Business process control program

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD [Detailed description of the invention]

【0001】

[Technical field to which the invention belongs]

The present invention relates to a technique for sequentially executing applications connected to a workflow system according to a flow, a technique for passing data between different types of applications to be executed, and a technique for supporting the generation of definition information for executing the process.

【0002】

[Conventional technology]

As changes in business forms accelerate, the speed of responding to changes in computer systems that support corporate activities is being questioned. In the past, rebuilding an in-house system required a lot of work involved in making many modifications and introducing new applications. To solve this, EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) technology is attracting attention. EAI technology is a technology for linking heterogeneous applications, and enables early construction of enterprise systems by diverting existing software assets and realizing a combination of useful heterogeneous distribution package software. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-207474 (Patent No. 3006610) discloses a technique for linking business programs that process individual businesses in a program that controls a business process with a workflow engine. In this prior art, a user interface that easily defines a business process using icons, and attribute information such as business program transfer data, execution terminal address, and access authority corresponding to the business node on the business process are stored on a node-by-node basis. By providing the means defined in the above and the application control means that realizes data transfer between the workflow engine and the business program, it is possible to reduce the cost and labor required for constructing and reconstructing the workflow system. In addition, by managing the above attribute information in parts, it can be reused in other workflow constructions.

【0003】

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

However, in the above invention, the following problems occur in order to collectively manage all the business program attribute information linked to one business node. (1) It is not possible to divert detailed definition contents such as data format only and data item correspondence only. (2) It is not suitable for expansion such as importing and diverting only the data format defined in the existing system. (3) Even for the same business program, it is necessary to develop the above application control each time when different data input / output is performed.

【0004】

In addition, as another conventional technology, there is a support system for linking a business program to a business process, but the means for defining the business process and the means for defining the link information of the business program associated with the business node are separated. Since there is no system that provides a user interface that explicitly shows the relationship to the user, there is a problem that it is difficult for the user to grasp the relationship between the business node and the business program linkage information.

【0005】

Therefore, in the present invention, in view of the above problems, it is possible to further shorten the system construction period by enabling the diversion of more detailed business program cooperation information, and the user is associated with the business node in the business process. The purpose is to provide a heterogeneous system linkage control program equipped with a user interface that can clearly grasp the relationship with business program linkage information.

【0006】

[Means for solving problems]

In the present invention, the data format, program attributes, and their correspondence / conversion rules are made into parts, and the parts are associated with the components of the business process realized by the workflow.

【0007】

More specifically, (1) a means of classifying business program cooperation information into three categories: business program execution method, data format to be passed, correspondence of data items and conversion rules, and (2) By selecting the parts on the screen linked with (3) the means for associating the business node on the business process with the linked information parts of (1) and (3) the means for visually defining the business process, (2) By storing and retrieving the visual linkage information definition means for associating and the linkage information parts in (4) and (1) in a parts storage independent of the business process, the same business process or multiple different businesses The above-mentioned problems are solved by providing means capable of diverting the above-mentioned parts between processes.

【0008】

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, a first embodiment (Example 1) of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of the entire system according to the present invention. This system consists of a development environment node 110 that defines and stores business process and business program linkage information connected to network 101, a work management node 130 that executes the defined business process, and business program execution and business program. It is composed of a business program linkage node 140 that converts the data to be passed and a business program node 150 that processes individual business.

【0009】

The development node 110 includes a display device 111 for displaying a definition screen for business process and business program linkage information, an input device 112 for inputting definition work instructions, a disk device 113 for storing definition information, and a business. It consists of a business process definition program 114 that defines a process with a visual user interface, and a business program linkage information definition program 115 that defines business program linkage information in conjunction with the above business process definition program 114 with a visual user interface. Program. The disk device 113 contains business process definition information 116 that defines business nodes and transitions of the business process, adapter attribute parts 117 that define the attributes of the adapter program 142 that executes the business program, and data to be passed between the business programs. The data format component 118 that defines the format, the mapping component 119 that defines the correspondence and conversion rules between the items of the data to be passed, the private parts storage 120 that stores the above three types of components, and the above components and business processes. Stores the component association information 121 that defines the association of business nodes.

【0010】

The business program node 150 is composed of a business program 151 that processes individual business.

【0011】

The business program cooperation node 140 is composed of a disk device 141 that stores operation information necessary for executing the business program 151 and an adapter program 142 that executes the business program 151. The disk device 141 is provided with the development node 110. Stores the adapter attribute component 117, the data format component 118, or the linkage information component 143, which is the mapping component 119, and the adapter operation information 144 referenced by the adapter program 142 to convert the input / output data of the business program. To do.

【0012】

The work management node 130 is composed of a disk device 131 that stores information necessary for executing a business process and a workflow program 132 that controls the execution of a business process. The disk device 131 is defined by the development node 110. The business process definition information 133 and the business data DB 134 that manages the business data handled during execution of the business process are stored.

【0013】

Figure 2 shows the structure of the business process definition screen 200 displayed by the business process definition program 114 and the business process definition information 116 to be generated.

【0014】

The business process definition program 114 provides a user interface that allows the user to visually define a business process by arranging arrows indicating business nodes and transitions on the screen. Use the mouse to connect the business nodes 203 and 204, which indicate each business, and the arrows 205, 206, and 207, which indicate their transitions, between the source node 201, which indicates the start of the business process, and the sink node 202, which indicates the end of the business process. Define a business process with. In addition, the format of business data 208 handled during business process execution is also defined by mouse operation.

【0015】

The defined business process definition information 116 is stored as a business node table 210, a transition table 220, and a business data table 230.

【0016】

The business node table 210 is a table that stores the attributes of each node, and is the name of each node 211 placed on the screen, the note type 212, and the name of the adapter program that executes the business program 151 linked to that node 142. Consists of. For example, the second row of this table is the definition content of the business node 203 on the screen, this node is the work node that executes the business with the name "estimate", and the purpose is by the adapter program named "Adp001". Indicates that the business program of

【0017】

The transition table 220 is a table that stores the attributes of the transitions (arrows) that connect the nodes on the screen, and has the transition name 221 and the transition source node name 222, and the transition destination node. It consists of the name 223. For example, the first row of this table is the definition of transition 205 on the screen. The definition content indicates that this transition is named "Arc01", the transition starts from the source node 201, and ends at the business node (estimate) 203.

【0018】

The business data table 230 is a table that stores the format of business data, and is composed of a business data name 231, a data type 232, and a data size 233. For example, the third row of this table shows that the business data "quantity" is an integer type and has a 4-byte size. As shown in Fig. 2, the user can define the business process only by arranging the icon or arrow on the screen and inputting the name, etc., and the defined business process definition information 116 is the development environment node 110. Stored on disk 113.

【0019】

FIG. 3 shows the structure of the association between the business node of the business process and the business program that processes the business content, and the structure of the component association information 121 to be generated.

【0020】

In this embodiment, the information for linking business programs is classified into three types and made into parts. Adapter attribute parts 301 and 302 that have attributes such as the execution method of the adapter program and input / output data that execute the linked business program, and the data format that has the data format of the data input / output by the business program and the business data held by the business process. There are three types of parts 303, 304, 305 and mapping parts 306, 307 that have the correspondence and conversion rules of the data items passed between the business data on the business process and the data input / output by the business program.

【0021】

The link definition between the business process and the business program is performed in two stages: the association between the above parts and the business node of the business process, and the association between the above parts and the adapter program that executes the business program. For example, the adapter attribute component 301 is associated with the adapter program 312 that executes the business program 311. Next, by associating the business node 321 with the adapter attribute component 301, the cooperation definition of the business program 311 for the business node 321 is performed.

【0022】

Regarding the data to be passed between the business program and the business process, the format of the input / output data of the business program, the format of the business data, the data item correspondence relationship between them, and the conversion rule are defined. For example, the format of the data output by the business program 311 is defined in the data format component 303, and the data format component 303 is further associated with the adapter attribute component 301 associated with the adapter program 312 that executes the business program 311. On the other hand, the format of the business data 322 of the business process is defined in the data format component 304 and associated with the business data 322. Then, the output data format 303 of the business program 311 defined above is used as the conversion source, and the business data format 304 is used as the conversion destination. The two data format parts 303 and 304 are associated with the mapping parts, and the data items are associated with each other. And define the conversion rules required at that time. In this way, the relationship in which the data output by the business program 311 is converted and stored in the business data 322 is defined.

【0023】

The defined component association information 121 is stored as the business data component table 330 and the business node linkage attribute table 340.

【0024】

The business data component table 330 is a table that stores IDs of data format components corresponding to business data. For example, the example in FIG. 3 shows that the data format component 304 is associated as a business data format. The business node linkage attribute table 340 is a table that stores the IDs of the adapter attribute parts and mapping parts associated with the business node, and the name 341 of the target business node and the adapter attribute parts associated with the business node. It is composed of ID 342, ID 343 of a mapping component indicating conversion of input data and business data of a business program linked to the business node, and ID 344 of a mapping component indicating conversion of output data. For example, in the first row of this table, the adapter attribute part 301 with ID "A1" and the mapping part 306 with ID "M1" are associated with the business node (estimate) 321 with respect to the output data, and the mapping is performed for the input data. Indicates that there is nothing in particular.

【0025】

The association information between parts such as the adapter program associated with the adapter attribute part, the input / output data format of the adapter attribute part, and the conversion source (destination) data format of the mapping part is retained as the attribute of each part.

【0026】

As shown in FIG. 3, in the present invention, the business program linkage information is made into a component, and the component is associated with the business node on the business process and the adapter program that executes the business program, thereby linking the business program to the business process. Information is defined, and the defined component association information 121 is stored in disk 113 of the development environment node 110.

【0027】

Figure 4 shows a screen for associating the above adapter attribute parts and mapping parts with the business node of the business process, and describes the procedure for associating the linkage information parts with the business node.

【0028】

Here, the case of associating the adapter attribute component with the business node (estimate) 203 displayed on the business process definition screen 200 will be described. First, the adapter attribute component selection screen 400 is displayed by selecting the icon indicating the business node on the business process definition screen 200 with the mouse and selecting "adapter attribute" from the attribute settings. A list of already defined adapter attribute parts (401, 402, 403) is displayed as an icon on the screen. Next, the user selects the adapter attribute component associated with the business node 203 selected on the business process definition screen 200 from the list. In the example of FIG. 4, the state where the adapter attribute component "A2" is selected is shown. Then, by clicking the selection button 411, the display of the adapter attribute component selection screen ends, and the association definition between the business node 203 and the adapter attribute component 402 is completed. At this time, the association information is stored in the business node linkage attribute table 340. Follow the same procedure to associate data format parts and mapping parts.

【0029】

As described above, the present invention provides a means for defining business program linkage information for a component of a business process by a visual operation of selecting a component icon displayed on the screen. This allows the user to clearly grasp the relationship.

【0030】

Figure 5 shows the processing flow when associating linked information components with business process components. First, the business process definition program 114 displays the business process definition screen 200 (501). When the user selects the business node on the screen and selects the desired attribute setting, the business program linkage information definition program 115 is started.

【0031】

Next, the processing flow in which the business program linkage information definition program 115 selects the target linkage information component will be described. In 502, it is determined whether or not it is possible to associate the specified component with the business node selected by the user on the business process definition screen. For example, when the user selects the source node 201, since the linkage information component cannot be associated with the source node 201, a warning message is displayed and the execution of the (503) business program linkage information definition program ends. The present invention provides a means for automatically avoiding an unreasonable component association operation by the user by the processes 502 and 503.

【0032】

If the business node selected by the user is appropriate as the target for associating the parts, the process proceeds to process 504. In 504, the type of the component to be associated is determined. The process branches according to the item selected by the user as the attribute setting. When the user selects the "adapter attribute", the process proceeds to process 505, the adapter attribute component selection screen is displayed, and the user is made to select the desired component. Similarly, when "data format" is selected, the process transitions to process 506 to display the data format component selection screen, and when "mapping" is selected, the process transitions to process 507 to display the mapping component selection screen. Let the user select the desired part. When the user selects a desired component by processing 505, 506, 507, the display of each component selection screen is terminated, and the ID of the selected component is stored in the business node linkage attribute table or the business data component table (508). ). By such processing, the linkage information component is associated with the business node, and the execution of the business program linkage information definition program is completed.

【0033】

Figure 6 shows the attributes held by the linked information components. First, the list information of all the parts defined in the cooperation information parts list table 600 is managed. The cooperation information component list table 600 is composed of the defined component type 601, the component ID 602, and the table name 603 in which the detailed attributes of the component are stored. For example, the first row of this table shows that the adapter attribute part with the ID "A1" exists, and the detailed attributes are stored in the table "TBLA001".

【0034】

The adapter attribute component attribute table 610 is a table that stores the attributes of one adapter attribute component, and is the component name 611, the component ID 612, the corresponding adapter program ID 613, and the input data format for the corresponding business program. It is composed of the ID 614 of the data format component indicating the output data format and the ID 615 of the data format component also indicating the output data format.

【0035】

The data format component attribute table 620 is a table that stores the attributes of one data format component, and is composed of the component name 621, the component ID 622, and the attributes of the data items defined in the data format component. Definitions of multiple data items can be stored in one data format component. For one data item, store the item name 623, the data type 624, and the data size 625.

【0036】

The mapping component attribute table 630 is a table that stores the attributes of one mapping component, and includes the component name 631, the component ID 632, the data format indicating the format of the conversion source data, the component ID 633, and the format of the conversion destination data. It is composed of the ID 634 of the data format component indicating the above and the name 635 of the table indicating the correspondence between the data items. The data item mapping table 636 is a table corresponding to the item 635 of the mapping component attribute table 630, and is composed of the conversion source item name 637, the conversion destination item name 638, and the conversion rule 639. ..

【0037】

Figure 7 shows a screen for defining data format components, and the procedure is explained. As described with reference to FIG. 4, the data format component selection screen 700 is a screen for the user to select a desired component. When selecting a part, if the part desired by the user is undefined, a new part is generated. Since the generated new part has an icon added to the part list of the data format part selection screen 700, the user can select the part.

【0038】

The procedure for generating new parts will be described. First, when the add button 701 of the data format component selection screen 700 is clicked, the data format component attribute definition screen 710 is displayed. Next, the attributes of the required data format components are input on the screen. Finally, by closing the screen, a new data format component is generated, and the icon of the generated component is additionally displayed on the data format component selection screen 700.

【0039】

To change the attributes of the defined parts, select the target icon from the parts list on the data format part selection screen 700 and click the edit button 702. Since the data format component attribute definition screen 710 is displayed in the same manner as the new generation, the necessary attribute items are modified and the component attribute editing is completed by closing the screen.

【0040】

Data format Select a part from the list of parts selection screen 700 and click the delete button 703 to delete the specified part. In this way, the icon of the specified part is deleted from the list.

【0041】

As described above, in the present invention, there is no need to program the generation of each cooperation information component and the attribute definition, and the operation is completed by the operation with the mouse and the minimum parameter input. Follow the same procedure for defining adapter attribute parts and mapping parts.

【0042】

Figure 8 shows the data format component selection processing flow. In 801, the information of the data format component defined for displaying the component list on the data format component selection screen 700 is read. Based on the read information, the data format component selection screen 700 is displayed on 802. The process is branched at 803 by the user's operation.

【0043】

When the user clicks the add button 701 in process 803, a new data format part is generated in 804 and a unique part ID is automatically assigned. In 805, the generated component type (data format) and component ID are added to the linkage information component list table 600. After that, the data format component attribute definition screen 710 is displayed on 807, and the user is asked to input the required component attributes. When the user completes the input of the attribute and closes the screen, the input component attribute is reflected in the data format component attribute table 620. After that, it returns to process 802 and redisplays the parts list including newly added parts.

【0044】

When the user clicks the edit button 702 in process 803, the data format component attribute definition screen is displayed in process 807 based on the attribute of the component specified from the list. When the user finishes attribute editing and closes the screen as in the case of new creation, the modified part attribute is reflected in the data format part attribute table 620 and the process returns to process 802.

【0045】

When the user clicks the delete button 703 in process 803, the parts specified in the list in process 806 are deleted from the linkage information parts list table 600. Then, the process returns to process 802, and the parts list excluding the deleted parts is displayed again.

【0046】

When the user selects a desired part in process 803 and clicks the selection button 704, the ID of the part selected by the user as a result of the selection process is returned and the process ends.

【0047】

With the screens and processes described above, it is possible to generate cooperation information parts and associate the parts with the components of the business process. However, regarding the definition of cooperation information, it is necessary to define not only the association between the components of the business process and the cooperation information component but also the association between the components. For example, the definition of associating an adapter attribute component with a data format component that is input / output data corresponds to this. Therefore, the procedure for defining the association between parts will be described next.

【0048】

Figure 9 shows the screen used when associating the adapter attribute component with the data format component that indicates the data format of the input / output data of the business program.

【0049】

The adapter attribute component attribute definition screen 900 is a screen for defining the attributes of one adapter attribute component in the same manner as the data format component attribute definition screen 710 described with reference to FIG. 7, and the user can use the component name 901, the adapter program ID 903, and the like. To input. Here, when the registration button 906 is clicked to define the data format 905 of the output data of the corresponding business program, the data format component selection screen 700 described with reference to FIG. 7 is displayed. The user selects a component indicating the output data format from the list of data format components displayed on the screen, and clicks the selection button 704. The display of the data format component selection screen 700 ends and the ID of the selected data format component is displayed in 905. Do the same for the input data format. By such work, the association between parts can be defined.

【0050】

As shown in FIG. 9, FIG. 10 shows an adapter attribute component selection process flow including associating a data format component as an attribute of the adapter attribute component.

【0051】

In processes 1001 to 1007, as in the data format component selection process described in FIG. 8, the adapter attribute component selection screen is displayed, new components are generated according to user input, component attributes are edited, and components are deleted. The ID of the finally selected part is returned and the process ends. However, in the adapter attribute component selection process, a process is added in which the user associates the input / output data format of the business program when the adapter attribute component attribute definition screen 900 is displayed in process 1007. When the user clicks the registration button 906 on the screen, the process proceeds to the data format component selection process described with reference to FIG. 8 to select the target data format component (1008). When the user clicks the edit button 907 on the screen, the data format component attribute definition screen 710 shown in FIG. 7 is displayed and the attributes of the data format component are edited (1009).

【0052】

In such a processing flow, the attribute definition of the adapter attribute component and the association of the data format component indicating the input / output data format are performed. The attribute definition of the mapping component and the association of the data format component indicating the format of the conversion source (destination) data are also performed on the same screen and processing flow.

【0053】

The screens and processes described above complete the definition of business process definition information 116, component association information 121, and linkage information components required to execute a business program that links with business process control. .. After that, in order to operate the entire system, the defined information is distributed and distributed in the execution environment. The procedure of distributed arrangement will be described with reference to FIG.

【0054】

First, the business process definition information 116 is placed on the disk device 131 of the work management node 130 on which the workflow program 132 operates (133).

【0055】

Next, the adapter attribute component 117, the data format component 118, and the mapping component 119 are arranged on the disk device 141 of the business program linkage node 140 in which the adapter program 142 operates (143).

【0056】

Finally, the adapter operation information 144 required for the adapter program 142 to operate is generated from the component association information 121, and is placed in the disk device 141 of the business program cooperation node 140. The adapter operation information 144 is automatically generated by the business program linkage information definition program 115.

【0057】

The structure of the adapter operation information 144 is shown in FIG. The adapter operation information 144 is information used by the adapter program 142 called from the business process to obtain information on its own runtime method and input / output data conversion, and is configured by the adapter operation information table 1100. Each row of the table is automatically generated based on the definition contents of each row of the business node linkage attribute table 340 described with reference to FIG.

【0058】

The adapter operation information table 1100 contains data related to the operation ID 1101 specified when starting the adapter program 142, the ID 1102 of the adapter attribute component having the run-time attribute of the started adapter program, and the input data to the corresponding business program. It is composed of the ID1103 of the mapping component that has the mapping information and the ID 1104 of the mapping component of the output data. The adapter operation ID 1101 is automatically generated by the business program linkage information definition program 115 when each row is generated, and the remaining items are generated from the values of the corresponding rows in the business node linkage attribute table 340.

【0059】

Execute the system after deploying the necessary definition information and programs. First, start the adapter program 142. At this time, the adapter operation ID stored in the above adapter operation information table 1100 is passed as an argument. The adapter program 142 refers to the operation information based on the passed ID. Figure 12 shows the processing flow at runtime.

【0060】

Processes 1201 to 1204 are process flows in which the workflow program 132 of the work management node 130 controls the business process. In 1201, the transitions defined in the business process definition information 133 are followed in order, and the control of the entire business process is terminated when the business processing related to all the business nodes is completed. If there is an unexecuted business node in 1201, transition to process 1202 and acquire the information of the target business node. In 1203, the adapter program 142 corresponding to the acquired business node is called by referring to the business node table described in FIG. Detects the end notification from the adapter program that executed the target business program in 1204 and returns to process 1201.

【0061】

The processes 1211 to 1219 are the processing flows of the adapter program 142 of the business program linkage node 140. Process 1211 acquires the information necessary for its own execution from the adapter operation information 144. In 1212, the corresponding linkage information component 143 (mapping component) is acquired from the input mapping component ID of the acquired adapter operation information. In 1213, the data format component indicating the format of the conversion source (destination) data is acquired from the acquired mapping component. In 1214, business data is acquired from the business data DB 134 of the work management node 130, and data to be passed to the business program is generated based on the data format component acquired in 1213 and the mapping component acquired in 1212. In 1215, the business program 151 that performs the actual business processing is started, and the input data generated in 1214 is passed. After the execution of the business program is completed, 1216 acquires the mapping component from the output mapping component ID of the adapter operation information acquired in 1211. In 1217, a data format component indicating the format of the conversion source (destination) data is acquired from the acquired mapping component. In 1218, the business data to be stored in the business data DB 134 is generated based on the data output by the business program and the mapping parts and data format parts acquired in 1216 and 1217. In 1219, the generated business data is stored in the business data DB 134, and the execution of the adapter program 142 ends.

【0062】

According to the embodiment described above, it is possible to generate information for executing a business program that performs individual business processing in accordance with the transition of a business process, and to execute the system based on the generated information.

【0063】

In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 13, one linked information component can be associated with a plurality of business nodes of the same business process. Further, as shown in FIG. 14, it is possible to share the cooperation information component even in the association between the components. In FIG. 13, since the same business program 1304 is used by the business node 1301 and the business node 1302, it is an example in which the adapter attribute component 1303 named "A1" is associated from both. FIG. 14 shows an example in which the adapter attribute parts 1401 to 1403 associate the data format parts 1411 to 1413, respectively. In this way, since the linked information components can be shared within the same business process, it is possible to avoid duplication of similar definition work. In the present invention, according to the following embodiment, the above-mentioned linked information component can be shared among a plurality of different business processes.

【0064】

Next, a second embodiment (Example 2) of the present invention will be described. Figure 15 shows the system configuration when the linked information components are shared by different business processes. As described with reference to FIG. 1, the work management node 130, the business program cooperation node 140, and the business program node 150 are connected to the network 101 for business process control and business program cooperation execution. Also, connect development node 1 to development node N for defining each business process and cooperation information (1501, 1502). Each development node has the same program and definition information as development node 1. Furthermore, it is composed of a public parts management node 1510 for managing linked information parts independent of business processes.

【0065】

The public component management node 1510 is composed of a disk device 1511 that stores public component information shared between different business processes and a public component management program 1512 that exchanges public component information. The disk device 1511 has an embodiment. The public parts storage 1516 that stores the adapter attribute parts 1513, data format parts 1514, and mapping parts 1515 described in 1 and the public parts list information 1517 that has the list information of the cooperation information parts stored in the public parts storage are stored. ..

【0066】

Here, the procedure for sharing the linked information component among a plurality of different business processes will be described.

【0067】

First, in the development node 1, the cooperation information component related to the business process managed in the development node 1 is defined by the procedure described in the first embodiment. The parts defined here are private parts stored in the private parts storage 120.

【0068】

For example, when the data format component "F1" is shared between business processes, a duplicate component "EF1" having the same definition content as the data format component is generated. Then, the generated duplicate parts are stored in the public parts storage 1511 of the public parts management node 1510 as public parts that can be referred to by any development node. The process of generating a public part from the private part is called an export process, and the generation of the duplicate part and the storage in the public parts storage are automatically performed based on the icon operation on the screen by the user. Subsequently, when the data format part "EF1" stored in the public parts storage 1516 is diverted at the development node N, a duplicate part "F2" of the public parts is generated and stored in the private parts storage of the development node N. Store the generated parts. The process of generating a private part from the public part is called an import process, and like the export process, the process of generating a duplicate part and storing it in the private parts storage is automatically performed based on a user's instruction. By providing the two means such as the export process of the private part and the import process of the public part in this way, the defined cooperation information part can be shared by a plurality of different business processes.

【0069】

FIG. 16 shows the cooperation information component selection screen 1600 when operating public components. In this embodiment, the screen as shown in FIG. 16 is used for selecting the linkage information component described in the first embodiment. At the top of the screen, a list of private parts is shown as in Example 1 (1601). On the other hand, at the bottom of the screen, a list of public parts existing in the public parts storage is displayed (1602). For example, when the user imports the public part "EF4", drag the icon indicating the part "EF4" and drop it on the private parts list (1601) as shown in the figure. Private parts with the same attributes as "EF4" dragged by the user are generated and additionally displayed in the private parts list. For export, drag the icon of the desired private part and drop it on the list of public parts (1602), contrary to import. Finally, select the desired part from the private parts and click the select button 1603. The display and processing of this screen is performed by the business program linkage information definition program of the development node.

【0070】

Figure 17 shows the component selection process flow when exporting / importing linked information components. In the process 1701, the list information of the private parts and the public parts is acquired from the cooperation information parts list table 600 shown in the first embodiment and the public parts list information 1517. The public parts list information 1517 is composed of the same table as the cooperation information parts list table 600. In process 1702, the screen shown in FIG. 16 is displayed. When the user clicks the add button 1604, the edit button 1605, or the delete button 1606 in the process 1703, the process described in the first embodiment is executed, and the process returns to the process 1702 to redisplay the parts list. If the selection button 1603 is selected here, the process proceeds to process 1707. If the icon is dragged and dropped from the list of private parts or public parts, the process proceeds to 1704. In process 1704, the type of the dragged part is determined, and if the dragged part is a private part, the process proceeds to process 1705, and if the dragged part is a public part, the process proceeds to process 1706. In process 1705, an export process for generating a public part based on the dragged private part is executed. In process 1706, an import process for generating a private part based on the dragged public part is executed. After executing processes 1705 and 1706, the process returns to process 1702 and the parts list is displayed again. When the user selects the selection button 1603 in process 1703 and transitions to process 1707, the type of the selected part is determined. If the selected part is a public part, the part selection is invalidated and the process returns to process 1702. If the selected part is a private part, the ID of the selected part is returned and the entire part selection process ends.

【0071】

In the export process, the information of the private part dragged in the process 1711 is acquired. In process 1712, a new part having the same attribute is generated based on the acquired private part information. In process 1713, the generated duplicate parts are requested to the public parts management program 1512 and stored in the public parts storage 1516. In process 1714, the generated parts list information is requested to the public parts management program 1512 and added to the public parts list information 1517.

【0072】

In the import process, the information of the public part dragged in the process 1721 is queried to the public parts management program 1512 and acquired. In processing 1722, a new part having the same attribute is generated based on the acquired public part information. In process 1723, the generated duplicate parts are stored in the private parts storage 120. In process 1724, the generated component list information is added to the linkage information component list table 600.

【0073】

According to the embodiment described above, by exporting the cooperation information parts defined in the development node to the public parts storage and importing the public parts in different development nodes, it is possible to share the parts in a plurality of different business processes. ..

【0074】

Next, a third embodiment (Example 3) of the present invention will be described. In the description of FIG. 5 of the first embodiment, the means for the user to refuse the association of the unjustified cooperation information component with the component in the business process has been described. Similarly, by the processing described in this embodiment, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of a failure during business process control and linked execution of business programs.

【0075】

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 of the first embodiment, the linked information component of the present invention can be associated (shared) with a plurality of business process elements or a plurality of other components. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 13, the adapter attribute component 1303 is associated with the business node 1301 and the business node 1302. However, if the attribute of the part is modified again as the attribute of the business node 1301 in such a situation, the modified content also affects the business node 1302, and if the user does not intend this, at the time of execution. May cause failure. Therefore, when one linked information component is shared by a plurality of business process elements or a plurality of other components in this way, the attribute editing of the component and the process of refusing the deletion of the component are provided. This makes it possible to avoid the above-mentioned failure occurrence.

【0076】

Figure 18 shows the processing flow for refusing to delete / edit shared parts in the selection process of linked information parts. The processing flow described here is common to the adapter attribute component, the data format component, and the mapping component.

【0077】

In process 1801, in order to display the parts list on the screen, the parts list information is acquired from the cooperation information parts list table 600. In process 1802, the parts selection screen is displayed from the acquired list information. If the user clicks the select button in process 1803, the entire selection process ends. When the user clicks the add button in process 1803, the process proceeds to process 1804 and a new part is generated. In process 1805, the information of the newly generated parts is added to the linkage information parts list table 600, and after defining the detailed attributes of the parts added in process 1806, the process returns to process 1802. When the user clicks the edit button in process 1803, the process proceeds to process 1807 to determine whether the selected part is in the shared state. If the part is not in the shared state, the process proceeds to process 1806, the detailed attributes of the part are edited, and the process returns to process 1802. When the component is in the shared state, the process 1808 indicates to the user that the component is in the shared state, and the process proceeds to process 1809. In process 1809, the detailed attributes of the part are displayed, but the attribute edit is not accepted from the user, only the attributes are browsed, and the process returns to process 1802 after the browsing is completed. When the user clicks the delete button in process 1803, the process proceeds to process 1810 to determine whether the selected part is in the shared state. If the component is not in the shared state, the process proceeds to process 1812, the designated component is deleted from the linkage information component list table 600, and the process returns to process 1802. If the part is in the shared state, the process 1811 indicates to the user that the part is in the shared state, and the process returns to process 1802 without deleting the part.

【0078】

FIG. 19 shows a flow of the associative search process of the parts mentioned in the explanation of FIG. Processes 1901 to 1905 search for the association between the target part and the business process component (1900), and processes 1911 to 1918 search for the association between the target part and other parts (1910). First, the process of searching for the association between the target component and the business process component will be described. In the process 1901, the type of the target component is determined. If the target part is a data format part, the process proceeds to 1902, and it is determined from the business data part table 330 whether the target part is associated with the business data. If the part is associated with business data, the process proceeds to 1921 and the process is terminated as "associated". If the part is not associated with business data, the process proceeds to process 1911. If the target component is an adapter attribute component or a mapping component, transition to process 1903 and acquire information for one line from the business node linkage attribute table 340. In process 1904, if all the rows on the table have already been processed in process 1903, the process proceeds to process 1911, and if there are unprocessed rows, the process proceeds to process 1905. In process 1905, it is determined whether the target component is associated with the business node acquired in process 1903. If it is not associated, it returns to process 1903, and if it is associated, it transitions to 1921 and ends the process as "related".

【0079】

Next, the process of searching for the association between the target part and other parts will be described. In process 1911, the type of target component is determined. If the target part is a data format part, the process proceeds to process 1912. In the process 1912, the attribute table information of the adapter attribute component or the mapping component is referred to from the linkage information list table 600, and the attribute table information of the component is acquired. In process 1913, if all the rows on the table have already been processed in process 1912, the process transitions to 1922 and the process ends as "unrelated", and if there are unprocessed rows remaining. Transition to process 1914. In process 1914, if the target part is associated as the adapter input / output data of the acquired part or the mapping conversion source (destination) data, the process transitions to 1921 and the process is terminated as "associated", and the association is established. If not, return to process 1912. If the target part is an adapter attribute part in process 1911, the process proceeds to process 1915. In process 1915, the ID of the data format component associated with the input / output data of the target component is acquired. In process 1916, detailed attributes are acquired by referring to the attribute table of the mapping component from the row of the mapping component in the linkage information list table 600. In process 1917, if all the mapping parts have already been processed in process 1916, the process proceeds to 1922 and the process ends as "no association", and if there are unprocessed mapping parts, the process proceeds to process 1918. In process 1918, it is determined whether or not the data format component associated with the input / output data of the adapter component is associated with the conversion source (destination) data of the mapping component. If it is associated as the conversion source (destination) data of the mapping part, it transitions to 1921 and ends the process as "associated", and if it is not associated, returns to process 1916. If the target part is a mapping part in process 1911, transition to 1922 and end the process as "no association".

【0080】

As described above in this embodiment, by providing a means for automatically rejecting the deletion / attribute editing of the linked information component in the shared state, a failure occurs during business process control and linked execution of the business program. Can be prevented in advance.

【0081】

Next, a fourth embodiment (Example 4) of the present invention will be described. According to the examples described so far, it is possible to generate business program cooperation information, control a business process, and execute business program cooperation. However, if the user forgets to define the necessary cooperation information component or associate the component, a failure may occur at the time of execution. In this embodiment, a process for verifying the cooperation information defined by the user will be described in order to avoid the occurrence of a run-time failure due to the lack of the cooperation information definition.

【0082】

The following six items must be properly defined so that run-time failures do not occur. When the adapter attribute part is associated with a business node, (1) the adapter program ID is set for the part, and (2) if the part has input / output data, the data format part is included in the business data. Are associated, (3) the mapping corresponding to the input / output data of the component is defined, and (4) the input / output data ID and the conversion data ID of the mapping component of (3) are the same. , (5) The conversion data ID on the business data side of the mapping component in (3) is the same as the data format component ID in (2), and the correspondence of the data items is defined in the mapping component in (6) and (3). It is necessary to be there.

【0083】

Fig. 20 and Fig. 21 show the verification processing flow of the linkage information definition that verifies the above conditions. This process is a process executed by the business program linkage information definition program 115 according to the instruction of the user, and may be executed immediately before the user finishes the definition of the linkage information and distributes the definition information in the execution environment.

【0084】

The variable PD_FLAG (2021) is a flag indicating that the data format component corresponding to the business data is associated. The variable PD_ID (2022) is the ID of the data format component that represents the format of the business data. The variable ERR_MSG (2023) is a variable that accumulates the message character string related to the definition error during the verification process, and is used to present the verification result to the user at the end of this process.

【0085】

In process 2001, the variable PD_FLAG is initialized. In process 2002, the business data component table 330 is referred to, and the ID of the data format component representing the format of the business data is assigned to the variable PD_ID. If the ID is undefined in the table, set NULL. In the process 2003, the business node linkage attribute table 340 is referred to, and the information related to one business node is acquired. If the verification of all business nodes has already been completed in process 2003, the process transitions to process 2005 from 2004, and the error message accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG is presented to the user to end the process. If there is an unverified business node in process 2003, transition to process 2006. In the process 2006, the component information is acquired from the adapter attribute component ID in the information acquired in the process 2003. In process 2007, it is verified whether the adapter program ID is set in the acquired adapter attribute component, and if it is not set, the process proceeds to process 2008 and the error message is accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG. In process 2009, if the input / output data is not defined in the acquired adapter attribute component, the process returns to process 2003. If input / output data is defined in the adapter attribute component, transition to process 2010. In process 2010, if the variable PD_FLAG remains OFF and the ID of the data format component is not set in the variable PD_ID and is NULL, the process transitions to process 2011 and the data format component corresponding to the business data. Accumulate undefined messages in the variable ERR_MSG. In process 2012, the variable PD_FLAG is set to ON and the process transitions to process 2101.

【0086】

In process 2101, the component information is acquired from the input / output mapping component ID in the information acquired in process 2003. In process 2102, based on the mapping component acquired in process 2101, it is verified whether the mapping component corresponding to the input / output data of the adapter attribute component acquired in process 2006 is associated with the business node. If an appropriate mapping component is not associated, the error message is accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG in process 2103, and the process returns to process 2003. In process 2104, it is verified that the input / output data ID of the adapter attribute component acquired in process 2006 and the corresponding conversion data ID of the mapping component acquired in process 2101 are the same. If the IDs are different, the error message is accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG in process 2105, and the process returns to process 2003. In process 2106, it is verified that the conversion data ID on the business data side of the mapping component acquired in process 2101 is the same as the variable PD_ID. If the IDs are different, the error message is accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG in process 2107, and the process returns to process 2003. In process 2108, it is verified that the data item mapping table 636 is defined in the mapping component acquired in process 2101. If the correspondence between data items is not defined, the error message is accumulated in the variable ERR_MSG in process 2109 and the process returns to process 2003. If the table is defined, the process proceeds to process 2003 as it is.

【0087】

By providing the processing of this embodiment, it is possible to automatically prevent the occurrence of a run-time failure due to the lack of definition of cooperation information of the user.

【0088】

As described above, according to each embodiment of the present invention, the following effects can be obtained. (1) Business programs linked to business nodes in business processes By classifying linked information and dividing it into parts in small units, it is possible to avoid multiple definitions of linked information and build a system at an early stage. It also contributes to the reduction of incorrect definitions. (2) Since the data format passed by the business program is defined and managed independently of the business process, it is easy to incorporate the existing data format defined by the external system. (3) The association between the business program linkage information and the business node of the business process can be clearly grasped by the user by providing the user interface to be selected as the target attribute on the business process definition screen. .. In addition, the user does not need any special programming for the business program linkage definition. (4) By storing and retrieving the defined linked information parts in a public parts storage independent of the business process, it is possible to divert the parts not only within the same business process but also between multiple different business processes. (5) By making the business program linkage information independent of the business process definition, the information (linkage information component and adapter program) for linking the target business program is defined in advance before the business process is defined. It can be developed, and the system builder only needs to associate the provided parts.

【0089】

[Effect of the invention]

According to the present invention, a business program can be easily constructed.

[Simple explanation of drawings]

[Figure 1]

This is the system configuration of the first invention.

[Figure 2]

This is an example of the screen that defines the business process to be displayed in 114 and the data to be generated.

[Fig. 3]

This is an example showing the relationship between the program linkage data generated by 115 and the data.

[Fig. 4]

This is an example of the screen for associating the program linkage data displayed in 115.

[Fig. 5]

It is a flow chart of 115 program linkage data association processing.

[Fig. 6]

This is an example of program linkage data generated by 115.

[Fig. 7]

This is an example of a screen for detailed definition of program linkage data (data format) displayed in 115.

[Fig. 8]

It is a flow chart of 115 program linkage data (data format) selection processing.

[Fig. 9]

This is an example of a screen for detailed definition of program linkage data (adapter attribute) displayed in 115.

[Fig. 10]

It is a flow chart of 115 program linkage data (adapter attribute) selection processing.

[Fig. 11]

This is an example of adapter program operation data generated by 115.

[Fig. 12]

It is a flow chart of business process control and program cooperation processing of 132 and 142.

[Fig. 13]

This is an example showing the association of the program linkage data generated by 115.

[Fig. 14]

This is an example showing the association of the program linkage data generated by 115.

[Fig. 15]

This is the system configuration of the fourth invention.

[Fig. 16]

This is an example of a screen for diverting the program linkage data displayed by 115.

[Fig. 17]

115 is a flow chart of a process for diverting program linkage data.

[Fig. 18]

It is a flow chart of the process which avoids the operation of 115 unjust users.

[Fig. 19]

115 is a flow chart of the process for searching the shared reference relationship of the program linkage data.

[Fig. 20]

115 is a flow chart of the process for verifying the validity of the information defined by the user.

[Fig. 21]

115 is a flow chart of the process for verifying the validity of the information defined by the user.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: Network, 111: Display device, 112: Input device, 114: Business process definition program, 115: Business program linkage information definition program, 116, 133: Business process definition information , 121 Parts association information, 117 ~ 119, 143 Cooperation information Parts, 132 Workflow program, 134 Business data DB, 142 Adapter program, 144 Adapter operation information , 151 Business program, 200 Business process definition screen, 210, 220, 230 Tables that make up business process definition information, 330, 340 Tables that make up parts association information, 400 Cooperation information part selection screen, 600, 610, 620, 630, 636 Tables that make up the cooperation information part, 710 Data format part attribute definition screen, 900 Adapter attribute part attribute definition screen, 1100 Table that composes adapter operation information, 1512 Public parts management program, 1517 Public parts list information, 1600 Cooperation information including list display of public parts Parts selection screen