Queuing of invocations for mobile web services

• US 8,200,845 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2006
• Issued: 06/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iAnywhere Solutions Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: iAnywhere Solutions Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Abouzour, Eihab, Quick, Andrew James, Coschi, Geno
• Primary Examiner(s): SHINGLES, KRISTIE D
• Application Number:
  US11/640,854
• Publication Number:
  US 20080147802A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,002 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/230, 709/246
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

Methods and apparatuses for communications between web service applications and web services are described. A first interface is coupled between the application and a messaging system. A second interface is coupled between the messaging system and the web service. The first interface is configured to receive a web service request from the application, to format the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message, to include the SOAP request message in a first electronic message, and to transmit the first electronic message to the messaging system. The messaging system is configured to receive the first electronic message at a first node, to transmit the first electronic message across a communications network to a second node, and to couple the first electronic message from the second node to the second interface. The second interface is configured to receive the first electronic message from the messaging system, to extract the SOAP request message from the first electronic message, and to transmit the SOAP request message to the web service. Furthermore, a web service response is returned from the web service through the second interface, messaging system, and first interface, to the web service application.

Claims

1. A system for communicating between an application and a web service, comprising:

a messaging system comprising a first node and a second node, and further comprising a first message queue at the first node and a second message queue at the second node;

a first communication interface coupled between the application and the messaging system; and

a second communication interface coupled between the messaging system and the web service;

wherein the first communication interface is configured to receive a web service request from the application, to format the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message, to include the SOAP request message in a first electronic message, and to transmit the first electronic message to the messaging system;

wherein the messaging system is configured to receive the first electronic message at the first node, to queue the first electronic message at the first message queue, to detect, by the first node, whether connectivity is established between the first node and the second node, to transmit the first electronic message across a communications network to the second node after connectivity is detected by the first node, to queue the first electronic message at the second message queue, and to transmit the first electronic message from the second node to the second communication interface;

wherein the second communication interface is configured to receive the first electronic message from the messaging system, to extract the SOAP request message from the first electronic message, and to transmit the SOAP request message to the web service;

wherein the second communication interface is configured to receive a web service response from the web service, the web service response including a SOAP response message;

wherein the second communication interface is configured to include the SOAP response message in a second electronic message, and to transmit the second electronic message to the messaging system; and

wherein the messaging system is configured to receive the second electronic message at the second node, to detect, by the second node, whether connectivity is established between the second node and the first node, and to transmit the second electronic message across the communications network to the first node after connectivity is detected by the second node.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the second communication interface is configured to transmit the SOAP request message to the web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications network comprises the Internet.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications network is an occasionally connected network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the web service application is on a mobile device.

6. The system of claim 1,

wherein the messaging system is configured to transmit the second electronic message from the first node to the first communication interface;

and

wherein the first communication interface is configured to receive the second electronic message from the messaging system, to extract the SOAP response message from the second electronic message, to decode the SOAP response message into response information, and to transmit the response information to the web service application.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the second communication interface is configured to receive the SOAP request message from the web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the messaging system comprises:

a first message store at the first node;

a first message delivery module at the first node that is coupled to the first message store;

a second message store at the second node; and

a second message delivery module at the second node that is coupled to the second message store.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the second message delivery module is configured to receive the second electronic message, and to monitor the communications network for connectivity to the first message delivery module;

wherein the second message store is configured to queue the second electronic message for the second message delivery module;

wherein the second message delivery module is configured to transmit the second electronic message across the communications network to the first message delivery module after the connectivity is detected; and

wherein the first message store is configured to queue the second electronic message.

10. A system, comprising:

a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request generator configured to receive a web service request from a web service application and to format the web service request into a SOAP request message;

a message generator configured to generate a first electronic message that includes the SOAP request message; and

a communication interface configured to transmit the first electronic message to a messaging module comprising a message queue at a messaging system for storage until connectivity is detected by the messaging module, and to receive a second electronic message from the messaging system, wherein the second electronic message is queued at the messaging system until connectivity is detected by the messaging system.

11. The system of claim 10, the system further comprising:

a SOAP response extractor configured to extract a SOAP response message from the second electronic message; and

a SOAP decoder configured to decode the SOAP response message into response information;

wherein the communication interface is configured to transmit the response information to the web service application.

12. A system comprising:

a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request extractor configured to extract a SOAP request message from a first electronic message received from a messaging system and dequeued from a message queue; and

a network interface module configured to transmit the SOAP request message to a web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) after connectivity to the web service is detected by the network interface module, wherein the network interface module is configured to receive a web service response from the web service and to transmit a second electronic message based on the web service response to the messaging system when connectivity to the messaging system is detected by the network interface module.

13. The interface of claim 12, the web service response including a SOAP response message, wherein the system further comprises:

a message generator configured to include the SOAP response message in the second electronic message.

14. A method for communicating between an application and a web service, comprising:

receiving a web service request from the application;

formatting the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message;

generating a first electronic message that includes the SOAP request message;

transmitting the first electronic message to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system queues the first electronic message at a first message queue in a first node and transmits the first electronic message across a communications network from the first node to a second message queue in a second node after connectivity is detected by the first node,

receiving the first electronic message from the second node;

extracting the SOAP request message from the first electronic message;

transmitting the SOAP request message to the web service;

receiving a web service response from the web service, the web service response including a SOAP response message;

generating a second electronic message that includes the SOAP response message; and

transmitting, the second electronic message to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system is configured to queue the second electronic message at a third message queue in the second node and to transmit the second electronic message across the communications network from the second node to the first node after connectivity is detected by the second node.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein transmitting the SOAP request message to the web service comprises:

transmitting the SOAP request message to the web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications network comprises the Internet.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications network is an occasionally connected network.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the web service application is on a mobile device, wherein said receiving a web service request from the application comprises:

receiving the web service request from the application during a synchronization operation for the mobile device.

19. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving the second electronic message from the messaging system;

extracting the SOAP response message from the second electronic message;

decoding the SOAP response message into response information; and

transmitting the response information to the web service application.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein receiving the web service response from the web service comprises:

receiving the SOAP request message from the web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

queuing the second electronic message in a message store at the second node;

monitoring the communications network from the second node for connectivity to the first node; and

transmitting the second electronic message across the communications network to the first node after the connectivity is detected.

22. A method for an interface between a web service application and a messaging system, comprising:

receiving a web service request from the application;

formatting the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message;

generating a first electronic message that includes the SOAP request message;

transmitting the first electronic message to a messaging module comprising a message queue at the messaging system for storage until connectivity with a first communication network is detected by the messaging module; and

receiving a second electronic message from a second message queue at the messaging system, the second message queue for storage until connectivity with a second communication network is detected by the messaging module, wherein the first communication network connects the messaging system to a web service, and wherein the second communication network connects the messaging system to the web service application.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

extracting a SOAP response message from the second electronic message;

decoding the SOAP response message into response information; and

transmitting the response information to the web service application.

24. A method for an interface between a messaging system and a web service, comprising:

receiving a first electronic message from the messaging system;

dequeueing the first electronic message from a message queue;

extracting a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message from the first electronic message;

transmitting the SOAP request message to the web service according to a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) after connectivity from the interface to the web service is detected by the interface;

receiving a web service response from the web service; and

transmitting a second electronic message comprising the web service response to the messaging system for storage in a second message queue, the messaging system configured to transmit the second electronic message to a web service application after connectivity to the web service application is detected by the messaging system.

25. The method of claim 24, the web service response including a SOAP response message, further comprising:

generating the second electronic message that includes the SOAP response message;

transmitting the second electronic message to the messaging system.

26. A computer readable storage device having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform a method comprising:

receiving a web service request from the application;

formatting the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message;

generating a first electronic message that includes the SOAP request message;

transmitting the first electronic message to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system queues the first electronic message at a first message queue in a first node and transmits the first electronic message across a communications network from the first node to a second message queue in a second node after connectivity is detected by the first node;

receiving the first electronic message from the second node;

extracting the SOAP request message from the first electronic message;

transmitting the SOAP request message to the web service;

receiving a web service response from the web service, the web service response including a SOAP response message;

generating a second electronic message that includes the SOAP response message; and

transmitting the second electronic message to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system is configured to queue the second electronic message at a third message queue in the second node and to transmit the second electronic message across the communications network from the second node to the first node after connectivity is detected by the second node.

27. The computer readable storage medium device of claim 26, the method further comprising:

receiving the second electronic message from the messaging system;

extracting the SOAP response message from the second electronic message;

decoding the SOAP response message into response information; and

transmitting the response information to the web service application.