Architectural design for ad-hoc goods movement software

• US 8,510,143 B2
• Filed: 12/31/2007
• Issued: 08/13/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Freund, Jens, Moosmann, Gerd, Wilmes, Martin J., Heinrichs, Matthias, Barheine, Wolfgang, Hirth, Jochen, Gueler, Sedat
• Primary Examiner(s): Gart, Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): IWARERE, OLUSEYE
• Application Number:
  US11/967,393
• Publication Number:
  US 20090171712A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,052 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7, 705/7.12
• US Class Current: 705/7.12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program products, for implementing a software architecture design for a software application implementing ad-hoc goods movement. The application is structured as multiple process components interacting with each other through service interfaces, and multiple service operations, each being implemented for a respective process component. The process components include an Accounting process component that records the relevant business transactions for valuation and profitability analysis; an Inventory Processing process component that handles the management of inventory and the recording of inventory changes and may provide services to maintain current stock, handling unit content, logistics operating unit content, and allocation content; a Site Logistics Processing process component that handles the preparation, physical execution, and confirmation of logistics processes within a site; and a Supply and Demand Matching process component that combines the tasks necessary to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising instructions encoded on a tangible, non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, the instructions being structured as process components interacting with each other through service interfaces, the instructions operable when executed by at least one processor 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 inventory processing process component that handles the management of inventory and the recording of inventory changes and provides services to maintain current stock, content and structure of logistic units and allocations;

a site logistics processing process component that handles the preparation, physical execution, and confirmation of logistics processes within a site;

a supply and demand matching process component that handles the management of the tasks performed to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account; and

an accounting process component that records relevant business transactions for valuation and profitability analysis; and

define a plurality of service operations, each service 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, the sending and receiving of messages between an inbound and an outbound operation defining a message-based pair-wise interaction between the respective process components of the respective operations, the pair-wise interactions between pairs of the process components including interactions between;

the inventory processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the inventory processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component includes transmission of;

a logistics confirmation inventory change notification message from the inventory processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the logistics confirmation inventory change notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of an inventory change associated with the inventory processing process component, and

a planning view of inventory reconciliation notification message from the inventory processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the planning view of inventory reconciliation notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of a reconciliation of inventory quantities aggregated on a material or supply planning level;

the inventory processing process component and the accounting process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the inventory process component and the accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the inventory process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message comprising a request to notify accounting of an inventory change associated with the inventory process component; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message from the inventory process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message comprising a request to cancel at least one request received from the inventory process component;

the site logistics processing process component and the site logistics processing process component;

the site logistics processing process component and the supply and demand marketing process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the site logistics processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component includes transmission of;

a logistics confirmation inventory change notification message from the site logistics processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the logistics confirmation inventory change notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of an inventory change associated with the site logistics processing process component; and

the site logistics processing process component and the accounting process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the site logistics process component and the accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the site logistics process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message comprising a request to notify accounting of an inventory change associated with the site logistics process component; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message from the site logistics process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message comprising a request to cancel at least one request received from the site logistics process component.

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 production and site logistics execution deployment unit that includes the inventory processing process component and the site logistics processing process component; and

a supply chain control deployment unit that includes the supply and demand matching 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 business process 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 at least one hardware platform for executing computer instructions, the computer instructions structured as a plurality of process components interacting with each other through service interfaces, each hardware platform including at least one processor for executing the computer instructions;

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 processes comprising functionality exposed by the process component via at least one service interface, the plurality of process components including;

an inventory processing process component that handles the management of inventory and the recording of inventory changes;

a site logistics processing process component that handles the preparation, physical execution, and confirmation of logistics processes within a site;

a supply and demand matching process component that handles the management of the tasks performed to ensure that sufficient material receipt elements exist to cover material demand while taking available capacity into account; and

an accounting process component that records relevant business transactions for valuation and profitability analysis; and

the memory further storing a plurality of service operations, each service 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, the sending and receiving of messages between an inbound and an outbound operation defining a message-based pair-wise interaction between the respective process components of the respective operations, the pair-wise interactions between pairs of the process components including interactions between;

the inventory processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the inventory processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component includes transmission of;

a logistics confirmation inventory change notification message from the inventory processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the logistics confirmation inventory change notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of an inventory change associated with the inventory processing process component, and

a planning view of inventory reconciliation notification message from the inventory processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the planning view of inventory reconciliation notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of a reconciliation of inventory quantities aggregated on a material or supply planning level;

the inventory processing process component and the accounting process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the inventory process component and the accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the inventory process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message comprising a request to notify accounting of an inventory change associated with the inventory process component; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message from the inventory process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message comprising a request to cancel at least one request received from the inventory process component;

the site logistics processing process component and the site logistics processing process component;

the site logistics processing process component and the supply and demand marketing process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the site logistics processing process component and the supply and demand matching process component includes transmission of;

a logistics confirmation inventory change notification message from the site logistics processing process component to the supply and demand matching process component, the logistics confirmation inventory change notification message comprising a request to notify supply and demand matching of an inventory change associated with the site logistics processing process component; and

the site logistics processing process component and the accounting process component, where the pair-wise interaction between the site logistics process component and the accounting process component includes the transmission of;

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message from the site logistics process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting notification message comprising a request to notify accounting of an inventory change associated with the site logistics process component; and

an inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message from the site logistics process component to the accounting process component, the inventory change and activity confirmation accounting cancellation request message comprising a request to cancel at least one request received from the site logistics process component.

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 inventory processing process component and the site logistics processing process component are deployed on a second hardware platform; and

the supply and demand matching process component is deployed on a third hardware platform.

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