Identifying solutions to computer problems in client/server system

• US 7,257,735 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2003
• Issued: 08/14/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Arend, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Baderman; Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): Contino; Paul F.
• Application Number:
  US10/697,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20040153791A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,383 Days
• Field of Search: 714/26
• US Class Current: 714/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2257 using expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/022 Knowledge engineering; Knowledge acquisition

Abstract

A computer system has a main system to execute an application in cooperation with a human user. The auxiliary system evaluates problems in the main system. The auxiliary system has a service module to collect problem related data from the main system, an acquisition module to acquire knowledge representations, a knowledge module to store knowledge representations, an inference module for processing problem related data with knowledge representations to identify solutions and for forwarding the solutions through the service module to the main system. The main system has a client/server configuration with a database, an application server, and a front-end-server. The auxiliary system uses basis functions of the main system.

Claims

1. A computer system with a main system to execute an application in cooperation with a human user, the computer system comprising an auxiliary system to evaluate problems in the main system, the auxiliary system comprising the following modules:

a service module configured to collect problem related data from the main system, the problem related data representing a problem identified about data in the main system;

an acquisition module configured to acquire knowledge representations, the knowledge representations defining solution identification rules;

a knowledge module configured to store the knowledge representations; and

an inference module configured to process problem related data with knowledge representations to identify solutions, the inference module forwarding the solutions through the service module to the main system, wherein;

the main system has a client/server configuration with a database, an application server, and a front-end server;

the auxiliary system uses the client/server configuration of the main system, the client/server configuration enabling the auxiliary system to use functions in the main system for generating the problem related data; and

the modules of the auxiliary system are distributed such that the service module, the acquisition module, the knowledge module, and the inference module are arranged in parallel to the application server and to the database.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the service module makes basis service functions of the main system available for the auxiliary system.

3. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the service module cooperates with the main system to obtain problem related data for the auxiliary system.

4. The computer system of claim 3, wherein the service module provides remote function call connections with a service system.

5. The computer system of claim 3, wherein the service module monitors the application server and the database according to instructions from the inference module.

6. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module distinguishes contexts that are predefined sets of knowledge representations.

7. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module distinguishes versions of the main system by using a lexicon.

8. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module distinguishes context with primary context and secondary context, wherein the secondary context is referenced from the first context.

9. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module is adapted to receive regular updates of the knowledge representations from a service system.

10. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module generates solution identification rules with computer instructions to automatically solve the problem.

11. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the knowledge module stores the knowledge representations in a plurality of tables in the database.

12. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the auxiliary system conditionally forwards problem data to a service system.

13. The computer system of claim 12, wherein the auxiliary system forwards the problem data to the service system with preliminary analysis data based on processing with knowledge representations in the auxiliary system.

14. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the auxiliary system forwards problem data for further analysis by a human technician.

15. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the auxiliary system forwards problem data and preliminary solutions to the service system in a format that allows evaluation in the service system.

16. The computer system of claim 12, wherein the main system is adapted to be operated by a first customer, and the service system is implemented by an expertise service provider.

17. The computer system of claim 1, wherein at least the main system executes an enterprise resource planning application.

18. The computer system of claim 1, wherein at least one system is implemented as an R/3 system.

19. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the functions in the main system comprise at least one of:

testing the existence of objects;

obtaining the content of a table entry; and

recording data from data consistency check operations.

20. A method to operate a computer system with a main system executing an application in cooperation with a human user and an auxiliary system evaluating problems in the main system, the method comprising the following steps performed by the auxiliary system:

collecting problem related data from the main system, the problem related data representing a problem identified about data in the main system;

acquiring knowledge representations, the knowledge representations defining solution identification rules;

storing knowledge representations; and

processing problem related data with the knowledge representations to identify solutions, and forwarding the solutions to the main system, wherein;

the collecting, acquiring, storing, processing, and forwarding are performed for the main system in client/server configuration with a database, an application server, and a front-end server;

the client/server configuration enables the auxiliary system to use functions in the main system for generating problem related data; and

the collecting, acquiring, storing, processing, and forwarding are performed in modules of the auxiliary system that are arranged in parallel to the main system.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein collecting is performed by a service module, acquiring is performed by an acquisition module, storing is performed by a knowledge module, and processing and forwarding are executed by an inference module.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein collecting, acquiring, storing, processing and forwarding are performed by using basis service functions of the main system.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein in collecting, the service module provides remote function call connections with a service system being a further auxiliary system.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein in storing, the knowledge module classifies the knowledge representations into context groups.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein in storing, the knowledge module organizes the versions of the main system by a lexicon.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein in storing, the knowledge module distinguishes context between primary context and secondary context.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein in processing, the inference module performs an action selected from the group of:

identifying the solutions from a set of predefined advices of the application,

identifying the solutions by applying knowledge representations in a sequential order,

identifying the solutions by applying knowledge representations in a hierarchical order,

identifying the solutions by applying knowledge representations in a dynamically adaptive order,

communicating questions to the user by composing the questions from predefined passages provided by the application, and

analyze responses that the user enters in natural language.

28. The method of claim 20, while executing any of the steps of collecting, acquiring, storing, processing and forwarding, the auxiliary system conditionally forwards problem data in combination with solutions to a service system.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the auxiliary system forwards problem data and solutions for further analysis by a human technician.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the auxiliary system forwards problem data and solutions to the further computer in a format that allows analysis by an expert system in the service system.

31. A computer program product stored in a computer-readable medium comprising program code means for performing all the steps of any one of the claims 20, 21, and 24-30 when the computer program product is run on a computer.

32. The method of claim 20, wherein the functions in the main system comprise at least one of:

testing the existence of objects;

obtaining the content of a table entry; and

recording data from data consistency check operations.