Native format tunneling

• US 20040117428A1
• Filed: 09/19/2003
• Published: 06/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Rossmanith, Stefan, Hofmann, Christoph, Dahl, Andreas, Surma, Peter
• Granted Patent: US 7,689,709 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/326 in the transport layer [OSI layer 4] H04L69/16 takes precedence

Abstract

Systems and techniques are disclosed for transmitting a message through an application integration system without having to converting the message from a format that native to both a sending application and a receiving application. A computer-implemented method for transmitting a message from a sending application through an application integration system includes determining a receiving application of the message, and determining a file format used by the receiving application. If the file format used by the receiving application is substantially identical to a file format used by the sending application, the method includes wrapping the message in a markup language file envelope according to a markup language used by the application integration system. The message is then routed in the markup language file envelope to the receiving application.

Claims

1. In an application integration system that communicates messages between applications, a computer-implemented method for transmitting electronic messages that preserves a message format native to both a sending application and at least one receiving application, the method comprising:

receiving a message from the sending application, the message having a message format used by the sending application;

wrapping the message in a markup language file envelope;

routing the markup language file envelope with the message through the application integration system;

unwrapping the message from the markup language file envelope; and

transmitting the message according to the message format to the receiving application.

2. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the markup language corresponds to the extensible markup language (XML).

3. The method in accordance with claim 2, wherein the message includes one or more data objects, and wherein wrapping the message in a markup language file envelope includes serializing one or more data objects to form an XML file.

4. The method in accordance with claim 3, wherein unwrapping the message from the markup language file envelope includes deserializing the one or more data objects.

5. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the message format is an Idoc message format.

6. The method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising storing a copy of the message.

7. A computer-implemented method for transmitting a message from a sending application through an application integration system, the method comprising:

determining a receiving application of the message;

determining a file format used by the receiving application;

if the file format used by the receiving application is substantially identical to a file format used by the sending application, wrapping the message in a markup language file envelope; and

routing the markup language file envelope with the message to the receiving application.

8. The method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the markup language file envelope defines an XML envelope having as a payload one or more serialized data objects of the message.

9. The method in accordance with claim 7, wherein determining a file format used by the receiving application further includes retrieving file format data from a directory.

10. The method in accordance with claim 7, wherein determining a receiving application of the message includes retrieving receiving application data from a directory based on the content of the message.

11. A system for communicating a message file from a sending application in a heterogeneous application network, comprising:

an application integration system in communication with the sending application and one or more receiving applications, the application integration system comprising;

an inbound adapter connected with the sending application, and configured to determine at least one receiving application for receiving the message, determine a file format used by the receiving application, and if the file format used by the receiving application is substantially identical to a file format used by the sending application, wrap the message in a markup language file envelope according to a markup language format used by the application integration system.

12. The system in accordance with claim 11, wherein the adapter is further configured to send the open standard file to a message exchange infrastructure of the application integration system.

13. The system in accordance with claim 12, wherein the exchange infrastructure includes a routing module for routing the open standard file from the sending application to at least one receiving application.

14. The system in accordance with claim 12, wherein the exchange infrastructure includes a mapping module for providing read and write access to the one or more data objects in the open standard file.

15. The system in accordance with claim 11, wherein the markup language file envelope includes an XML envelope.

16. The system in accordance with claim 15, wherein a payload of the XML envelope includes the one or more data objects related to the message.

17. The system in accordance with claim 12, wherein the exchange infrastructure includes an integration server hosting a runtime engine for routing the open standard file to the at least one receiving application determined by the adapter.

18. The system in accordance with claim 11, further comprising an outbound adapter connected with the receiving application, the outbound adapter configured to unwrap the message from the markup language file envelope to provide the message in the file format used by the receiving application.