Providing attachment-based data input and output

• US 9,262,763 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Issued: 02/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP SE
• Inventors: Peter, Markus A., Ansari, Shabana, Eberlein, Peter, Schmidt-Karaca, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): Mofiz, Apu
• Assistant Examiner(s): MINCEY, JERMAINE A
• Application Number:
  US11/540,470
• Publication Number:
  US 20080082575A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,427 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

Various embodiments of systems, methods, and software provide attachment-based mass data input and output for a distributed application system. Software for interactive, attachment-based data management may comprise computer readable instructions operable when executed to receive a request from a logically remote client via a network interface, where the request indicates a data file and a business object associated with a business application. The business object is then updated with a message in a format associated with the business application based on the data file. The data file is then stored in a repository and a dependent object (included in, or referenced by, or otherwise associated with the business object) is then updated with a logical location of the data file in the repository.

Claims

1. An article comprising a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium storing instructions for interactive, attachment-based data management, the instructions operable to cause one or more computers to:

receive a request from a logically remote client via a network interface, the request indicating a data file and a business object associated with a business application, the business object comprising at least one object attribute, the business object separate and distinct from the data file;

update the business object with a message in a format associated with the business application based on the data file, the message referencing a logical location of the data file;

map at least a portion of the data file to at least one keyword associated with the business object;

identify, based on the mapped portion of the data file, a handler object communicably coupled to an integration middleware logically situated between the business application and a remote repository;

store the data file in the remote repository; and

update a dependent object associated with the business object with a logical location of the data file in the remote repository.

2. The article of claim 1, wherein updating the business object with the message comprises communicating the logical location of the data file to the integration middleware, the integration middleware mapping the data file to the format associated with the business application.

3. The article of claim 2, the integration middleware further operable to:

receive the data file from the remote repository via streaming;

convert the data file to an XML message; and

map the XML message to the format associated with the business application.

4. The article of claim 3, the integration middleware further operable to parse the data file into smaller pieces if the data file is larger than a particular threshold.

5. The article of claim 4, the integration middleware converting the data file, mapping the XML message, and updating the business object for each piece of the parsed data file.

6. The article of claim 2, the integration middleware automatically invoking the handler object for the particular data file based on the mapped portion of the data file.

7. The article of claim 6, the mapped portion of the data file indicating a file extension of the data file.

8. The article of claim 2, the instructions further operable to cause one or more of the computers to communicate an instance identifier of the business object and a type of the data file.

9. The article of claim 1, the instructions further operable to cause one or more of the computers to execute a user-initiated action comprising a save request on the business object to initiate the storage of the data file in the remote repository.

10. The article of claim 1, the remote repository comprising a logically remote repository and the logical location comprising a relative URL.

11. The article of claim 1, the business object comprising a carrier object referencing a plurality of child business objects and the instructions further operable to cause one or more of the computers to update the child business objects using the carrier object.

12. An article comprising a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium storing instructions for interactive, attachment-based data management, the instructions operable to cause one or more computers to:

automatically identify a business object in a business application based on a received request, the business object comprising at least one object attribute;

instantiate a dependent object using the business object, the dependent object storing a logical location for a data file associated with the business object, the data file being separate and distinct from the business object and dependent object;

map at least a portion of the identified business object;

identify a handler object based on the mapped portion of the identified business object;

convert, via the handler object, a business object message in a format associated with the business application to a second format, the business object message referencing the data file; and

store the converted message at the logical location as the data file in the second format.

13. The article of claim 12, the instructions further operable to cause one or more of the computers to dynamically select the second format from a plurality of formats.

14. The article of claim 12, the instructions further operable to cause one or more of the computers to:

receive a request from a client for the data file via the business object; and

communicate the data file from the logical location to the client at least partially using the dependent object.

15. A file server for interactive, attachment-based data management comprising:

memory storing a plurality of instantiated business objects according to a business application; and

one or more processors;

receiving a request from a logically remote client via a network interface, the request indicating a data file and one of the business objects associated with the business application, each business object comprising at least one object attribute, the business object separate and distinct from the data file;

updating the business object with a message in a format associated with the business application based on the data file, the message referencing a logical location of the data file;

mapping at least a portion of the data file to at least one keyword associated with the business object;

identifying, based on the mapped portion of the data file, a handler object communicably coupled to an integration middleware logically situated between the business application and a remote repository;

storing the data file in a logically remote repository from the business objects; and

updating a dependent object associated with the business object with a logical location of the data file in the remote repository.

16. The server of claim 15, the one or more processors mapping the data file to the format associated with the business application.

17. The server of claim 16, wherein mapping the data file comprises the one or more processors:

receiving the data file from the remote repository via streaming;

converting the data file to an XML message; and

mapping the XML message to the format associated with the business application.

18. The server of claim 17, the one or more processors parsing the data file into smaller pieces if the data file is larger than a particular threshold.

19. The server of claim 18, the one or more processors converting the data file, mapping the XML message, and updating the business object for each piece of the parsed data file.

20. The server of claim 15, the one or more processors automatically invoking the handler object for the particular data file based on the mapped portion of the data file.

21. The server of claim 20, the mapped portion of the data file indicating a file extension of the data file.

22. The server of claim 15, the one or more processors executing a received user-initiated action comprising a save request on the business object to store the data file in the remote repository.

23. The server of claim 15, the business object comprising a carrier object referencing a plurality child business objects and the one or more processors updating the child business objects using the carrier object.