Method of Exchanging Data and Control Methods Between Software Components and Re-Useable Software Components

• US 20080127081A1
• Filed: 11/21/2007
• Published: 05/29/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tangro Software Components GmbH
• Original Assignee: Tangro Software Components GmbH
• Inventors: Schumann, Andreas
• Granted Patent: US 8,332,812 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/120
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/10 Requirements analysis; Specification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/36 Software reuse

Abstract

A method of exchanging data among software components includes acquisition by each software component of all the data that is to be provided by another software component, from a predetermined software component. Each software component delivers all data that is to be provided by it to another software component, to the predetermined software component. Providing and acquiring of all data is performed according to a predetermined standard, according to which the data comprises values and attributes. The respective data values are assigned to attributes, and semantically identical data values are assigned to the same attribute and are made distinguishable from each other by respective hierarchical information. A software component that delivers data to or acquires data from the predetermined software component, receives the respective hierarchical information from another software component. Acquiring and providing data by a software component includes transferring the respective hierarchical information.

Claims

1. A method of exchanging data between a plurality of software components which interact in a computer program for executing a process, whereby each software component of the plurality of software components in the computer program is executable;

characterized in that

each software component acquires all the data which is to be provided by another software component, from a predetermined software component, and each software component delivers all data which is to be provided by it to another software component, to the predetermined software component, and whereby providing and acquiring of all the data is performed according to a predetermined standard, whereby according to the predetermined standard

the data comprises data values and attributes,

whereby the respective data values are assigned to attributes, whereby semantically identical data values are assigned to the same attribute and are made distinguishable from each other by a respective hierarchical information;

and

whereby a software component which delivers data to the predetermined software component or which acquires data from the predetermined software component, receives the respective hierarchical information from another software component, and

whereby acquiring and providing data by a software component comprises transferring the respective hierarchical information.

2. The method according to claim 1, whereby the attribute data value assignments obtain a unique ID and are linked to hierarchically organized data objects, whereby each data object comprises at the uppermost hierarchical position an ID which renders the data object uniquely identifiable.

3. The method according to claim 2, whereby the software component which requests data from the predetermined software component (DES), obtains the unique hierarchical relation of the requested data from another software component.

4. The method according to claim 3, whereby the unique hierarchical relation is obtained by requesting the ID of the data object which is superordinated to the requested data.

5. The method according to claim 2, whereby a software component which delivers data to the predetermined software component, obtains the unique hierarchical relation of the data to be delivered from another software component.

6. The method according to claim 5, whereby the unique hierarchical relation is obtained by requesting the ID of the data object which is superordinated to the delivered data.

7. The method according to claim 2, whereby upon requesting or transmitting of data the unique hierarchical relation of the requested data is notified to the predetermined software component.

8. The method according to claim 1, whereby each data processing software component outputs after its processing an event which is indicative of a result of its processing.

9. The method according to claim 8, whereby the event is processed by a predetermined software component (ED) during the process.

10. The method according to claim 1, whereby upon output of data to the predetermined software component, the keeping of the data until storing the data in a database is initiated.

11. The method according to claim 1, whereby each data processing software component outputs at most two different events.

12. The method according to claim 1, whereby each data processing software component performs at most one activity, whereby all the activities together represent the process.

13. The method according to claim 1, whereby the attribute data value pairs are stored together with the hierarchical relation in a data base.

18. Computer program, comprising a plurality of software components which interact for executing a process whereby the process is decomposable into a plurality of activities, whereby the software components exchange data according to a method of claim 1.

19. The computer program according to claim 18, whereby at least one of the software components is a process component.

20. The computer program according to claim 19, whereby a process component comprises at least one further software component and/or process component.

21. Method of designing a computer program which is adapted for executing a process by using a plurality of software components, whereby each of the software components is executable in the computer program, whereby the process is decomposed into a plurality of activities such that each activity can be executed by an atomic software component,

each of the activities is assigned to exactly one atomic software component for being executed, and

each of the software components implement the method according to claim 1.

22. The method according to claim 21, whereby the process is represented by means of a graphical model, whereby the software components and the events get graphical symbols associated therewith.

14. Method of controlling a plurality of software components which interact in a computer program for executing a process, whereby the process is decomposed, according to a model, by a number of activities,

each of the software components is executable in the computer program;

each activity is assigned to a software component for being executed, and

each software component gets at most one activity for executing,

whereby each activity executing software component provides after execution of the activity an event which is indicative of a result of the execution,

whereby on the basis of the respective provided result, a respective further software component is called,

whereby the relation between an event and a software component which is to be called is defined by the modeling of the process.

15. The method according to claim 14, whereby a result of the execution of an activity is indicative of the success of the execution of the activity.

16. The method according to claim 15, whereby the triggered event provides a result of the processed software component.

17. The method according to claim 16, whereby the result of the software component is provided to a predetermined software component according to a method of exchanging data between a plurality of software components which interact in a computer program for executing a process

whereby each software component of the plurality of software components in the computer program is executable;

characterized in that

each software component acquires all the data which is to be provided by another software component from a predetermined software component and each software component delivers all data which is to be provided by it to another software component to the predetermined software component and whereby providing and acquiring of all the data is performed according to a predetermined standard whereby according to the predetermined standard

the data comprises data values and attributes

whereby the respective data values are assigned to attributes whereby semantically identical data values are assigned to the same attribute and are made distinguishable from each other by a respective hierarchical information;

and

whereby a software component which delivers data to the predetermined software component or which acquires data from the predetermined software component receives the respective hierarchical information from another software component, and

whereby acquiring and providing data by a software component comprises transferring the respective hierarchical information.

23. Software component which interacts in a computer program with a plurality of software components for executing a process,

whereby each of the software components in the computer program is executable, wherein each software component acquires all the data which is to be provided by another software component, from a predetermined software component, and each software component delivers data which is to be provided by it to other software components, to the predetermined software component, and

providing and acquiring of all the data is performed according to a predetermined standard,

whereby according to the predetermined standard

the data values are assigned to respective attributes, whereby semantically identical data values are assigned to the same attribute, and single attributes are related to each other semantically by hierarchical relations, and

whereby acquiring and providing data by the software component comprises acquisition of the hierarchical relation of the data values, and provision of data values by the software component comprises transferring data values.