Architectural design for make to stock application software

• US 8,402,426 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2005
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Alfandary, Shai, Bildmayer, Reiner, Doerfler, Andre, Gaiser, Tim, Heitner, Ami, Hirth, Jochen, Kulick, Thorsten, Poth, Andreas, Steinbach, Jochen, Freund, Jens, Kaetker, Stefan, Moosmann, Gerd, Latocha, Peter, Clemens, Achim, Hetzer, Stephan, Sandner, Andreas, Wilmes, Martin J
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAVIS, JOHN Q
• Application Number:
  US11/322,482
• Publication Number:
  US 20070168240A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,636 Days
• Field of Search: 717/102
• US Class Current: 717/102
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program products, for implementing a software architecture design for a software application implementing a make to stock process. The application is structured as multiple process components interacting with each other through service interfaces, and multiple service interface operations, each being implemented for a respective process component. The process components include an Accounting process component; a Production process component; a Site Logistics process component; a Confirmation and Inventory process component; a Customer Requirement Processing process component; a Demand Forecast Processing process component; a Supply and Demand Matching process component; a Production Trigger and Response process component; an In-house Requirement Processing process component; a Sales Scheduling Agreement Processing process component; and a Demand Planning process component.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising instructions encoded on a non-transitory tangible machine-readable medium, the instructions operable when executed by one or more processors to:

define a plurality of process components, each of the process components comprising a modular and application-independent package of reusable, granular software implementing a respective and distinct business process, the business process comprising functionality exposed by the process component via a corresponding service interface, the plurality of process components including;

an Accounting process component for recording relevant business transactions;

a Production process component for combining the activities required to manage the production execution process on the manufacturing shop floor;

a Site Logistics process component for supporting preparing and execution tasks concerning internal inventory movements;

a Confirmation and Inventory process component for combining tasks required to confirm inventory changes and provided activities;

a Customer Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing customer requirements and provides an interface to presales, sales and services;

a Demand Forecast Processing process component for collecting demand forecasts for further processing;

a Supply and Demand Matching process component for combining tasks necessary to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account;

a Production Trigger and Response process component for providing an interface to production from a supply planning perspective;

an In-house Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing in-house requirements;

a Sales Scheduling Agreement Processing process component for combining tasks required for the inbound processing of delivery schedules and the outbound processing of delivery schedule confirmations; and

a Demand Planning process component for combining all the tasks required to anticipate future demand; and

define a plurality of service interfaces, each service interface associated with exactly one process component and comprising at least one operation, each operation being implemented for exactly one process component, the operations comprising inbound and outbound operations, the outbound operation for a first process component being operable to send a message to a second process component of the plurality of process components, the second process component having an inbound operation for receiving the message, interactions between the process components including interactions between;

the Production process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Production process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

a production lot accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the production lot accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to inform accounting processing of a creation, change, or deletion to production orders;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to create an accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to cancel a created accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity;

the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component, where the interaction between the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component includes the transmission of;

a production request message from the Production Trigger and Response process component to the Production process component, the production request message causing the Production process component to send an update request from planning to manufacturing to produce a certain quantity of a certain product at a certain time;

a production request confirmation message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production request confirmation message providing a confirmation of the production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component; and

a production progress notification message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production progress notification message providing updates on a production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component;

the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message requests the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message cancelling requests for the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component, where the interaction between the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component includes the transmission of;

a product forecast notification message for maintaining demand forecast operations to create, update, or delete a demand forecast based on current and deleted forecasts included in the product forecast notification message; and

store the defined process components and service interface operations in memory.

2. The product of claim 1, wherein:

each of the plurality of process components is assigned to exactly one deployment unit among multiple deployment units, and each deployment unit is deployable on a separate computer hardware platform independent of every other deployment unit; and

all interaction between a process component in one deployment unit and any other process component in any other deployment unit takes place through the respective service interfaces of the two process components.

3. The product of claim 2, wherein the deployment units comprise:

a Financial Accounting deployment unit that includes the Accounting process component;

a Logistics Execution deployment unit that includes the Production process component, the Site Logistics process component, and the Confirmation and Inventory process component;

a Supply Chain Control deployment unit that includes the Customer Requirement Processing process component, the Demand Forecast Processing process component, the Supply and Demand Matching process component, the Production Trigger and Response process component, the In-house Requirement Processing process component, and the Sales Scheduling Agreement process component;

an Integrated Business Planning deployment unit that includes the Demand Planning process component.

4. The product of claim 1, wherein:

each of the process components includes one or more business objects; and

none of the business objects of any one of the process components interacts directly with any of the business objects included in any of the other process components.

5. The product of claim 4, wherein the business objects comprise a business process object.

6. The product of claim 4, wherein:

none of the business objects included in any one of the process components is included in any of the other process components.

7. The product of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of process agents, each process agent being either an inbound process agent or an outbound process agent, an inbound process agent being operable to receive a message from an inbound operation, an outbound process agent being operable to cause an outbound operation to send a message, each process agent being associated with exactly one process component.

8. The product of claim 7, wherein:

the inbound process agents comprise a first inbound process agent operable to start the execution of a step requested in a first inbound message by creating or updating one or more business object instances.

9. The product of claim 7, wherein:

the outbound process agents comprise a first asynchronous outbound process agent that is called after a business object that is associated with the first outbound process agent changes.

10. The product of claim 1, wherein the operations comprise synchronous and asynchronous operations.

11. A system, comprising:

a computer system comprising one or more hardware platforms for executing a computer software application, each hardware platform including at least one processor;

memory storing a plurality of process components executable by the respective processor of the particular hardware platform, each of the process components comprising a modular and application-independent package of reusable, granular software implementing a respective and distinct business process, the business process comprising functionality exposed by the process component via a corresponding service interface, the plurality of process components including;

an Accounting process component for recording relevant business transactions;

a Production process component for combining the activities required to manage the production execution process on the manufacturing shop floor;

a Site Logistics process component for supporting preparing and execution tasks concerning internal inventory movements;

a Confirmation and Inventory process component for combining tasks required to confirm inventory changes and provided activities;

a Customer Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing customer requirements and provides an interface to presales, sales and services;

a Demand Forecast Processing process component for collecting demand forecasts for further processing;

a Supply and Demand Matching process component for combining tasks necessary to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account;

a Production Trigger and Response process component for providing an interface to production from a supply planning perspective;

an In-house Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing in-house requirements;

a Sales Scheduling Agreement Processing process component for combining tasks required for the inbound processing of delivery schedules and the outbound processing of delivery schedule confirmations; and

a Demand Planning process component for combining all the tasks required to anticipate future demand; and

a plurality of service interfaces, each service interface associated with exactly one process component and comprising at least one operation, each operation being implemented for exactly one process component, the operations comprising inbound and outbound operations, the outbound operation for a first process component being operable to send a message to a second process component of the plurality of process components, the second process component having an inbound operation for receiving the message, interactions between the process components including interactions between;

the Production process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Production process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

a production lot accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the production lot accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to inform accounting processing of a creation, change, or deletion to production orders;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to create an accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to cancel a created accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity;

the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component, where the interaction between the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component includes the transmission of;

a production request message from the Production Trigger and Response process component to the Production process component, the production request message causing the Production process component to send an update request from planning to manufacturing to produce a certain quantity of a certain product at a certain time;

a production request confirmation message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production request confirmation message providing a confirmation of the production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component; and

a production progress notification message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production progress notification message providing updates on a production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component;

the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message requests the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

an inventory change and activity Confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message cancelling requests for the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component, where the interaction between the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component includes the transmission of;

a product forecast notification message for maintaining demand forecast operations to create, update, or delete a demand forecast based on current and deleted forecasts included in the product forecast notification message.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein:

each of the process components includes one or more business objects; and

none of the business objects of any one of the process components interacts directly with any of the business objects included in any of the other process components.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein:

none of the business objects included in any one of the process components is included in any of the other process components.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein:

a plurality of process agents, each process agent being either an inbound process agent or an outbound process agent, an inbound process agent being operable to receive a message from an inbound operation, an outbound process agent being operable to cause an outbound operation to send a message, each process agent being associated with exactly one process component.

15. The system of claim 11, the system comprising multiple hardware platforms, wherein:

the Accounting process component is deployed on a first hardware platform;

the Production process component, the Site Logistics process component, and the Confirmation and Inventory process component are deployed on a first hardware platform;

the Customer Requirement Processing process component, the Demand Forecast Processing process component, the Supply and Demand Matching process component, the Production Trigger and Response process component, the In-house Requirement Processing process component, and the Sales Scheduling Agreement process component are deployed on a first hardware platform; and

the Demand Planning process component is deployed on a first hardware platform.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein each of the first through the last hardware platforms are distinct and separate from each other.

17. A computer-implemented method for developing a computer software application, the method comprising the following steps performed by one or more processors:

obtaining in a computer system digital data representing an architectural design for a set of processes implementing an end-to-end application process, the design specifying a process component for each process in the set of processes, each of the process components comprising a modular and application-independent package of reusable and granular software implementing a respective and distinct business process, the business process comprising functionality exposed by the process component, the design further specifying a set of process component interactions based on messages transmitted between two or more process components, wherein

the specified process components include;

an Accounting process component for recording relevant business transactions;

a Production process component for combining the activities required to manage the production execution process on the manufacturing shop floor;

a Site Logistics process component for supporting preparing and execution tasks concerning internal inventory movements;

a Confirmation and Inventory process component for combining tasks required to confirm inventory changes and provided activities;

a Customer Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing customer requirements and provides an interface to presales, sales and services;

a Demand Forecast Processing process component for collecting demand forecasts for further processing;

a Supply and Demand Matching process component for combining tasks necessary to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account;

a Production Trigger and Response process component for providing an interface to production from a supply planning perspective;

an In-house Requirement Processing process component for combining tasks required for processing in-house requirements;

a Sales Scheduling Agreement Processing process component for combining tasks required for the inbound processing of delivery schedules and the outbound processing of delivery schedule confirmations; and

a Demand Planning process component for combining all the tasks required to anticipate future demand; and

wherein the process component interactions include interactions between;

the Production process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Production process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

a production lot accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the production lot accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to inform accounting processing of a creation, change, or deletion to production orders;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to create an accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Production process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message causing the Accounting process component to cancel a created accounting document associated with the inventory change and activity;

the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component, where the interaction between the Production Trigger and Response process component and the Production process component includes the transmission of;

a production request message from the Production Trigger and Response process component to the Production process component, the production request message causing the Production process component to send an update request from planning to manufacturing to produce a certain quantity of a certain product at a certain time;

a production request confirmation message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production request confirmation message providing a confirmation of the production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component; and

a production progress notification message from the Production process component to the Production Trigger and Response process component, the production progress notification message providing updates on a production request to the Production Trigger and Response process component;

the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component, where the interaction between the Site Logistics Processing process component and the Accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message requests the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message from the Site Logistics Processing process component to the Accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation cancellation accounting notification message cancelling requests for the generation of an accounting document associated with an inventory change accounting notification; and

the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component, where the interaction between the Demand Planning process component and the Demand Forecast Processing process component includes the transmission of;

a product forecast notification message for maintaining demand forecast operations to create, update, or delete a demand forecast based on current and deleted forecasts included in the product forecast notification message; and

generating, using the at least one processor on the computer system, a computer software application to perform the set of processes based on the obtained design including the specified process components and the specified process component interactions.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein:

each process in the set of processes is a business process transforming a defined business input into a defined business outcome.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein:

obtaining digital data representing the architectural design further comprises editing the design before using the design.