System and method for flexible chaining of distinct workflow task instances in a business process execution language workflow

• US 9,589,240 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2010
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Rangaswamy, Ravi, Nainani, Bhagat
• Primary Examiner(s): Jeanty, Romain
• Application Number:
  US12/780,661
• Publication Number:
  US 20110282707A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,489 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7.11
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0633 Workflow analysis

Abstract

Systems and methods are described for providing task chaining as part of modeling a business process (e.g. a BPEL process). Chained tasks maintain a reference to the previous task and during retrieval of that task, the system can append relevant information, including but not limited to task history, attachments and comments of the previous task. Task chaining can be enabled by selecting a previously completed task and marking that the current task chains the selected task. In one embodiment, tasks are chained across multiple instances of a process. Accordingly, tasks in different processes can be chained together to obtain access to the same context information and other data.

Claims

1. A method for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, said method comprising:

providing a graphical user interface (GUI) for defining one or more business process execution language (BPEL) process definitions each including a set of tasks;

persisting the one or more BPEL process definitions in a repository;

deploying a BPEL process defined by one of the one or more BPEL process definitions to a BPEL process manager operating on one or more microprocessors, the BPEL process manager including a BPEL process engine;

instantiating, using the BPEL process engine, a first process instance and a second process instance based on said BPEL process, wherein the BPEL process engine orchestrates and invokes functionality of applications, systems and Web services based on the BPEL process;

wherein the first process instance includes a first task and a first state object generated within the repository for the first task;

wherein the second process instance includes a second task and a second state object generated within the repository for the second task, wherein the second task is associated with context data which includes data relating to performance of the second task including one or more of task history and attachments which are not available from the first process instance;

chaining the first task of the first process instance to the second task of the second process instance, by creating in the first state object associated with the first task a reference to the second state object associated with the second task;

querying context data associated with the first task in the repository; and

in response to querying context data associated with the first task, receiving context data for the first task from the first state object in the repository and, by using the reference in the first state object, automatically receiving the context data for the second task from the second state object in the repository, wherein the context data for the second task includes said data relating to performance of the second task including said one or more of the task history and attachments.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one automated task is executed between the first task and the second task.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein chaining the first task and the second task comprises selecting, via the GUI, a previously completed first task and marking that the second task chains the first task.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating the first task and associating the first task with a BPEL process by using a BPEL designer component.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a payload of a BPEL process includes a set of extensible markup language (XML) data attributes associated with each task from the set of tasks, and further comprising:

determining whether to use or clear and recreate a set of XML data attributes associated with the first task from the payload of a business process with which the first task is associated based on a set of XML data attributes associated with the second task.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the BPEL process manager further includes a Web Services Description Language (WSDL) binding component that binds the one or more business processes deployed on the BPEL process manager to external web services.

7. A system for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, said system comprising:

a process designer interface used to define one or more business process execution language (BPEL) process definitions each including a set of tasks;

a repository that persists the one or more BPEL process definitions;

a BPEL process manager operating on one or more microprocessors, the BPEL process manager including a BPEL process engine, wherein in response to deployment of a BPEL process defined by one of the one or more BPEL processes definitions the process engine instantiates a first process instance and a second process instance based on said BPEL process, wherein the BPEL process engine orchestrates and invokes functionality of applications, systems and Web services based on the BPEL processes;

wherein the first process instance includes a first task and a first state object generated within the repository for the first task;

wherein the second process instance includes a second task and a second state object generated within the repository for the second task, wherein the second task is associated with context data which includes data relating to performance of the second task including one or more of task history and attachments which are not available from the first process instance;

a reference from the first state object associated with the first task to the second state object associated with the second task created in response to chaining of the first task to the second task; and

a query mechanism that queries context data associated with the first task, wherein in response to querying context data associated with the first task and stored in the first state object in the repository, the query mechanism retrieves context data for the first task from the first state object in the repository and, by using the reference in the first state object, automatically retrieves said context data associated with the second task from the second state object in the repository, wherein the context data for the second task includes said data relating to performance of the second task including said one or more of the task history and attachments.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein at least one automated task is executed between the first task and the second task.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein said interface is a graphical user interface (GUI), wherein receiving input indicative that the first task of the first process instance comprises selecting, via the graphical user interface (GUI), a previously completed first task and marking that the second task chains the first task.

10. The system of claim 7, further comprising a process designer component, wherein the first task is created by using the process designer component and associated with the first process instance.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein a payload of a BPEL process includes a set of extensible markup language (XML) data attributes associated with each task from the set of tasks, and wherein the query mechanism determines whether to use or clear and recreate a set of XML data attributes associated with the first task from the payload of a business process with which the first task is associated based on a set of XML data attributes associated with the second task.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the BPEL process manager further includes a Web Services Description Language (WSDL) binding component that binds the one or more business processes deployed on the BPEL process manager to external web services.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps comprising:

providing a graphical user interface (GUI) for defining one or more business process execution language (BPEL) process definitions each including a set of tasks;

persisting the one or more BPEL process definitions in a repository;

deploying a BPEL process defined by one of the one or more BPEL process definitions to a BPEL process manager operating on one or more microprocessors, the BPEL process manager including a BPEL process engine;

instantiating, using the BPEL process engine, a first process instance and a second process instance based on said BPEL process, wherein the BPEL process engine orchestrates and invoke functionality of applications, systems and Web services based on the BPEL process;

wherein the first process instance includes a first task and a first state object generated within the repository for the first task;

wherein the second process instance includes a second task and a second state object generated within the repository for the second task, wherein the second task is associated with context data which includes data relating to performance of the second task including one or more of task history and attachments which are not available from the first process instance;

chaining the first task of the first process instance to the second task of the second process by creating, in the first state object associated with the first task a reference to second state object associated with the second task;

querying context data associated with the first task and stored in the first state object in the repository; and

in response to querying context data associated with the first task, receiving context data for the first task from the first state object in the repository, and by using the reference in the first state object, automatically receiving said context data associated with the second task from the second state object in the repository, wherein the context data for the second task includes said data relating to performance of the second task including said one or more of the task history and attachments.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein a payload of a BPEL process includes a set of extensible markup language (XML) data attributes associated with each task from the set of tasks, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps further comprising:

determining whether to use or clear and recreate a set of XML data attributes associated with the first task from the payload of a business process with which the first task is associated based on a set of XML data attributes associated with the second task.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps further comprising:

executing at least one automated task between the first task and the second task.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps further comprising:

providing a processor designer component which provides the graphical user interface (GUI) wherein enables chaining of the first task and the second task by selecting the first task and marking that the second task chains the first task.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps further comprising:

creating the first task and associating the first task with the first process instance using a BPEL designer component; and

creating the second task and associating the second task with the second process instance using the BPEL designer component.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, carrying one or more sequences of instructions for chaining tasks in a process execution environment, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps further comprising:

binding the one or more business process deployed on the BPEL process manager a Web Services Description Language (WSDL) binding component.