Method and system for automatically generating executable processes from inter-organizational workflows

• US 8,136,099 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2005
• Issued: 03/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Haller, Jochen, Weber, Ingo
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chowdhury, Ziaul A
• Application Number:
  US11/286,531
• Publication Number:
  US 20070118563A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,303 Days
• Field of Search: 717/100, 717/101, 717/102, 717/103, 717/104, 717/105, 717/106, 717/107, 717/108, 707/100.1, 707/103, 705/1, 705/7, 705/8, 705/9, 709/201
• US Class Current: 717/136
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/101 Collaborative creation, e.g. joint development of products or services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management

Abstract

A method and system to automatically translate a definition of a choreography workflow process to an executable process are provided. The method includes processing a collaboration element from the definition, mapping the collaboration element to an executable element based on a knowledge database system that contains the collaboration element and the corresponding executable element and mapping the collaboration element to the executable element statically if the corresponding executable element is unavailable in the knowledge database system.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a collaboration definition of a workflow choreography process, the workflow choreography process to describe a process to be collaboratively executed via a plurality of network participants, the collaboration definition to include a plurality of collaboration elements, wherein each of the plurality of collaboration elements includes a high-level description of network participant roles, network participant interactions, and an activity of the workflow choreography process;

identifying network participants to execute each of the plurality of collaboration elements based, at least in part, on the high-level description of the respective collaboration element;

mapping each of the plurality of collaboration elements to a corresponding executable element included in a knowledge database system based, at least in part, on the network participant identified to execute the respective collaboration element, wherein the corresponding executable element comprises one of a public executable element and a private executable element, the private executable element to be further mapped to an additional executable element included in the respective network participant; and

generating a network participant-specific executable definition for each of the plurality of executable elements, the network participant-specific executable definition expressed in a machine executable language and to identify input and output dependencies of the network participant;

wherein the workflow choreography process is expressed in Web Services Choreography Description Language (WS-CDL); and

the participant-specific executable definition for each of the plurality of executable elements is expressed in Web Services Business Process Execution Language (WS-BPEL).

2. The method of claim 1, wherein mapping each of the plurality of collaboration elements to the corresponding executable element comprises identifying network participants to map to the network participant roles as specified in each of the plurality of collaboration elements based, at least in part, on credential information relating to the participants.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the high-level description of each of the plurality of collaboration elements further includes a high-level description of the types of information being exchanged among network participants, the logic flow of the information being exchanged, and the relationships between the network participants.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a network participant-specific executable definition for a public executable element comprises an interface to exchange requests and responses with other network participants.

5. A system comprising:

a processor;

a memory;

a knowledge database system containing a plurality of executable elements, each executable element corresponding to a collaboration element; and

a conversion engine stored in the memory and executed via the processor to receive a collaboration definition of a workflow choreography process, the workflow choreography process to describe a process to be collaboratively executed via a plurality of network participants, the collaboration definition to include a plurality of collaboration elements, wherein each of the plurality of collaboration elements includes a high-level description of network participant roles, network participant interactions, and an activity of the workflow choreography process,

identify network participants to execute each of the plurality of collaboration elements based, at least in part, on the high-level description of the respective collaboration element,

map each of a plurality of collaboration elements to the corresponding executable element included in the knowledge database system based, at least in part, on the network participant identified to execute the respective collaboration element, wherein the corresponding executable element comprises one of a public executable element and a private executable element, the private executable element to be further mapped to an additional executable element included in the respective network participant; and

generate a network participant-specific executable definition for each of the plurality of executable elements, the network participant-specific executable definition expressed in a machine executable language and to identify input and output dependencies of the network participant;

wherein the workflow choreography process is expressed in Web Services Choreography Description Language (WS-CDL); and

the participant-specific executable definition for each of the plurality of executable elements is expressed in Web Services Business Process Execution Language (WS-BPEL).

6. The system of claim 5, wherein mapping each of the plurality of collaboration elements to the corresponding executable element comprises identifying network participants to map to the network participant roles as specified in each of the plurality of collaboration elements based, at least in part, on credential information relating to the participants.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the high-level description of each of the plurality of collaboration elements further includes a high-level description of the types of information being exchanged among network participants, the logic flow of the information being exchanged, and the relationships between the network participants.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein a network participant-specific executable definition for a public executable element comprises an interface to exchange requests and responses with other network participants.