Dynamic service-on-demand delivery messaging hub

• US 20040221005A1
• Filed: 04/30/2003
• Published: 11/04/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LinkedIn Corporation (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Benantar, Messaoud, Madduri, Hari Haranath, Chang, Philip Yen-tang, Albaugh, Virgil A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,849,130 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• 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]

Abstract

An infrastructure for on-demand service delivery utilizing a dispatcher component driving service elements that are unaware of each other. The composition of service elements is developed using a rules-based data store. Upon receipt of a service request, it is decomposed and recomposed into a sequence of functions to be performed by various service elements. A control data structure is repeatedly dispatched by a hub to each service element in the sequence, with each service element returning the control data structure to the hub for subsequent dispatch to a next service element. After all functions have been performed, a processed data structure is returned to the requesting client. A method for registering and deregistering service elements with the hub is also provided.

Claims

1. A method of providing services from a service provider to a service consumer, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving a request for a service to be performed from a service consumer, said request having an information payload;

subsequent to receipt of said request, determining the type of service requested and dynamically composing a sequence of service elements to be employed to accomplish said service;

creating a control header and information payload, said control header encapsulating the composition of service elements;

repeatedly dispatching the control header to each service element in said sequence until all service elements have processed said payload; and

returning said processed payload to said service consumer.

2. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said control header comprises an Extensible Markup Language data structure.

3. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of receiving a request comprises receiving a request via a canonical messaging interface.

4. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of dispatching the control header comprises dispatching via a canonical messaging interface.

5. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of composing a sequence of service elements to be employed to accomplish said service comprises employing a function call and return decomposition and recomposition paradigm.

6. The method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

maintaining a registry of service elements and the functions; and

upon receipt of a registration from a new service element, adding said service element to said registry for subsequent use in performing dynamically composed services.

7. The method as set forth in claim 6 further comprising associating with said newly registered service element a Universal Resource Identifier.

8. The method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

maintaining a registry of service elements and the functions; and

upon receipt of a deregistration request from a registered service element, removing said registered service element from said registry such that the service element will not be used in subsequently composed services.

9. The method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising providing a hub having a messaging broker, a dynamic service composer, a service element registry, a delivery element, a dispatcher element, and a registration element.

10. The method as set forth in claim 9 wherein said dispatcher element and said delivery element are provided with a canonical messaging interface.

11. A computer readable medium encoded with software for providing services from a service provider to a service consumer, said software performing the steps of:

receiving a request for a service to be performed from a service consumer, said request having an information payload;

subsequent to receipt of said request, determining the type of service requested and dynamically composing a sequence of service elements to be employed to accomplish said service;

creating a control header and information payload, said control header encapsulating the composition of service elements;

repeatedly dispatching the control header to each service element in said sequence until all service elements have processed said payload; and

returning said processed payload to said service consumer.

12. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 wherein said software for creating a control header comprises software for creating an Extensible Markup Language data structure.

13. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 wherein said software for receiving a request comprises software for receiving a request via a canonical messaging interface.

14. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 wherein said software for dispatching a control header comprises software for dispatching via a canonical messaging interface.

15. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 wherein said software for composing a sequence of service elements to be employed to accomplish said service comprises software for employing a function call and return decomposition and recomposition paradigm.

16. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 further comprising software for performing the steps of:

maintaining a registry of service elements and the functions; and

upon receipt of a registration from a new service element, adding said service element to said registry for subsequent use in performing dynamically composed services.

17. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 16 further comprising software for associating a Universal Resource Identifier with said newly registered service element.

19. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 11 further comprising software for a hub having a messaging broker, a dynamic service composer, a service element registry, a delivery element, a dispatcher element, and a registration element.

20. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 19 wherein said software for said dispatcher element and said delivery element comprise software for a canonical messaging interface.

18. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 111 further comprising software for performing the steps of:

maintaining a registry of service elements and the functions; and

upon receipt of a deregistration request from a registered service element, removing said registered service element from said registry such that the service element will not be used in subsequently composed services.

21. A system for providing on-demand, dynamically composed services to a service consumer from a service provider, said system comprising:

at least one client service request having a type of request indicator and an information payload;

a plurality of service elements being capable of receiving, modifying and transmitting a control header with an information payload, each of said service elements being capable of performing certain processing functions on said information payload; and

a hub subsystem being configured to receive said service request, compose a sequence of service elements to employ to attain said service requested, and dispatching a control header and information payload to one or more of said service elements in said sequence to affect processing of said information payload according to said service request.

22. The system as set forth in claim 21 wherein said control header comprises an Extensible Markup Language data structure.

23. The system as set forth in claim 22 wherein said hub comprises a canonical messaging interface for receiving said service request.

24. The system as set forth in claim 22 wherein said hub comprises a canonical messaging interface for dispatching said control header.

25. The system as set forth in claim 22 wherein hub is configured to employ a function call and return decomposition and recomposition paradigm.

26. The system as set forth in claim 22 further comprising:

a registry of service elements and the functions; and

a registry updater configured to, upon receipt of a registration from a new service element, add a service element to said registry for subsequent use in performing dynamically composed services.

27. The system as set forth in claim 26 in which said registry updater is further configured to associate a Universal Resource Identifier with said newly registered service element.

28. The system as set forth in claim 27 further comprising:

a registry of service elements and the functions; and

a registry updater configured to, upon receipt of a deregistration request from a registered service element, remove said registered service element from said registry such that the service element will not be used in subsequently composed services.

29. The system as set forth in claim 21 wherein said hub comprises a messaging broker, a dynamic service composer, a service element registry, a delivery element, a dispatcher element, and a registration element.

30. The system as set forth in claim 29 wherein said dispatcher element and said delivery element are provided with a canonical messaging interface.

31. The system as set forth in claim 21 wherein said plurality of service elements are provided with a canonical messaging interface.

32. The system as set forth in claim 21 wherein said hub and service elements are provided with compatible canonical messaging interfaces.