System and method for enterprise application interactions

• US 7,350,184 B2
• Filed: 04/09/2003
• Issued: 03/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Upton, Mitch
• Primary Examiner(s): Thomson; William
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hoang; Phuong N.
• Application Number:
  US10/409,753
• Publication Number:
  US 20040006550A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,812 Days
• Field of Search: 719/320, 717/1, 717/2, 717/100, 717/107, 345/581, 345/582
• US Class Current: 717/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/544 Remote
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications

Abstract

An application view control can allow users of a software tool to interact with Enterprise applications using simple Java APIs. This can allow a user who is not an expert in the use of a given Enterprise system to utilize its capabilities in a manner a Java programmer can understand. A developer can invoke application view services both synchronously and asynchronously, and can subscribe to application view events. The developer can use simple Java objects in both the service and event cases. The developer need not understand XML, or the particular protocol or client API for the Enterprise application, such as an Enterprise Information System (EIS).

Claims

1. A method for providing access to an application view service, comprising:

identifying an application view definition for an application view to be accessed, wherein the application view definition defines services for the application view, and wherein the application view provides a layer of abstraction between an adapter and functionality of an enterprise information system exposed by the adapter;

generating a control file representing that application view definition;

allowing a user to select services defined for the application view;

allowing the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services;

generating a control file includes generating a Java Web Interface (JWI) file containing Java class definitions corresponding to schemas for all services on the application view;

generating classes to describe events for the selected services; and

generating an application view control to allow the user or a client application to interact with the application view service using the classes and the control file.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein:

generating a control file includes generating an annotated Java file.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein:

generating classes to describe events includes generating classes to describe requests and responses for each of the selected services.

4. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

generating a schema definition allowing the application view to be imported into an external software environment.

5. A method according to claim 4, further comprising:

generating a Java type that contains fields for all element definitions at a root level of the schema.

6. A method according to claim 4, further comprising:

generated a Java type that is an inner class of a container class representing at least one of a request and response for the selected services.

7. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

allowing a user to select namespaces and application view definitions from a navigation tree.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein:

allowing the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services occurs at design-time.

9. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

allowing the user to update an instance of application view control using metadata contained in the application view.

10. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

allowing the user to iteratively import an application view to an application view control instance in the development phase of a Web service.

11. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

automatically updating when a user changes selected services.

12. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

generating a servlet to implement an interface for generation of the control file.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein:

generating a servlet includes generating a servlet that can accept information taken from the user and can return the text for the control file.

14. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

generating an application view event that can be processed by a conversation Java Web services (JWS) instance.

15. A method according to claim 14, further comprising:

allowing the user to specify the name of a control instance variable to be used with the JWS instance.

16. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

generating a Java object capable of invoking an application view service, the Java object representing the data structures required by the service.

17. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

allowing a JWS instance to receive events for a selected service by invoking an enable-delivery method on the application view control instance from which the instance wishes to receive events.

18. A computer system for providing access to an application view service, comprising:

a processor;

means for identifying an application view definition for an application view to be accessed, wherein the application view definition defines services for the application view, and wherein the application view provides a layer of abstraction between an adapter and functionality of an enterprise information system exposed by the adapter;

means for generating a control file representing that application view definition;

means for allowing a user to select services defined for the application view;

means for allowing the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services;

means for generating a control file includes generating a Java Web Interface (JWI) file containing Java class definitions corresponding to schemas for all services on the application view;

means for generating classes to describe events for the selected services; and

means for generating an application view control to allow the user or a client application to interact with the application view service using the classes and the file.

19. A computer-readable medium, comprising:

means for identifying an application view definition for an application view to be accessed, wherein the application view definition defines services for the application view, and wherein the application view provides a layer of abstraction between an adapter and functionality of an enterprise information system exposed by the adapter;

means for generating a control file representing that application view definition;

means for allowing a user to select services defined for the application view;

means for allowing the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services;

means for generating a control file includes generating a Java Web Interface (JWI) file containing Java class definitions corresponding to schemas for all services on the application view;

means for generating classes to describe events for the selected services; and

means for generating an application view control to allow the user or a client application to interact with an application view service using the classes and the control file.

20. A computer program product for execution by a server computer for providing access to an application view service, comprising:

computer code for identifying an application view definition for an application view to be accessed, wherein the application view definition defines services for the application view and wherein the application view provides a layer of abstraction between an adapter and functionality of an enterprise information system exposed by the adapter;

computer code for generating a control file representing that application view definition;

computer code for allowing a user to select services defined for the application view;

computer code for allowing the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services;

computer code for generating a control file includes generating a Java Web Interface (JWI) file containing Java class definitions corresponding to schemas for all services on the application view;

computer code for generating classes to describe events for the selected services; and

computer code for generating an application view control to allow the user or a client application to interact with an application view service using the classes and the control file.

21. A computer system comprising:

a processor;

object code executed by said processor, said object code configured to;

identify an application view definition for an application view to be accessed, wherein the application view definition defines services for the application view, and wherein the application view provides a layer of abstraction between an adapter and functionality of an enterprise information system exposed by the adapter;

generate a control file representing that application view definition;

allow a user to select services defined for the application view;

allow the user to determine at least one of synchronous and asynchronous invocation support for each of the selected services;

generate a control file includes generating a Java Web Interface (JWI) file containing Java class definitions corresponding to schemas for all services on the application view;

generate classes to describe events for the selected services; and

generate an application view control to allow the user or a client application to interact with an application view service using the classes and the control file.