Patent ID: 6697784
Filing Date: 2004-02-24
Classification: G06Q,Y10S

Abstract:
A workflow system comprising:a workflow definition comprising a plurality of activities, each activity being performed by at least one workflow participant or at least one agent; one or more personal subflows comprising one or more personal subflow activities, a personal subflow activity being defined as an activity from said plurality of activities, wherein a workflow participant among a plurality of workflow participants performs all of the personal subflow activities within a personal subflow, and wherein each of the one or more personal subflow activities 1) presents one or more display pages to the participant, 2) accepts participant entered data, and 3) evaluates the participant entered data in accordance with branch expressions associated with each of the one or more personal subflow activities; a server for interpreting the workflow definition and facilitating the scheduling and routing of work items in the system; a client to receive a work item from the server and to display information therefrom to the participant; and a decision agent that cooperates with the server in the scheduling and routing of work items by considering work item data comprising participant entered data and a branch expression associated with a first personal subflow activity and that determines how the work item data will be subsequently routed to a second personal subflow activity or out of the personal subflow.