprising:

implementing a web service with an agent;

implementing another web service with another agent;

determining ontological descriptions of the web service and the other web service according to a shared ontology; and

dynamically coordinating execution of the web service with the other agent according to the determined ontological descriptions.

7. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 6, further comprising:

associating an agent coordination logic module with the agent; and

determining whether the implementation of the web service can be coordinated with the implementation of the other web service.

8. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 7, further comprising:

determining whether the web service can be supplemented with the other web service.

9. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 7, further comprising:

determining whether the web service and the other web service can be used to provide an improved web service.

10. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 9, further comprising:

providing an improved web service that aggregates the web service and the other web service based on the dynamically coordinated execution of the web service.

11. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 6, further comprising:

associating a registration module with the agent;

receiving at the agent a notification related to the implementation of the other web service; and

registering the other web service using the registration module.

12. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 6, wherein

the dynamic coordination of the execution of the web service automatically occurs independent of a user direction to coordinate execution of the web service.

13. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 6, further comprising:

defining at least one descriptive language used to describe the web service and the other web service.

14. The method of dynamically aggregating multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 13, further comprising:

forwarding the ontological description of the web service from a shared ontology module to the other agent; and

determining whether implementation of the web service and the other web service can be coordinated.

15. A computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents, the computer readable medium comprising:

a first web service implementing source code segment that implements a web service;

a second web service implementing source code segment that implements another web service;

an ontological determination source code segment that determines ontological descriptions of the web service and the other web service according to a shared ontology; and

an execution coordination source code segment that dynamically coordinates execution of the web service and the other web service according to the determined ontological descriptions.

16. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 15, further comprising:

an agent coordination source code segment that associates an agent coordination logic module with an agent; and

an implementation determination source code segment that determines whether the implementation of the web service can be coordinated with the implementation of the other web service.

17. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 16, further comprising:

a web service supplement source code segment that determines whether the web service can be supplemented with the other web service.

18. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 16, further comprising:

a web service improvement source code segment that determines whether the web service and the other web service can be used to provide an improved web service.

19. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 18, further comprising:

a dynamic coordination source code segment that provides an improved web service that aggregates the web service and the other web service based on the dynamically coordinated execution of the web service.

20. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 15, further comprising:

a registration association source code segment that associates a registration module with an agent;

a notification source code segment that receives at the agent a notification related to the implementation of the other web service; and

a registration source code segment that registers the other web service using the registration module.

21. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 15, wherein

the execution coordination source code segment automatically coordinates the execution of the web service independent of a user direction to coordinate execution of the web service.

22. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 15, further comprising:

a language description source code segment that defines at least one descriptive language used to describe the web service and the other web service.

23. The computer readable medium for storing a computer program that dynamically aggregates multiple services associated with multiple agents of claim 22, further comprising:

a description forwarding source code segment that forwards the ontological description of the web service from a shared ontology module to an agent; and

an implementation determination source code segment that determines whether implementation of the web service and the other web service can be coordinated.