JP2003256628A - Workflow management system and workflow management program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To proceed with processing while conforming to rules and regulations on the procedure with the outside even in the case where the procedure of an internal process changes. <P>SOLUTION: When a business step execution request for a workflow is made from a client, in the case where document transmit processing to the outside corresponding to the business step exists, it is determined whether the processing coincides with the sequence previously determined between systems, and if not, the request information is held. When the business step execution of another related workflow occurs, the determination processing is again conducted and if yes, a determined document is transmitted according to the external business procedure. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to management of a workflow for exchanging data such as documents between companies via a network.

[0002]

[Prior Art] For the purpose of electronic commerce between companies,
Documents such as quotation and purchase order are exchanged. In general, the procedure for exchanging documents with the outside (outside the organization or company) is often determined by standardization.
For example, IEEE Computer magazine October 2000 page 40-47.
The page introduces organizations that standardize specifications such as document formats, business processes, and communication protocols necessary for conducting electronic commerce between companies. For example,
RosettaNet by RosettaNet consortium, XML
Using a language for describing data structures called
It defines procedures for exchanging documents to be exchanged between companies.

On the other hand, in a company, work may not be performed according to a predetermined procedure as in the above-mentioned publicly known example in order to improve efficiency. For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-067130, a workflow for executing a job originally described as a serial flow as a plurality of mutually related business processes in parallel in order to reduce the overall business time. A management system is disclosed.

[0004]

In a business process that requires document exchange with the outside, when the order of the business process changes depending on the processing situation, the technology disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-067130 for efficiency improvement in a company If the above is applied, the order in which the process is performed externally (for example, the order arrangement process to the ordering party and the quotation acquisition process) is different from the predetermined document exchange procedure.

Further, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-293447, one step of the business disclosed to the outside is defined as one of the business procedures within the company.
There is disclosed a workflow management system that absorbs a difference between a business procedure between companies and a business procedure within the company by providing a means for associating with a step.

However, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-293447, it is possible to change the appearance of the processing procedure to the outside, but if the order of internal processing changes dynamically, the procedure disclosed to the outside also changes. ,I can not cope.

An object of the present invention is to provide workflow management capable of advancing processing even when the processing procedure of an internal process changes, while maintaining the rules regarding the processing procedure with the outside.

[0008]

According to the present invention, as means for achieving the above object, in a workflow management system connected to another system via a network, a business step execution request for a workflow is sent from a client. When there is an external document transmission process corresponding to a business step, it is determined whether the process matches the order determined between the systems in advance. Hold and
When the business step of another related workflow is executed, the determination processing is performed again, and if the two match, a batch processing adapter for transmitting a document determined according to an external business procedure is provided.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of a workflow management system according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. The configuration of the system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The computer system 101 and the computer system 121 are connected by a network 114. The workflow management system has the configuration shown in the computer system 101. The computer system 121 may have a similar configuration. Further, although two computer systems are shown here, a large number of computer systems are generally connected to the network 114.

In this embodiment, the workflow management system receives a request from the client 100 and executes a business process for conducting electronic commerce with a customer. Further, the computer system 101 is the ordering source and the computer system 121 is the ordering source. The workflow management system receives a request from the client 100 and manages the state of a business process.
0, a batch processing adapter 112 that receives a request from the client 100 from the workflow processing engine 110, performs document transmission processing to the outside, and transfers a received document to the workflow processing engine 110.

The workflow processing engine 110 manages the state of a business process according to the workflow definition information 104 which describes the processing procedure inside the workflow management system. The workflow processing engine 110 stores information on each business process in the case information storage unit 106. The batch processing adapter 112 is the business process information storage unit 1.
The document exchange with the partner business system is performed according to the business process information which describes the exchange procedure of the document 120 exchanged in the electronic commerce with the outside, which is stored in 02. At that time, judgment information for processing the document is stored in the entrustment information storage unit 108 as needed.

The data structure used in this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 8. Figure 2 (a)
Shows an example of a business process and workflow definition. This business process consists of 3 steps: quotation, ordering, and acceptance. In the quotation, the ordering side sends the request form 202 to the order accepting system 118 and receives the quotation form 204. Next, the order form 206 is sent to the order accepting system 118, and the order form 208 is received. Finally the ordering system 1
The delivery note 210 is received from 18, and the inspection note 212 is sent.

On the other hand, the following flow is defined by the workflow definition information stored in the workflow definition information storage unit 104. Here, two processes are performed in parallel. With the start of the workflow, two business steps 214 and 216 for requesting an estimate and ordering are activated. When the respective business steps 214 and 216 are completed by the processing request from the client 100, the business steps of the estimate receipt 215 and the order confirmation 217 are activated respectively. Then, when the two business steps of the estimate receipt 215 and the order confirmation 217 are completed, the business step 218 of inspection is activated.

FIG. 2B is an example of a table forming a part of the business process information storage unit 102. For each step 220, the sender 222 and the sent document 224,
A receiver 226 of a transmission document 224 from the sender 222 and a transmission document 228 transmitted by the receiver 226 are defined. In step 1, the orderer sends a request, and the orderer receives the request and sends an estimate. In step 2, the orderer sends the purchase order and the orderer sends the order. In step 3, the order sender sends a delivery note, and the order sender sends an inspection note.

FIG. 3A is an example of a table stored in the workflow definition information storage unit 104. When the transmission document 326 is defined for the transition 320 from the transition source business step 322 to the transition destination business step 324, the corresponding document is transmitted when the transition source business step is completed, and the reception document 328 becomes When defined, it indicates that the business step of the transition source is executed / completed when the corresponding document is received.

FIG. 3B is an example of a table of the case information storage unit 106 which stores information for each business process.
In this example, a case ID 310 that distinguishes business processes, a product name 312 of an item to be ordered and placed, a model number 313, a quantity 314, a unit price 316, a delivery date 318 of the item to be ordered and placed are stored.

FIG. 3 (c) is an example of a table stored in the entrustment information storage unit 108 which is information relating to business steps whose processing is suspended in the business process. That is, this is a case where the order request precedes even if the estimate request form is not completed. In this example, with respect to the matter ID 300, the transition ID 302 of the suspended step and the client 10
It is the condition 304 of the data input from 0. In the case ID 001, the unit price is not included in the ordering conditions.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a document used in this embodiment. Each document is described in a format called XML, and the name of the document and a table stored in the case information storage unit 106.
Each item name in (FIG. 3B) is expressed in a format enclosed by inequality signs called tags. On the left side of FIG. 8, a request form 202, an order form 206, and an acceptance form 212 created by the orderer are shown. On the right side of FIG. 8, an estimate sheet 204, an order sheet 208, and a delivery note 210 created by the orderer.
It is shown. Note that this figure shows the document A shown in FIG.
.. to F., the processing procedure itself is not shown.

Next, the processing flow of the batch processing adapter 112 when the execution of the business process in the workflow is requested will be described with reference to FIG. First, when the information input regarding a business step having a business process is input from the client 100 to the batch processing adapter 112 via the workflow processing engine 110 (step 4
00), if it is the information on the new business process, the workflow processing engine 110 is requested to generate the new process and the execution start state is set (step 40).
2).

On the other hand, input 400 from the client 100
Is input of the matter information of the business process that has already been generated (specifying the matter ID), there is a transmission document corresponding to the business step executed by the client 100, and the transmission of the document is still completed. If not, the process proceeds to step 403. The transmission of the document is not completed because the corresponding step has not been completed or the entrustment information storage unit 1
This is the case where the entrustment information of the step corresponding to 08 is stored. If the transmission has been completed or the business step has no transmission processing, the input is not accepted and the processing ends.

Next, it is checked whether or not a transmission operation to the outside corresponding to this business step is possible (step 4).
03). First, the transmission document corresponding to the corresponding business step is stored in the workflow definition information storage unit 104 shown in FIG.
Check according to the table shown in FIG. For example, in the case of an order request step, the transition I in FIG.
From D004, it can be seen that there is a purchase order transmission operation.
On the other hand, it is checked according to the table of the business process definition information storage unit 102 whether or not there is an operation with the outside that needs to be executed before this calling operation. For example, in the case of a purchase order, there is a step of sending a (quotation) request form before sending the purchase order. The purchase order can be sent if the business step of the estimate request corresponding to the step of sending the request is completed, but if it is not completed, the purchase order cannot be sent.

If the transmission is impossible, the input information is registered and stored in the entrustment information storage unit 108 and the process is terminated (step 4).
10). As the condition of the consignment information, the information to be input in the item information is input in the form of a conditional expression. Here, the term “consignment” means that the workflow processing engine 110 has deposited the document information so as to be transmitted to the batch processing adapter 112 in a procedure according to the subsequent business process. It should be noted that this also includes suspending transmission in the same program and transmitting if conditions are met.

If transmission is possible, the input information for ordering and ordering is stored in the table of the case information storage unit 106 (FIG. 3B).
(Step 404). Then, the corresponding business step is completed (step 408), and if the transmission operation corresponding to the process completion is defined, a transmission document is created and transmitted (step 412).

By the above processing, for example, even when the order request processing is performed first, the actual transmission is not performed until the quotation request processing is performed, and the work steps in the workflow are adhered to while complying with the transmission procedure of the business process. Processing can be done in parallel.

Next, the processing flow of the batch processing adapter 112 when a document is received from the other party will be described with reference to FIG.

First, when a document is received, business step processing of a workflow corresponding to the received document is performed (step 500). For example, when the quotation is received, the order information described in the quotation is reflected in the case information (FIG. 3B) as described in the transition ID 005 from the workflow definition 104.

Next, the business process definition information (see FIG. 2)
Referring to (b)), it is determined whether the transmission process is defined next to the process of the received document (step 50).
2). For example, in the case of a quote, the sending of a purchase order is defined next.

If it is not defined, the process ends as it is. If it is defined, the business step of the workflow corresponding to the document to be transmitted next is retrieved from the workflow definition 104, and the consignment condition has already been set for the business step. It is defined and whether the condition is satisfied or not is registered in the entrustment information storage unit 108 in step 410 of FIG. 4 and the table of the item information information storage unit 106 (see FIG. 3).
(B)) is used to make the determination (step 504).

Since the conditions for each data item value of the item information are written in the entrustment conditions, the item conditions are compared with the entrustment conditions for the steps of the corresponding business process. For example, the case ID shown in FIG.
Comparing the consignment information whose transition ID is 003 in 1 and the case information of the case ID 001 shown in FIG. 3B, it is found that there are "item name", "model number", "quantity", and "delivery date" in the contract information Since it does, the conditions are met.
Similarly, if you look at the case ID 002, "price"
However, there is no information in the matter information, and the condition is not satisfied. If the consignment condition is satisfied, a transmission document is generated using the item information and is transmitted (step 50).
8).

By the above-mentioned processing, for example, when the ordering request is created in advance, the process of transmitting the ordering request, which has been suspended as the consignment information, receives the quotation,
It can be automatically executed when the processing procedure of the business process is met.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the processing of the business steps on the workflow management system is performed in parallel in order to improve the efficiency of the business, the document transmission to the outside corresponding to the processing is determined. When the business process procedure is not met, the transmission is suspended, and later, when the progress of other processes makes it possible to satisfy the business process procedure, the transmission can be performed automatically. It is possible to carry out electronic commerce according to a determined business process while raising the value.

Next, the configuration of the system according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The description of the computer system 101 constituting the workflow management system is similar to that of the first embodiment, but in this embodiment, the computer system 121 is replaced by the business system 118.
And a batch reception processing adapter 116. The business system 118 performs, for example, a request for quotation in ordering and ordering, and a request for ordering.

The batch reception processing adapter 116 receives a document received from the workflow management system via the network 114, calls the business system 118 according to the business process information and the entrustment information, and processes the reply document.

Next, the data structure used in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 9. 2 and 3 in this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 shows an example of a document used in this embodiment. It should be noted that this indicates the order of appearance of documents, and does not indicate the procedure of processing. The present embodiment is characterized in that the documents shown in FIG. 8 are combined and that the documents include the conditions of the entrustment information.

Next, the processing flow of the batch processing adapter 112 when the execution of a business process in a workflow is requested will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 6. In FIG. 4, steps 400 to 410 to 40
8 is the same as that of the first embodiment, and step 41 in FIG.
Since the processing of FIG. 6 is executed in place of step 2,
After the end of 08, description will be made with reference to FIG.

After step 408, in FIG. 6, a document corresponding to the completed work step is created (step 604). Next, it is determined whether or not the next business step is defined on the condition that the business step is completed based on the table of the business process information storage unit 102 (FIG. 2B) (605). For example, if the estimation step is completed, it means that the business step of the purchase order is possible.

Next, it is judged whether or not the condition of the entrustment information of the transition ID of the item for another transmission document is satisfied (step 606). According to the above determination, if the condition is not satisfied, the transmission document including the entrustment information is generated (step 608). If the condition is satisfied, a transmission document that does not include entrustment information is generated (step 610).

After the above processing, if there is no more transmittable document, the generated documents are concatenated and transmitted.
(Step 612) By this processing, for example, when the order request processing is performed in advance and the quotation request is performed later, it is possible to simultaneously send the order sheet including the order conditions when the request sheet is sent.

Next, the processing flow of the batch reception processing adapter 116 when the business system 118 receives a document obtained by combining a plurality of documents as shown in FIG. 9 will be described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 7, the document is received and the first part of the combined document is retrieved (step 700).
Next, the business system 118 is requested to perform processing using the extracted part (step 702). For example, in the case of a quotation request, a system for performing quotation processing will be called.

Next, from the system 118 that requested the processing,
If there is output information, a reply document is created using it (step 704). For example, in the case of the quotation process, information for filling in the quotation is output, and the quotation is generated using the information.

Next, if there is the next part of the received merged document and the document of the part has entrustment information, the document
The condition of the consignment information is evaluated based on the contents of the estimate (for example, a quote) (step 706). For example, in the example shown in FIG. 9, the request form 20 which is the first part of the combined document 902.
When the quotation 204 is generated based on 2, the quotation 204
Contents and purchase order 20 which is the second part of the combined document 902
Compare the conditions entered in the consignment information in 6. In this case, the condition of "delivery date" in the condition satisfies the condition of "delivery date" of the quotation, and therefore satisfies the condition.

If the condition is satisfied, a document in which the element included in the condition of the entrustment information of the next part is an element of a normal document is generated, and it is set as the document of the next part. In the case of the example in FIG. 9, a purchase order 206 having “delivery date” as a normal element
Is generated (step 710). Repeat from step 702 for this part. If the condition is not satisfied, a document to the effect that the consignment condition is not satisfied is generated (step 708). Finally, the created documents are combined and returned to the reply destination (step 712). In the example of FIG. 9, 904 is returned.

By this processing, for example, when the order receiving side receives a purchase order together with the request form together with the ordering conditions, if the ordering conditions are satisfied, the ordering process is performed without returning the estimation result to the ordering side, and the result is returned. You can reply in bulk.

As described above, in the present embodiment, by transmitting the documents collectively, it is possible to carry out the electronic commerce according to the determined business process while reducing the overhead due to the exchange with the other party.

Although two embodiments relating to electronic commerce have been described above, the present invention is not limited to electronic commerce and can also be applied when conducting procedural work between two organizations.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention,
When processing a business step on the workflow management system, when sending the document to the outside that corresponds to the processing does not match the determined business process procedure, the sending is suspended, and later due to the progress of other processing. When the procedure of the business process is satisfied, the transmission can be automatically performed, so that the electronic commerce according to the determined business process can be performed while improving the work efficiency. In addition, by sending messages in a batch, it is possible to carry out electronic commerce according to a predetermined business process while reducing the overhead due to communication with the other party.

[0049]

According to the present invention, when performing a workflow process, a plurality of processes can be carried out in parallel while following a process determined with the outside.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration example in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a business process and workflow definition in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a table structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a consignment information registration processing flow according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a batch processing flow in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second example of the batch processing flow in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a batch reception flow in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a document used for transmission and reception in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a second example of a document used for transmission / reception in an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

100 ... Client, 101 ... Workflow management system, 102 ... Business process information, 1
04 ... Workflow definition information, 106 ... Matter information, 108 ... Commission information, 110 ... Workflow processing engine, 112 ... Batch processing adapter, 114
... Network, 116 ... Batch reception processing adapter, 118 ... Business system, 120 ... Document

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Yoko Seki             1099 Ozenji, Aso-ku, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture             Ceremony company Hitachi Systems Development Laboratory

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A workflow management system connected to another business system via a network, wherein when a client requests a business step execution of a workflow, a document corresponding to the business step is sent to the other business system. When there is a transmission process, there is a means for determining whether or not the process matches the order determined beforehand between the systems, and when there is no match, a means for holding the execution result of the business step, and other related A workflow management system, further comprising: means for performing the determination process again when a business step of a workflow is executed, and transmitting a document based on the held execution result when the determination step is matched. 2. The workflow management system according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of business steps are executed in parallel. 3. A workflow management system connected to another business system via a network, wherein when a client requests a business step execution of a workflow, a document corresponding to the business step is sent to the other business system. When there is a transmission process, there is a means for determining whether or not the process matches the order determined beforehand between the systems, and when there is no match, a means for holding the execution result of the business step, and other related When the business step of the workflow is executed, the determination process is performed again, and if the two match, the document based on the held execution result and the document based on the execution result of the other related business step are collectively transmitted. A workflow management system comprising: 4. A unit connected to another business system via a network to collectively receive documents created based on execution results of a plurality of related business steps, and the document is the other business system. And a means for collectively returning documents relating to a plurality of business steps corresponding to the document when the items described in the business step are provided between the batch reception processing adapter. 5. A workflow management system connected to another business system via a network, wherein when a client requests a business step execution of a workflow, a document transmission process corresponding to the business step to the other business system. If there is, the means for judging whether or not the processing matches the order determined in advance between the systems, and if not, means for holding the execution result of the business step and other related workflows. A workflow management program for causing the determination process to be performed again when there is a business step execution, and for functioning as a means for transmitting a document based on the held execution result when there is a match.