Framework for creating user interfaces for web application programs

• US 7,689,923 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2003
• Issued: 03/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Massasso, Luca, Kaltenmaier, Ralf, Oka, Natasha
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore; William L
• Assistant Examiner(s): NUNEZ, JORDANY
• Application Number:
  US10/645,525
• Publication Number:
  US 20050044490A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,412 Days
• Field of Search: 715/762, 715/749, 715/760
• US Class Current: 715/762
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/106 Display of layout of documents; Previewing

Abstract

A framework is disclosed for generating user interfaces for application programs, such as web application programs. The framework may provide a first set of database tables to define screens including tables that describe components, screen layout, component configuration, application model assignment, and/or event handling. The framework may further provide a first set of transactions for maintaining the first set of database tables and hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) response means for generating the web pages by accessing the first set of database tables.

Claims

1. A system for generating a user interface for a web application program, the system comprising:

a repository of reusable screen components including graphical user interface (GUI) components stored in a computer-readable medium;

means for enabling a user to create a web page layout by;

selecting GUI components from the repository,

arranging the selected GUI components within the web page, the GUI components being assigned to a specialized class or a non-specialized class;

defining interaction between at least two of the selected GUI components, the interaction including causing a first GUI component to perform an action in response to an event generated by a second GUI component, and

defining interaction between one or more of the selected GUI components and the web application program, the interaction involving a set of transactions that establish a relationship between properties of the GUI component stored in a database table, business data, and one or more backend systems,

wherein establishing the relationship by the set of transactions includes generating the specialized class of GUI components by inheriting the properties specific to the one or more selected GUI components from a super class defined by a user interface framework,

wherein the inheriting causes at least one object of a GUI component assigned to a specialized class inherited from the super class to have the same properties as the super class, and further

wherein the GUI components assigned to the non-specialized class do not inherit the properties of the super class; and

means for storing rendering information of the web page layout to enable a web server to render the web page.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the repository of reusable screen components includes at least one of a tray component, a tab-strip component, a tool-bar component, a text area component, a form-box component, a selection-box component, a table-view component, a table-view-for-time-series component, and a chart component.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein the means for storing rendering information include means for storing at least one of layout settings of the selected components, properties of the selected components, and the handling of data represented by the selected components.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein the means for storing rendering information includes data storage means for storing variables defining the web page layout.

5. A system according to claim 4, further comprising means for retrieving the stored rendering information and generating hypertext mark-up language (HTML) code using the rendering information.

6. A system according to claim 1, wherein the means for storing rendering information includes data storage means for storing variables describing event handlers assigned to the reusable components.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the means for storing rendering information includes data storage means for storing variables describing an application model assignment of the data presented by the reusable components.

8. A system for generating a user interface for a web application program, the system comprising:

a first set of database tables to define screens, the first set of database tables being stored in a computer-readable storage medium and including one or more tables that describe graphical user interface (GUI) screen components, screen layout, component configuration, application model assignment, and event handling;

a first set of transactions for administrating the first set of database tables, the first set of transactions being stored in a computer-readable storage medium and establishing a relationship between properties of the GUI components, business data and one or more backend systems,

wherein GUI components are assigned to a specialized class and a non-specialized class and,

wherein establishing the relationship by the first set of transactions includes generating the specialized class of GUI components;

means for generating web pages by accessing the first set of database tables using the first set of transactions, wherein accessing the first set of database tables includes accessing information relating to at least one of the GUI screen components and event handling; and

a second set of database tables based upon the first set of stored database tables, the second set of stored database tables being stored on a computer-readable storage medium and configured for customization and personalization of the user interface wherein a graphical user interface (GUI) screen component in the second set of database tables inherits properties specific to one or more graphical user interface (GUI) components in the first set of database tables from a super class defined by a user interface framework and applies at least one inherited property from among the inherited properties to the graphical user interface screen component (GUI) in the second set of database tables during the customization and personalization of the user interface,

wherein the inheriting causes at least one object of a GUI component assigned to a specialized class inherited from the super class to have the property of the super class, and

wherein GUI components assigned to the non-specialized class do not inherit properties of the super class.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the first set of database tables that describe GUI screen components include at least one of a tray component, a tab-strip component, a tool-bar component, a text area component, a form-box component, a selection-box component, a table-view component, a table-view-for-time-series component, and a chart component.

10. A method for generating a user interface for a web application program, the method comprising:

selecting graphical user interface (GUI) components from a repository of reusable screen components;

arranging the selected GUI components to create a web page layout the GUI components belonging to a specialized class or a non-specialized class;

defining interaction between at least two of the selected GUI components, the interaction including causing a first GUI component to perform an action in response to an event generated by a second GUI component;

defining interaction between one or more of the selected GUI components and the web application program, the interaction involving a set of transactions that establish a relationship between properties of the GUI component stored in a database table, business data, and one or more backend systems, wherein establishing the relationship by the set of transactions includes generating the specialized class of GUI components contain transactional business data and by inheriting properties specific to the one or more selected GUI components from a super class defined by a user interface framework,

wherein the inheriting causes at least one object of a GUI component in a specialized class inherited from the super class to have the same properties as the super class, and further

wherein the GUI components belonging to the non-specialized class do not inherit the properties of the super class; and

storing rendering information of the web page layout to enable rendering of the web page by a web server.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the repository of reusable screen components includes at least one of a tray component, a tab-strip component, a tool-bar component, a text area component, a form-box component, a selection-box component, a table-view component, a table-view-for-time-series component, and a chart component.

12. A method according to claim 10, wherein storing the rendering information comprises at least one of storing layout settings of the selected GUI components, storing properties of the selected GUI components, and storing information about the handling of data represented by the selected GUI components.

13. A method according to claim 10, wherein storing rendering information comprises storing variables defining the web page layout.

14. A method according to claim 13, further comprising retrieving the stored rendering information and generating hypertext mark-up language (HTML) code using the rendering information.

15. A method according to claim 10, wherein storing rendering information comprises storing variables defining event handlers assigned to the reusable components.

16. A method according to claim 10, wherein storing rendering information comprises storing variables defining an application model assignment of the data presented by the reusable components.

17. A computer-readable storage medium comprising program code means for performing a method according to any one of the claims 10 to 16 when the program is run on a computer.

18. A computer-readable storage medium that stores executable instructions causing a computer system to provide:

a repository of reusable screen components including graphical user interface (GUI) components;

means for enabling a user to create a web page layout by;

selecting GUI components from the repository,

arranging the selected GUI components within the web page, the GUI components being assigned to a specialized class or a non-specialized class;

defining interaction between at least two of the selected GUI components, the interaction including causing a first GUI component to perform an action in response to an event generated by a second GUI component, and

defining interaction between one or more of the selected GUI components and the web application program, the interaction involving a set of transactions that establish a relationship between properties of the GUI component stored in a database table, business data, and one or more backend systems,

wherein establishing the relationship by the set of transactions includes generating the specialized class of GUI components by inheriting the properties specific to the one or more selected GUI components from a super class defined by a user interface framework,

wherein the inheriting causes at least one object of a GUI component assigned to a specialized class inherited from the super class to have the same properties as the super class, and further

wherein the GUI components assigned to the non-specialized class do not inherit the properties of the super class; and

means for storing rendering information of the web page layout to enable a web server to render the web page.

19. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 18, further comprising instructions operable to cause the computer system to have the repository of reusable screen components include at least one of a tray component, a tab-strip component, a tool-bar component, a text area component, a form-box component, a selection-box component, a table-view component, a table-view-for-time-series component, and a chart component.

20. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 18, further comprising instructions operable to cause the computer system to provide means for storing the rendering information, including means for storing at least one of layout settings of the selected GUI components, properties of the selected GUI components, and the handling of data represented by the selected GUI components.

21. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 18, further comprising instructions operable to cause the computer system to provide data storage means for storing variables defining the web page layout.

22. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 21, further comprising instructions operable to cause the computer system to provide means for retrieving the stored rendering information and generating hypertext mark-up language (HTML) code using the rendering information.