Data processing system and method of data entry

• US 8,239,782 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2005
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Sinzig, Werner, Vogel, Andreas
• Primary Examiner(s): Pesin, Boris
• Assistant Examiner(s): HEFFINGTON, JOHN M
• Application Number:
  US11/066,229
• Publication Number:
  US 20050198564A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,720 Days
• Field of Search: 715/780, 715/742, 715/744, 715/752, 715/765, 715/776, 715/783, 715/804, 715/818, 715/819, 715/820, 715/854, 715/844
• US Class Current: 715/776
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A data processing system includes telecommunication means for providing a data entry form to a client device and for receiving user data that has been entered into the data entry form from the client device, database means for storage of the user data, and program means for extracting application specific data from the database means.

Claims

1. A method of entering user data by using a client device, the method comprising:

receiving a selection made by a planning coordinator of one or more contact lists stored in a storage device, each list including user identifiers corresponding to members of a target groups of users;

receiving a selection made by the planning coordinator of one or more data entry forms from among a plurality of data entry forms stored in the storage device;

receiving a notification indicating that a one or more target groups of users have been selected by the planning coordinator to input user data into the one or more data entry forms selected by the planning coordinator;

receiving, by the one or more selected groups of users, the one or more selected data entry forms from a web portal, each selected data entry form having a plurality of data entry windows and a sequence of icons, each icon being representative of the one of the data entry windows;

entering, by the one or more selected groups of users, user data into the data entry windows starting with the data entry window being represented by the first icon of the sequence of icons, wherein a completion mark is displayed next to the first icon in response to completion of the data entry into the data entry window represented by the first icon; and

invoking a plurality of services to extract sub-sets of the data collected from the one or more selected groups of users, wherein each extracted sub-set of data includes application program-specific data that is compatible with a respective application program executed by the client device that invoked at least one of the plurality of services.

2. A non-transitory storage medium comprising computer executable instructions being executed on a processor for performing a method in accordance with claim 1.

3. A data processing system comprising:

a web portal adapted to receive, from a planning coordinator, a selection of one or more of a plurality of data entry forms and a selection of one or more of a plurality of target groups of users, each target group of users comprising a list of group member identifiers, and to send a notification to the members of the selected one or more target groups of users by using the group member identifiers, the notification instructing the members of the selected one or more target groups of users to input data using the selected one or more data entry forms;

a database for storing data collected from the selected one or more target groups of users in a storage device within the web portal; and

a data processor executing instruction to run a plurality of services, the plurality of services being invoked to extract sub-sets of the data collected from the selected one or more groups of users, wherein each extracted sub-set of data includes application program-specific data that is compatible with a respective application program that invoked at least one of the plurality of services.

4. The data processing system of claim 3, wherein the notification is sent by an email program included in the web portal.

5. The data processing system of claim 3, further comprising a temporary storage for temporarily storing a partially filled out data entry form until the data entry into the selected data entry form has been completed.

6. The data processing system of claim 3, further comprising a storing a plurality of data entry forms in the web portal for the planning coordinator'"'"'s selection of one of the data entry forms to be provided to the selected group of users.

7. The data processing system of claim 3, the selected data entry form having a sequence of icons each icon being representative of a data entry window of the selected data entry form.

8. The data processing system of claim 7, each data entry window having a first button for completion of data entry into the data entry window, wherein a completion mark is displayed next to the icon representing the data entry window for which the data entry has been completed.

9. The data processing system of claim 7, the selected data entry form further comprising a display window for display of a list of the data entry windows for which data entry is to be performed by the selected group of users.

10. The data processing system of claim 3, the selected data entry form having a plurality of data entry fields for entry of business data, business planning data, financial data, human resources data, budget data, scenario planning data, and/or other business related data.

11. The data processing system of claim 3, further comprising a user device that modifies the selected data entry form and the selected group of users before the notification is sent.

12. The data processing system of claim 11, wherein a planning coordinator uses the user device to set a start date to begin collection of the user data from the selected group of users such that the notification is sent to the selected group of users when the start date is reached.

13. A method of providing user data stored in a storage device of a web portal, to a plurality of application programs, the method comprising:

receiving a selection made by a planning coordinator of one or more contact lists stored in a storage device, each list including user identifiers corresponding to members of a target groups of users;

receiving a selection made by the planning coordinator of one or more data entry forms from among a plurality of data entry forms stored in the storage device;

sending a notification to the one or more selected groups of users, the notification instructing the one or more selected groups of users to input data using the one or more selected data entry forms;

storing data collected from the one or more selected groups of users in the storage device; and

invoking a plurality of services to extract sub-sets of the data collected from the one or more selected groups of users, wherein each extracted sub-set of data includes application program-specific data that is compatible with a respective application program that invoked at least one of the plurality of services.

14. A storage device comprising computer executable instructions being executed on a processor for performing a method in accordance with claim 13.

15. A client device accessible by a selected group of users, comprising:

means for receiving a selection made by a planning coordinator of one or more contact lists stored in a storage device, each list including user identifiers corresponding to members of a target groups of users;

means for receiving a selection made by the planning coordinator of one or more data entry forms from among a plurality of data entry forms stored in the storage device;

means for receiving a notification indicating that the one or more groups of users have been selected by the planning coordinator to input user data into the one or more data entry forms selected by the planning coordinator;

means for receiving the one or more selected data entry forms from a web portal, the one or more selected data entry forms including a plurality of data entry windows and a sequence of icons, each icon representing one of the data entry windows;

a graphical user interface for displaying the one or more selected data entry forms, the graphical user interface being adapted to display a completion mark next to one of the icons after completion of data entry, by the one or more selected groups of users, into a data entry window represented by that icon; and

means for invoking a plurality of services to extract sub-sets of the data collected from the one or more selected groups of users, wherein each extracted sub-set of data includes application program-specific data that is compatible with a respective application program executed by the client device that invoked at least one of the plurality of services.

16. The client device of claim 15, the selected data entry form having a data entry window being represented by the last icon in the sequence of icons for display of user data that has been previously entered.

17. The client device of claim 15, the first data entry form having a portion for display of a list of the data entry windows for which data entry is to be performed by a user.

18. A data processing system comprising:

a user device accessible by a planning coordinator; and

a web portal comprising;

a storage device storing a plurality of data entry forms and a plurality of target groups of users, the target groups including email addresses of the users;

an email program sending email messages to users of a selected group of users, the email messages being sent when the web portal receives a selection of the selected group of users and of one of the data entry forms from the user device, the selections being made by the planning coordinator and the email messages instructing the group of users to input data into the selected data entry form;

a temporary storage temporarily storing user data entered into the selected data entry form by the selected group of users when a user from the selected group of users interrupts a data entry session and resumes data entry during a later data entry session;

a database for storing the entered user data and corresponding database keys, the database keys identifying user data that is entered by specific users from the selected group by correlating the data entered by each user with an identifier associated with that specific user; and

a plurality of services, the plurality of services being invoked to extract sub-sets of the data collected from the group of users, wherein each extracted sub-set of data includes application program-specific data that is compatible with a respective application program that invoked at least one of the plurality of services.

19. The data processing system of claim 18, wherein the planning coordinator uses the user device to modify the selected data entry form and the selected group of users before the email messages are sent.

20. The data processing system of claim 18, wherein the planning coordinator uses the user device to set a start date to begin collection of the user data from the selected group of users such that the email messages are sent to the selected group of users when the start date is reached.