Just-in time workflow

• US 8,185,423 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2006
• Issued: 05/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Brook, John Charles, Singh, Rawinder Kaur Khera
• Primary Examiner(s): Jasmin, Lynda
• Assistant Examiner(s): Singh, Gurkanwaljit
• Application Number:
  US11/613,019
• Publication Number:
  US 20070150329A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,981 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/7.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063112 Skill-based matching of a person or a group to a task
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063118 Staff planning in a project environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06395 Quality analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials

Abstract

Disclosed are arrangements, referred to as just-in-time workflow (JITW) arrangements, which provide a decentralised process (900) for performing a sequence of tasks, in which individual network services successively identify (961), assemble (960) and execute (962) a chain of subsequent network services on the basis of their suitability to communicate over a network and to perform their associated tasks.

Claims

1. A method, implemented in a computer system, of constructing a distributed process engine comprising an ordered list of network services that forms a process for performing a task, wherein said network services are drawn from a pool of network services executing on a plurality of computing devices communicating over a network, said method comprising:

a processor executing the steps of;

providing a template comprising a plurality of constraints on network services forming said process for performing the task;

analyzing the provided template to select a first network service, executing on a first one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services, depending on a first of a plurality of constraints in said template;

instantiating the selected first network service and appending the instantiated first network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine;

identifying, by the first network service, a subset of potential second network services from the pool of network services depending on a second of the plurality of constraints in said template;

selecting, by the first network service, a second network service, executing on a second one of the plurality of computing devices, from the subset of potential second network services based on a constraint monitored by said first network service;

instantiating, by the first network service, the selected second network service and appending the instantiated second network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine; and

transferring, by the first network service, responsibility for further construction of the ordered list for the distributed process engine to the instantiated second network service, said transfer applying, by the first network service, an event stimulus to the instantiated second network service, thereby enabling the instantiated second network service to perform the steps of;

(i) analyzing the template to identify a subset of potential third network services from the pool of network services depending on a third of the plurality of constraints in said template;

(ii) selecting, by the second network service, a third network service executing on a third one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services; and

(iii) instantiating the selected third network service and appending the instantiated third network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said instantiating step is further based on information relating to a task to be carried out by said process.

3. The method of claim 1 in which the constraint is initiated or evaluated by user interaction at a physical location of instantiation of at least one of said services in said ordered list other than the start and end services of said ordered list.

4. The method of claim 1 in which the constraint is initiated, evaluated or caused externally to said service monitoring said constraint.

5. The method of claim 1 in which the constraint is initiated, evaluated or caused to said service monitoring said constraint.

6. The method of claim 1 in which the constraint is initiated, evaluated or caused during the construction period of said ordered list of network services.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said process for carrying out of said task occurs substantially simultaneously with said method of constructing said ordered list of network services.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said process for carrying out of said task continues or pauses depending on progress of said method of constructing said ordered list of network services.

9. The method of claim 1 or claim 8 wherein the constructed ordered list of network services is deconstructed after carrying out the tasks.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of determining usage information for a complete list or a partial list of network services and task information about the corresponding task or partial task carried out.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising the steps of:

(a) sending, by the network services in the complete list or the partial list of network services, said usage information and said task information over the network to an audit server; and

(b) accumulating, by the audit server, said usage information and said task information for said complete list or partial list of network services.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said usage information comprises at least one of:

type of service, quantity of data processed, information about data processed, and quality level of the processing.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of accumulating, by the audit server, usage information and task information for another concurrent complete list or partial list of network services assembled from the network services in the pool.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of determining a customer charge depending upon at least one of the accumulated usage information and the accumulated task information.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said second service is selected from said subset of potential second services dependent upon said second service having a valid security certificate, and wherein the accumulating step comprises:

(a) verifying, in regard to each said network service, that said network service has a corresponding valid security certificate, and

(b) performing the accumulating step for those network services having said corresponding valid security certificate.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein said process for carrying out of said task occurs after said method of constructing said ordered list of network services.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein each service comprised by said ordered list removes itself from said ordered list upon completion of its portion of the task being carried out.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein said second service is selected from said subset of potential second services dependent upon said second service having a valid security certificate.

19. A system for constructing a distributed process engine comprising an ordered list of network services that forms a process for performing a task, wherein said services are drawn from a pool of network services executing on a plurality of computing devices communicating over a network, said system comprising:

at least one memory module for storing a program; and

at least one processor for executing the program, said program comprising;

code for providing a template comprising a plurality of constraints on network services forming said process for performing the task;

code for analyzing the provided template to select a first network service, executing on a first one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services, depending on a first of the plurality of constraints in said template;

code for instantiating the selected first network service and appending the instantiated first network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine;

code for identifying, by the first network service, a subset of potential second network services depending on a second of the plurality of constraints in said template;

code for selecting, by the first network service, a second network service, executing on a second one of the plurality of computing devices, from the subset of potential second network services based on a constraint monitored by said first network service;

code for instantiating, by the first network service, the selected second network service and appending the instantiated second network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine; and

code for transferring, by the first network service, responsibility for further construction of the ordered list for the distributed process engine to the instantiated second network service, said transfer applying, by the first network service, an event stimulus to the instantiated second network service, thereby enabling the instantiated second network service to perform the steps of;

(i) analyzing the template to identify a subset of potential third network services from the pool of network services depending on a third of the plurality of constraints in said template;

(ii) selecting, by the second network service, a third network service executing on a third one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services; and

(iii) instantiating the selected third network service and appending the instantiated third network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine.

20. A non-transitory computer readable medium storage medium having recorded thereon a computer program for directing a processor to execute a method for constructing a distributed process engine comprising an ordered list of network services that forms a process for performing a task, wherein said network services are drawn from a pool of network services executing on a plurality of computing devices communicating over a network, said program comprising:

code for providing a template comprising a plurality of constraints on network services forming said process for performing the task;

code for analyzing the provided template to select a first network service, executing on a first one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services, depending on a first of the plurality of constraints in said template;

code for instantiating the selected first network service and appending the instantiated first network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine;

code for identifying, by the first network service, a subset of potential second services from the pool of network services depending on a second of the plurality of constraints in said template;

code for selecting, by the first network service, a second network service, executing on a second one of the plurality of computing devices, from the subset of potential second network services based on a constraint monitored by said first network service;

code for instantiating, by the first network service, the selected second network service and appending the instantiated second network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine; and

code for transferring, by the first network service, responsibility for further construction of the ordered list for the distributed process engine to the instantiated second network service, said transfer applying, by the first network service, an event stimulus to the instantiated second network service, thereby enabling the instantiated second network service to perform the steps of;

(i) analyzing the template to identify a subset of potential third network services from the pool of network services depending on a third of the plurality of constraints in said template;

(ii) selecting, by the second network service, a third network service executing on a third one of the plurality of computing devices, from said pool of network services; and

(iii) instantiating the selected third network service and appending the instantiated third network service to the ordered list of the distributed process engine.