Managing consistent interfaces for retail business objects across heterogeneous systems

• US 8,589,263 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2008
• Issued: 11/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Doenig, Susanne, Bommer, Harald, Corbeil, Jean, Zuerl, Ruediger, Rajamohan, Devasena, Mohammadian, Maryam, Gabelmann, Thomas, Weiler, Thomas, Lankau, Sabine, Scheerer, Dieter, Grendel, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Gart, Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): PARIKH, HARSHAD R
• Application Number:
  US12/059,867
• Publication Number:
  US 20090248547A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,059 Days
• Field of Search: 705/34, 705/28
• US Class Current: 705/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/067 Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

A business object model, which reflects data that is used during a given business transaction, is utilized to generate interfaces. This business object model facilitates commercial transactions by providing consistent interfaces that are suitable for use across industries, across businesses, and across different departments within a business during a business transaction. In some operations, software creates, updates, or otherwise processes information related to a retail allocation and/or a retail event business object.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer readable medium including program code for providing a message-based interface for requesting the creation of a retail allocation, the medium comprising:

program code for receiving via a message-based interface derived from a common business object model, where the common business object model includes business objects having relationships that enable derivation of message packages, the message-based interface exposing at least one service as defined in a service registry and from a heterogeneous application executing in an environment of computer systems providing message-based services, a first message for creating a retail allocation of merchandise between external suppliers and stores in the retail industry that includes a first message package derived from the common business object model and hierarchically organized in memory, the hierarchical organization of the first message package including;

at a first hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail allocation create request message entity; and

at the first hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail allocation package, where the retail allocation package includes, at a second hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail allocation entity and an item package, where the retail allocation entity includes, at a third hierarchical level within the first message package, a description, where the item package includes, at the third hierarchical level within the first message package, at least one item entity, and where each item entity includes, at a fourth hierarchical level within the first message package, a material internal ID;

program code for processing the first message based on the hierarchical organization of the first message package, where processing the first message includes unpacking the first message package based on the first message package'"'"'s structure and the first message package'"'"'s derivation from the common business object model, wherein the particular structure of the first message package is used at least in part to identify the purpose of the first message; and

program code for sending a second message to the heterogeneous application responsive—

to the first message, where the second message includes a second message package derived from the common business object model to provide consistent semantics with the first message package.

2. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the item package further comprises at least one of the following:

a store group package and a ship from location package.

3. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the item entity further includes at least one of the following:

a total quantity and a retail allocation data origin.

4. A distributed system operating in a landscape of computer systems providing message-based services defined in a service registry, the system comprising:

at least one processor operable to execute computer readable instructions embodied on tangible media;

a graphical user interface comprising computer readable instructions executable by the at least one processor, embedded on tangible media, for creating a request for retail allocation of merchandise between external suppliers and stores in the retail industry using a request;

a first memory storing a user interface controller for processing the request when executed by the at least one processor and involving a message including a message package derived from a common business object model, where the common business object model includes business objects having relationships that enable derivation of message-based service interfaces and message packages, the message package hierarchically organized, the hierarchical organization of the message package including;

at a first hierarchical level within the message package, a retail allocation create request message entity; and

at the first hierarchical level within the message package, a retail allocation package, where the retail allocation package includes, at a second hierarchical level within the message package, a retail allocation entity and an item package, where the retail allocation entity includes, at a third hierarchical level within the message package, a description, where the item package includes, at the third hierarchical level within the message package, at least one item entity, and where each item entity includes, at a fourth hierarchical level within the message package, a material internal ID; and

a second memory, remote from the graphical user interface, storing a plurality of message-based service interfaces derived from the common business object model to provide consistent semantics with messages derived from the common business object model, where one of the service interfaces is operable to process the message via the service interface when executed by the at least one processor, where processing the message includes unpacking the message package based on the message package'"'"'s structure and the message package'"'"'s derivation from the common business object model, where the specific hierarchical organization of the message package is used at least in part to identify the purpose of the message.

5. The distributed system of claim 4, wherein the first memory is remote from the graphical user interface.

6. The distributed system of claim 4, wherein the first memory is remote from the second memory.

7. A non-transitory computer readable medium including program code for providing a message-based interface for requesting the creation of a retail event, the medium comprising:

program code for receiving via a message-based interface derived from a common business object model, where the common business object model includes business objects having relationships that enable derivation of message packages, the message-based interface exposing at least one service as defined in a service registry and from a heterogeneous application executing in an environment of computer systems providing message-based services, a first message for requesting creation of a retail specific business activity for increasing sales in the retail industry that includes a first message package derived from the common business object model and hierarchically organized in memory, the hierarchical organization of the first message package including;

at a first hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail event create request message entity; and

at the first hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail event package, the retail event package including, at a second hierarchical level within the first message package, a retail event entity;

program code for processing the first message based on the hierarchical organization of the first message package, where processing the first message includes unpacking the first message package based on the first message package'"'"'s structure and the first message package'"'"'s derivation from the common business object model, wherein the particular structure of the first message package is used at least in part to identify the purpose of the first message; and

program code for sending a second message to the heterogeneous application responsive—

to the first message, where the second message includes a second message package derived from the common business object model to provide consistent semantics with the first message package.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the retail event package further comprises at least one of the following:

an event unit package and an offer package.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the retail event entity further includes at least one of the following:

an ID, a type code, a sales organization ID, a distribution channel code, a planning currency code, a period, a data origin code, a data origin ID, an advertising medium type code, a target group type code, and at least one description entity.

10. A distributed system operating in a landscape of computer systems providing message-based services defined in a service registry, the system comprising:

at least one processor operable to execute computer readable instructions embodied on tangible media;

a graphical user interface comprising computer readable instructions executable by the at least one processor, embedded on tangible media, for creating of a retail specific business activity for increasing sales in the retail industry using a request;

a first memory storing a user interface controller for processing the request when executed by the at least one processor and involving a message including a message package derived from a common business object model, where the common business object model includes business objects having relationships that enable derivation of message-based service interfaces and message packages, the message package hierarchically organized, the hierarchical organization of the message package including;

at a first hierarchical level within the message package, a retail event create request message entity; and

at the first hierarchical level within the message package, a retail event package, the retail event package including, at a second hierarchical level within the message package, a retail event entity; and

a second memory, remote from the graphical user interface, storing a plurality of message-based service interfaces derived from the common business object model to provide consistent semantics with messages derived from the common business object model, where one of the message-based service interfaces is operable to process the message via the service interface when executed by the at least one processor, where processing the message includes unpacking the message package based on the message package'"'"'s structure and the message package'"'"'s derivation from the common business object model, where the specific hierarchical organization of the message package is used at least in part to identify the purpose of the message.

11. The distributed system of claim 10, wherein the first memory is remote from the graphical user interface.

12. The distributed system of claim 10, wherein the first memory is remote from the second memory.