Method and apparatus for creating and exposing order status within a supply chain having disparate systems

• US 7,703,670 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2008
• Issued: 04/27/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Shorter, David U., Szabo, Robert M., Yeskel, Filip J., Arroyo, Jorge A.
• Primary Examiner(s): RUDY, ANDREW J
• Application Number:
  US12/048,141
• Publication Number:
  US 20080162178A1
• Time in Patent Office: 775 Days
• Field of Search: 705/28, 705/8, 705/10, 705/65, 705/76, 717/100, 235/376, 235/385, 713/182, 713/186
• US Class Current: 235/376
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3821 Electronic credentials

Abstract

The present invention describes a method and system for creating and exposing order status within a supply chain of trading partners having disparate systems. A trading partner exchange (TPE) interfaces with each of the disparate systems and gathers information pertaining to a particular transaction. The information can be made available to an access platform through an access platform interface. Initially, a transaction is reported to the TPE where it is assigned a unique identifier. Subsequent activities pertaining to the transaction which are reported to the TPE by the trading partners can be linked to the unique identifier. By using the access platform, a customer or any trading partner can acquire the status of a particular order from the TPE.

Claims

1. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon, a computer program having a plurality of code sections, said code sections executable by a computer for causing the computer to perform a method for exposing order status in a supply chain having disparate systems, comprising the steps of:

providing a system including a trading partner exchange communicatively interfacing with a plurality of disparate trading partner systems, an access platform accessible by customers and trading partners via a plurality different communication channels, and an integrated access interface providing an interface between the trading partner exchange and the access platform;

the trading partner exchange electronically receiving an order notification corresponding to an order created by a first trading partner system, the received order notification being associated with a first trading partner system identifier, the created order defining a transaction between a customer and a first trading partner;

the trading partner exchange automatically assigning a unique transaction identifier to the transaction responsive to receiving the order notification;

the trading partner exchange electronically receiving at least one activity notification of an activity performed by at least a second trading partner system, the at least one activity notification describing an action of a second trading partner corresponding to the transaction and being associated with a second trading partner system identifier, wherein the first trading partner system and the at least second trading partner system are disparate systems that jointly define a transaction processing chain;

the trading partner exchange automatically associating the unique transaction identifier to the second trading partner system identifier responsive to receiving the activity notification;

the trading partner exchange linking the unique transaction identifier to the order notification and the at least one activity notification and, wherein cross referencing the first and second trading partner system identifiers using the unique transaction identifier provides a status of the transaction at a point in the transaction processing chain;

the trading partner exchange electronically reporting status of the transaction via the integrated access interface;

the trading partner exchange electronically generating transaction analysis information based upon the unique transaction identifier, the order notification, and the at least one activity notification;

the trading partner exchange providing the first, the second, or another trading partner access to the transaction analysis information;

the trading partner exchange electronically generating transaction tracking information based upon the unique transaction identifier, the order notification, and the at least one activity notification;

the trading partner exchange providing access to the transaction tracking information to the customer who initiated the order while denying the customer access to the transaction analysis information; and

the trading partner exchange formatting at least one of the transaction analysis information and the transaction tracking information in response to selecting one of a plurality of communication channels for conveying information, the formatting corresponding to a particular one of the plurality of communication channels selected.

2. The computer readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the access platform has a plurality of layers though which access to the trading partner exchange is provided, the layers including an access layer, a display layer, and an analytical layer, wherein the access layer provides access through the plurality of different communication channels, wherein the display layer provides different views for different types of trading partners, wherein the analytical layer provides reports, and wherein trading partners using disparate computing systems are able to access reports of the analytical layer through views of the display layer via communication channels of the access layer.

3. The computer readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the first trading partner system and the second trading partner system are independently developed systems having different architectures.

4. The computer readable storage medium of claim 1, within the trading partner exchange is remotely located from the first trading partner system and the second trading partner system.