PROVIDING LOGISTICS EXECUTION APPLICATION AS ENTERPRISE SERVICES

• US 20100070318A1
• Filed: 09/18/2008
• Published: 03/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Friedrich, Thomas, Morad, Yuval, Wagner, Frank, Ben-Shaul, Yair, Moeller, Stefan, Barheine, Wolfgang, Rozenszajn, Sergio, Alfandary, Shai, Apfelbach, Nico, Richert, Jan, Colle, Renzo, Kull, Irena, Steinbach, Jochen, Hirth, Jochen, Wilmes, Martin J., Hetzer, Stephan, Pachter, Nir, Bildmayer, Reiner, Bettin, Andreas, Heger, Achim, Freund, Jens, Clemens, Achim, Deimel, Sabine
• Granted Patent: US 8,326,706 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials

Abstract

Methods and apparatus, including systems and computer program products, for a service architecture design that provides enterprise services having logistics execution functionality at the level of an enterprise application. The design includes a set of service operations, process components, and optionally deployment units. Suitable business objects are also described.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium including program code for providing message-based services using a service-oriented methodology for implementing an instance of a deployment unit, the medium comprising:

program code for storing a production and site logistics execution deployment unit for the production, assembly, packing, movement and storage of goods, and the execution of logistic processes, where the production and site logistics execution deployment unit defines the limits of an application-defined transaction for the production, assembly, packing, movement and storage of goods, and the execution of logistic processes by a set of actions that have atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability in a database, and wherein the actions associated with the application-defined transaction are performed by one or more process components contained in the production and site logistics execution deployment unit, wherein each process component comprises a software package realizing a business process and exposing its functionality as one or more service operations, wherein the production and site logistics execution deployment unit comprises;

an inbound delivery processing process component, wherein the inbound delivery processing process component implements the following service operations;

a maintain inbound delivery operation, a notify of received inbound delivery operation, a maintain inbound delivery request operation, a confirm fulfillment operation, a notify of invoicing due operation, and a request customer return execution operation;

an inventory processing process component, wherein the inventory processing process component implements the following service operations;

a notify of inventory change operation, a migrate goods and activity confirmation operation, a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation operation, a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation operation, a create goods and activity confirmation operation, a cancel goods and activity confirmation operation, a notify of project expense operation, a notify planning of inventory reconciliation operation, and a notify of inventory report operation;

a logistics control process component;

a logistics task management process component;

a material inspection processing process component;

an outbound delivery processing process component, wherein the outbound delivery processing process component implements the following service operations;

an output delivery note operation, a maintain received outbound delivery operation, a notify of outbound delivery operation, a maintain outbound delivery request operation, a confirm fulfillment operation, and a request invoicing operation;

a physical inventory processing process component, wherein the physical inventory processing process component implements the following service operations;

a request physical inventory task execution operation and a request product valuation operation;

a production process component, wherein the production process component implements the following service operations;

a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation operation, a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation operation, a maintain production request operation, a confirm production request operation, a notify planning of production request confirmation reconciliation operation, a notify of production lot status change operation, a notify of production order operation, and a request production task execution operation; and

a site logistics processing process component, wherein the site logistics processing process component implements the following service operations;

a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation operation, a notify of inventory change and activity confirmation operation, a notify of inventory change operation, a notify planning of site logistics operation, a notify of site logistics reconciliation operation, a maintain site logistics request operation, a notify planning of site logistics request confirmation reconciliation operation, a confirm site logistics request operation, and a request site logistics task execution operation; and

wherein the process components of the production and site logistics execution deployment unit are packaged together to be deployed on a single computer system; and

program code for executing the application-defined transaction for the production, assembly, packing, movement and storage of goods, and the execution of logistic processes; and

program code for presenting data associated with the executed application-defined transaction for the production, assembly, packing, movement and storage of goods, and the execution of logistic processes to a graphical user interface.

2. The medium of claim 1, wherein the inbound delivery processing process component comprises an inbound delivery request business object, an inbound delivery business object, and a confirmed inbound delivery business object.

3. The medium of claim 1, wherein the inventory processing process component comprises a goods and activity confirmation business object, an identified logistic unit business object, and an inventory business object.

4. The medium of claim 1, wherein the logistics control process component comprises an execution material flow view business object, an inventory level adjustment run business object, and a logistics layout execution view business object.

5. The medium of claim 1, wherein the logistics task management process component comprises a logistics task folder business object and a logistics task view business object.

6. The medium of claim 1, wherein the material inspection processing process component comprises a material inspection business object, a material inspection quality level business object, and a material inspection sample business object.

7. The medium of claim 1, wherein the outbound delivery processing process component comprises an outbound delivery request business object, an outbound delivery business object, and a confirmed outbound delivery business object.

8. The medium of claim 1, wherein the physical inventory processing process component comprises a physical inventory task business object and a physical inventory count business object.

9. The medium of claim 1, wherein the production process component comprises a production request business object, a production order business object, a production lot business object, a production task business object, a production confirmation business object, a production execution task view business object, a production lot closure run business object, a production order creation run business object, and a production order release run business object.

10. The medium of claim 1, wherein the site logistics processing process component comprises a site logistics request business object, a site logistics order business object, a site logistics task business object, a site logistics confirmation business object, a site logistics lot business object, and a site logistics execution task view business object.

11. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the inbound delivery processing process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

a delivery notification in interface that includes the maintain inbound delivery operation;

a delivery notification out interface that includes the notify of received inbound delivery operation;

a fulfillment in interface that includes the maintain inbound delivery request operation;

a fulfillment out interface that includes the confirm fulfillment operation;

an invoice verification out interface that includes the notify of invoicing due operation; and

a request customer return execution out interface that includes the request customer return execution operation.

12. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the inventory processing process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

a project expense notification out interface that includes the notify of project expense operation;

a goods and activity confirmation migration in interface that includes the migrate goods and activity confirmation operation;

an inventory and activity accounting out interface that includes the notify of inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation and notify of inventory change operation and the activity confirmation operation;

an inventory changing in interface that includes the create goods and activity confirmation operation and the cancel goods and activity confirmation operation;

an inventory changing out interface that includes the notify of inventory change operation;

an inventory reconciliation out interface that includes the notify planning of inventory reconciliation operation; and

an inventory report accounting out interface that includes the notify of inventory report operation.

13. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the outbound delivery processing process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

a delivery note out interface that includes the output delivery note operation;

a delivery notification in interface that includes the maintain received outbound delivery operation;

a delivery notification out interface that includes the notify of outbound delivery operation;

a fulfillment in interface that includes the maintain outbound delivery request operation;

a fulfillment out interface that includes the confirm fulfillment operation; and

a request invoicing out interface that includes the request invoicing operation.

14. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the physical inventory processing process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

a physical inventory task output out interface that includes the request physical inventory task execution operation; and

a product and resource valuation out interface that includes the request product valuation operation.

15. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the production process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

an inventory and activity accounting out interface that includes the notify of inventory change operation and the activity confirmation cancellation and notify of inventory change and activity confirmation operation;

a producing in interface that includes the maintain production request operation;

a producing out interface that includes the confirm production request operation and the notify planning of production request confirmation reconciliation operation;

a production accounting out interface that includes the notify of production lot status change operation;

a production order output out interface that includes the notify of production order operation; and

a production task output out interface that includes the request production task execution operation.

16. The medium of claim 1, wherein the services operations associated with the site logistics processing process component are grouped into service interfaces, the service interfaces comprising:

an inventory and activity accounting out interface that includes the notify of inventory change operation and the activity confirmation cancellation and notify of inventory change and activity confirmation operation;

an inventory changing out interface that includes the notify of inventory change operation;

a site logistics notification out interface that includes the notify planning of site logistics operation and the notify of site logistics reconciliation operation;

a site logistics processing in interface that includes the maintain site logistics request operation;

a site logistics processing out interface that includes the notify planning of site logistics request confirmation reconciliation operation and the confirm site logistics request operations; and

a site logistics task output out interface that includes the request site logistics task execution operation.

17. The medium of claim 1, wherein the single computer system comprises a single physical hardware platform.