Workflow system and method

• US 7,403,948 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2003
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Zinatbaksh, Ali, Tiwari, Sandeep, Simhadri, Ruby S., Jun, Andrew, Ghoneimy, Adel, Wein, Jerry D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mofiz; Apu
• Assistant Examiner(s): DAYE, CHELCIE L
• Application Number:
  US10/438,698
• Publication Number:
  US 20040078373A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,896 Days
• Field of Search: 707/9, 707/10, 715/536, 715/764, 715/853, 705/9
• US Class Current: 707/792
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass

Abstract

A workflow system that automates work processes. The workflow system uses an open architecture to support multiple platforms and includes Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) enabling applications to communicate with a workflow engine. The workflow system supports Relational DataBase Management System (RDBMS) databases and allows routing of any kind of work (forms, images, executables). In addition, its flexible architecture is designed to facilitate changes to a workflow dynamically and to support integration with an existing infrastructure.

The workflow system links software components to enable participants to work on shared data and ensures that business processes follows predetermined rules. Each task in the process is regulated such that the appropriate people have access to the appropriate data and are instructed to perform the task at the appropriate time.

A developer can use a workflow system provided client to get an application up and running relatively quickly. The workflow system provides adapters which enables quick deployment and element flexibility. Adapters have a fixed interface which allows the Document Management System ((DMS)), Directory Services (DS) and DataBase system (DB) to be changed independent of the application in contrast to other workflow systems which tie the application directly to the (DMS), DS, and DB. The adapters allow developers to attach clients of varying types and magnitude and allows developers to mix and match application elements to better serve their application. Thus, the workflow system is not tied to any proprietary (DMS), DS, or DB.

Claims

1. A programmed computer system for flexibly changing infrastructure components used for implementing workflow processes, the system comprising:

a processor;

a workflow engine executed by a first computer based system for defining and enacting a plurality of different workflow processes, a definition of a first workflow process specifying a first sequence of tasks for realizing a first overall project, and a definition of a second workflow process specifying a second sequence of tasks for realizing a second overall project, the first and second sequence of tasks differing from each other and realizing different overall projects;

a client executed by a second computer-based system coupled to said workflow engine and transmitting commands for defining the plurality of different workflow processes;

an infrastructure component configured to provide a service invoked by the workflow engine, the infrastructure component belonging to a particular infrastructure type, wherein a plurality of different infrastructure components belong to the particular infrastructure type; and

a plurality of adapters associated with the plurality of different infrastructure components belonging to the particular infrastructure type, each of the plurality of adapters configured to provide a communication interface between the workflow engine and a corresponding one of the plurality of different infrastructure components, wherein the workflow engine is configured to identify a particular infrastructure component invoked by the service corresponding to a particular one of the plurality of adapters for the infrastructure component for providing the communication interface during the service, wherein the workflow engine is configured to automatically identify another one of the plurality of adapters corresponding to a new infrastructure component selected from the plurality of different infrastructure components with no code changes to the workflow engine, in response to the infrastructure component being replaced with the new infrastructure component.

2. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein said client executes in a web browser.

3. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein said workflow engine is implemented using the JAVA programming language.

4. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the particular infrastructure type is a database management system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are database management systems with different architectures.

5. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the particular infrastructure type is a document management system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are document management systems with different architectures.

6. The programmed computer system of claim 5 wherein functions of the particular adapter include:

creating a document management service object for a specified user; and

destroying a document management service object.

7. The programmed computer system of claim 6 wherein the functions of the particular adapter further include:

returning a list of documents/directories for a specified path;

checking out a specified file for read or write; and

checking in the specified file.

8. The programmed computer system of claim 6 wherein the functions of the particular adapter further includes:

returning a path of an attachment directory where files are checked out for read mode; and

returning a path of an attachment directory where files are checked out for write mode.

9. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the service is a directory service and the particular adapter provides a communication mechanism between the workflow engine and the directory service.

10. The programmed computer system of claim 9 wherein the functions of the particular adapter include:

creating a directory session object for a specified user; and

destroying a directory session object.

11. The programmed computer system of claim 10 wherein the functions of the particular adapter further includes:

returning a list of users for a specified group;

returning the list of users in a specified group as one long string; and

returning a list of groups.

12. The programmed computer system of claim 10 wherein the functions of the particular adapter further includes:

creating properties for the specified user;

returning the properties for a specified user;

updating the properties for the specified user; and

deleting the properties of the specified user.

13. The programmed computer system of claim 9 further comprising:

a second service invoking a document management system; and

a plurality of second adapters providing a communication mechanism between the workflow engine and the document management system.

14. The programmed computer system of claim 13 further comprising a Document Directory adapter for obtaining a document management system object from the document management system and for obtaining a directory object from the directory services, and providing said objects to the workflow engine.

15. The programmed computer system of claim 5 wherein the particular adapter returns all disk drives available on a machine where the document management system is running.

16. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the service is a script interpreter and the particular adapter provides a communication mechanism between the workflow engine and the script interpreter.

17. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the service is an electronic mail system and the particular adapter provides a communication mechanism between the workflow engine and the electronic mail system.

18. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein the service is a naming service that allows a client to refer to an object being executed by the first computer based system by referring to a naming service name for the object without the client having to refer to a pointer to the object as it exists on the first computer based system, thereby allowing a client to refer to an object even though an object may be moved to a different location within the first computer based system.

19. The programmed computer system of claim 18 wherein the first computer based system comprises a plurality of connected computers.

20. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein an interface between the workflow engine and said client is governed by a Common Object Request Broker Architecture interface.

21. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein an interface between the workflow engine and said client is governed by the Internet Inter-ORB Protocol.

22. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein an interface between the workflow engine and said adapters is governed by a Common Object Request Broker Architecture interface.

23. The programmed computer system of claim 1 wherein an interface between the workflow engine and said adapters is governed by the Internet Inter-ORB Protocol.

24. The programmed computer system of claim 4 wherein said particular adapter uses the Java DataBase Connectivity standard to provides the communication mechanism between said workflow engine and said database management system.

25. The programmed computer system of claim 1 further comprising:

a web server for enabling said client to communicate with said workflow engine and said adapters.

26. The programmed computer system of claim 14 wherein the Document Directory adapter authenticates users.

27. The programmed computer system of claim 26 wherein the Document Directory adapter performs role resolution.

28. The programmed computer system of claim 1, further comprising a configuration file listing the particular one of the plurality of adapters to be used for the service, wherein the configuration file is modified with a name of the another one of the plurality of adapters in response to a user command.

29. The programmed computer system of claim 2, wherein the client is provided by a web server for access by the second computer over a World Wide Web for defining the plurality of different workflow processes.

30. The programmed computer system of claim 1, wherein the client may be customized by a user by mixing and matching a plurality of different client components.

31. The programmed computer system of claim 1 further comprising:

a software development kit accessible by a user for custom building an adapter corresponding to a third party infrastructure component.

36. The system of claim 1, wherein the different infrastructure components belonging to the particular infrastructure type are interchangeable with each other for providing the service invoked by the workflow engine.

32. A method for flexibly changing infrastructure components used for implementing workflow processes, the method comprising:

receiving by a workflow engine executed by a computer system commands for defining and enacting a plurality of different workflow processes, the definition of a first workflow process specifying a first sequence of tasks for realizing a first overall project, and the definition of a second workflow process specifying a second sequence of tasks for realizing a second overall project;

invoking an infrastructure component for providing a service requested by the workflow process, the infrastructure component belonging to a particular infrastructure type, wherein a plurality of different infrastructure components belong to the particular infrastructure type;

providing a plurality of adapters for the plurality of different infrastructure components belonging to the particular infrastructure type, each of the plurality of adapters configured to provide a communication interface between the workflow engine and a corresponding one of the plurality of different infrastructure components;

identifying by the workflow engine a particular one of the plurality of adapters for providing the communication interface between the workflow engine and the infrastructure component during the service;

replacing the infrastructure component with a new infrastructure component selected from the plurality of different infrastructure components; and

automatically identifying by the workflow engine another one of the plurality of adapters corresponding to the new infrastructure component, wherein no code changes are made to the workflow engine in replacing the infrastructure component with the new infrastructure component.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a document management system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are document management systems with different architectures.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a directory system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are directory systems with different architectures.

35. The method of claim 32, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a database management system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are database management systems with different architectures.

37. The method of claim 32, wherein the different infrastructure components belonging to the particular infrastructure type are interchangeable with each other for providing the service invoked by the workflow engine.

38. A method for flexibly changing infrastructure components used for implementing workflow processes by a workflow engine executed by a computer system, the method comprising:

receiving by the workflow engine commands for defining and enacting a plurality of different workflow processes, the definition of a first workflow process specifying a first sequence of tasks for realizing a first overall project, and the definition of a second workflow process specifying a second sequence of tasks for realizing a second overall project;

invoking a service for implementing a particular one of the plurality of different workflow processes;

identifying an infrastructure component for providing the service, the identified infrastructure component belonging to a particular infrastructure type, wherein a plurality of different infrastructure components belong to the particular infrastructure type;

providing a plurality of adapters for the plurality of different infrastructure components belonging to the particular infrastructure type, wherein each of the plurality of adapters is configured to provide a communication interface between the workflow engine and a corresponding one of the plurality of different infrastructure components, wherein the plurality of adapters are provided even if the corresponding infrastructure components are not provided to the workflow engine;

selecting one of the plurality of adapters based on the identified infrastructure component for providing a communication interface between the workflow engine and the identified infrastructure component during the service;

automatically identifying another one of the plurality of adapters corresponding to a new infrastructure component selected from the plurality of different infrastructure components with no code changes to the workflow engine, in response to the infrastructure component being replaced with the new infrastructure component.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a document management system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are document management systems with different architectures.

40. The method of claim 38, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a directory service system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are directory service systems with different architectures.

41. The method of claim 38, wherein the particular infrastructure type is a database system, and the plurality of different infrastructure components are database systems with different architectures.

42. The method of claim 38, further comprising:

selecting one of the different infrastructure components not already provided to the workflow engine;

replacing the identified infrastructure component with the selected one of the different infrastructure components; and

identifying one of the plurality of adapters for the selected one of the different infrastructure components for providing a communication interface between the workflow engine and the selected one of the different infrastructure components.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein no code changes are made to the workflow engine in response to replacing the identified infrastructure component with the selected one of the different infrastructure components.