Patent Document

TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0001]    The present invention is directed to the field of office automation, and, more particularly, to the field of processing requests for approval.  
         BACKGROUND  
         [0002]    Many business organizations utilize approval processes that identify cases in which one member of the organization (the “requester”) must submit a request for approval by one or more additional members of the organization (“approvers”). For example, an organization&#39;s approval process may require certain members of the organization to obtain approval from their manager, then their manager&#39;s manager each time they submit a time sheet recording the hours that they have worked. Typical approval processes may require members of the organization to submit such a request in a variety of other circumstances, such as the following: expense reports, time sheets, time off requests, objectives &amp; reviews, hires, promotions, training requests, incentive compensation requests, contracts, purchase orders, quotes, press releases, and content for web posting.  
           [0003]    In a typical organization, some of these types of approval requests are generated manually by the requester, then forwarded on paper or via electronic mail to the appropriate sequence of approvers. For example, transfer requests may be manually generated by requesters, then forwarded to necessary approvers. In such cases, each member of the organization participating in the approval process (the requester and all approvers) must fully understand the approval process specified for requests of this type, and route the request in accordance with this process. For example, a requester generating a transfer request must know that the request must be routed to his or her manager, and so route the request. The requester&#39;s manager must approve the request, know that the request must be routed to his or her manager, and so route the request. The requester&#39;s manager&#39;s manager must approve the request, know that the request must be routed to a particular administrator for further action, and so route the request. This approach requires a significant level of process knowledge and participation by all members involved in the approval process.  
           [0004]    Certain types of approval requests may be generated using one of a number of different application programs. For example, a time sheet application may be used to generate time sheets and automatically route them through an approval process, while a separate purchase order application is used to generate purchase orders and automatically route them through an approval process. In such cases, in order for these requests to be automatically routed in this way, one or more approval processes must be created for each application. Such creation is in many cases difficult. For example, the person creating the approval process may be required to write a computer program that implements the approval process in a general-purpose programming language. Further, once an approval process is created for one application, it must be re-created for each additional application with which it is to be used. This may require significant additional effort, as the creation process often varies significantly between applications. In the above example, for instance, the person creating an approval process for the time sheet application may be required to re-create that approval process for the purchase order application.  
           [0005]    In view of the substantial shortcomings of the conventional approaches to routing approval requests discussed above, a more effective and user-friendly approach would have significant utility. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]    [0006]FIG. 1 shows a multi-layered system architecture in which the teachings of the present invention are implemented.  
         [0007]    [0007]FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of one embodiment of a system configuration in which the teachings of the present invention are implemented.  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 3 shows a block diagram illustrating another logical representation of a multi-layered architecture in which applications can be built in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of one embodiment of an application framework in which the teachings of the present invention may be implemented.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 5 is a display diagram showing the first in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 6 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the start approval process element instance whose creation is show in FIG. 5.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 7 is a display diagram showing the second in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 8 is display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the AND approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 7.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 9 is a display diagram showing the third in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 10 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the OR approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 9.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 11 is a display diagram showing the fourth in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility.  
         [0017]    FIGS.  12 - 18  are display diagrams showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the gate approval process element instances whose creation is shown in FIG. 11.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 19 is a display diagram showing the fifth in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 20 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the decision point approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 19.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 21 is a display diagram showing a fully-defined version of the request approval process. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0021]    I. Introduction  
         [0022]    A software facility for defining an approval process for approval requests (“the facility”) is described. Embodiments of the facility provide a visual interface that can be used by an approval administrator or other user to define an approval process for approval requests of a selected type, such as requests to approve timesheets. The user interface includes a palette of pictorial representations of each of a number of different approval process elements. For example, the palette may include visual representations of a starting point at which a request is submitted for approval; logical conditions that determine how a request is routed; approval decisions by individual approvers or groups of approvers; logical operators that control collaborative approval decisions; an ending point at which a request is determined to be approved; and connectors for connecting other approval process elements in an approval process flow. The user drags visual representations from the palette into particular relative positions in a workspace, where their arrangement forms a pictorial representation of the approval process. The facility enables the user to save the corresponding approval process for use in processing each approval request of the selected type.  
         [0023]    In some embodiments, the facility enables users to define approval processes in which a request may be acted upon by any of a group of alternative approvers. The facility can be used to define an approval process in which a request is presented simultaneously to a group of two or more approvers. As soon as one of these approvers approves or rejects the request, it is approved or rejected on behalf of the entire group, and ceases to be presented to any of the other members of the group.  
         [0024]    In some embodiments, the facility enables a new approval process to be “templated” from an existing approval process. To do so, the facility creates a copy of the existing approval process, and permits the user to modify the corresponding pictorial representation. The approval process corresponding to the modified pictorial representation may then be saved process for use in processing each approval request of a different type.  
         [0025]    By enabling users to define approval processes in the ways discussed above, embodiments of the facility significantly streamline this task, allowing it to be completed quickly and effectively by individuals with no special training.  
         [0026]    II. System Overview and Overall Architecture  
         [0027]    In one embodiment, a system in which the teachings of the present invention are implemented can be logically structured as a multi-layered architecture as shown in FIG. 1. In one embodiment, the logical multi-layered architecture as shown in FIG. 1 provides a platform for common services to support the various applications. These services may include a user interface layer  110 , an object manager layer  120 , a data manager layer  130 , and a data exchange layer  140 .  
         [0028]    In one embodiment, the user Interface layer  110  may provide the applets, views, charts and reports, etc. associated with one or more applications. In one embodiment, various types of clients can be supported via the user interface layer  110 . These various types of clients may include traditional connected clients, remote clients, thin clients over an intranet, Java thin clients or non-Windows-based operating systems, and HTML clients over the Internet, etc.  
         [0029]    In one embodiment, the object manager layer  120  is designed to manage one or more sets of business rules or business concepts associated with one or more applications and to provide the interface between the user interface layer  110  and the data manager layer  130 . In one embodiment, the business rules or concepts can be represented as business objects. In one embodiment, the business objects may be designed as configurable software representations of the various business rules or concepts such as accounts, contacts, opportunities, service requests, solutions, etc.  
         [0030]    In one embodiment, the data manager layer  130  is designed to maintain logical views of the underlying data and to allow the object manager to function independently of underlying data structures or tables in which data are stored. In one embodiment, the data manager  130  may also provide certain database query functions such as generation of structure query language (SQL) in real time to access the data. In one embodiment, the data manager  130  is designed to operate on object definitions in a repository file  160  that define the database schema. In one embodiment, the data storage services  170  provide the data storage for the data model associated with one or more applications.  
         [0031]    In one embodiment, the data exchange layer is designed to handle the interactions with one or more specific target databases and provide the interface between the data manager layer  130  and the underlying data sources. FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of one embodiment of a system configuration in which the teachings of the present invention are implemented.  
         [0032]    In one embodiment, the multi-layered architecture allows one or more software layers to reside on different machines. For example, in one embodiment, the user interface, the object manager, and the data manager can all reside on the dedicated web clients. For other types of clients such as the wireless clients, in one embodiment, the object manager and data manager can reside on a system server. It should be appreciated and understood by one skilled in the art that the system configuration shown in FIG. 2 is for illustrative and explanative purposes and may vary depending upon the particular implementations and applications of the teachings of the present invention.  
         [0033]    In one embodiment, the system environment illustrated in FIG. 2 may include more than one database  290 . One or more subsets of the database  290  can be created or replicated by a replication manager. In addition, mobile web clients can have additional remote databases (also called local databases). In one embodiment, unless the remote or local databases associated with the mobile web clients are defined as read-only databases, these mobile web clients can create and update data locally that will be ultimately propagated up to the primary database when each mobile web client synchronizes with the system server.  
         [0034]    In one embodiment, the database  290  is designed to store various types of data including predefined data schema (e.g., table objects, index objects, etc.), repository objects (e.g., business objects and components, view definitions and visibility rules, etc.), and user&#39;s or customer&#39;s data. In one embodiment, dedicated web clients and server components, including those that operate in conjunction with the other types of clients, can connect directly to the database  290  and make changes in real time. In one embodiment, mobile web clients can download a subset of the server&#39;s data to use locally, and periodically synchronize with the server database through the system server to update both the local and the server database.  
         [0035]    In one embodiment, various tables included in the database  290  may be logically organized into the following types: data tables, interface tables, and repository tables, etc.  
         [0036]    In one embodiment, data tables may be used to store user business data, administrative data, seed data, and transaction data, etc. In one embodiment, these data tables may be populated and updated through the various applications and processes. In one embodiment, data tables may include the base tables and the intersection tables, etc. In one embodiment, base tables may contain columns that are defined and used by the various applications. In one embodiment, the base tables are designed to provide the columns for a business component specified in the table property of that business component. In one embodiment, intersection tables are tables that are used to implement a many-to-many relationship between two business components. They may also hold intersection data columns, which store information pertaining to each association. In one embodiment, intersection tables provide the data structures for association applets.  
         [0037]    In one embodiment, interface tables are used to denormalize a group of base tables into a single table that external programs can interface to. In one embodiment, they may be used as a staging area for exporting and importing of data.  
         [0038]    In one embodiment, repository tables contain the object definitions that specify one or more applications regarding:  
         [0039]    The client application configuration  
         [0040]    The mapping used for importing and exporting data  
         [0041]    Rules for transferring data to mobile clients  
         [0042]    In one embodiment, the file system  295  is a network-accessible directory that can be located on an application server. In one embodiment, the file system  295  stores the physical files created by various applications, such as files created by third-party text editors, and other data that is not stored in the database  290 . In one embodiment, physical files stored in the file system  295  can be compressed and stored under various naming conventions. In one embodiment, dedicated web clients can read and write files directly to and from the file system  295 . In one embodiment, mobile web clients can have a local file system, which they synchronize with the server-based file system  290  periodically. In one embodiment, other types of client such as the wireless clients and the web clients can access the file system  290  via the system server.  
         [0043]    In one embodiment, the enterprise server  250  is a logical grouping of the system servers  255  that share a common table owner or a database, point to a common gateway Server, and can be administered as a group using server manager  260 . In one embodiment, the connection to the gateway server can be established via TCP/IP. In one embodiment, the enterprise server  250  can be scaled effectively by deploying multiple system servers  255  in the enterprise server  250 , thus providing a high degree of scalability in the middle tier of applications.  
         [0044]    In one embodiment, the server  255  runs one or multiple server programs. It handles the incoming processing requests and monitors the state of all processes on the server. In one embodiment, server programs are designed and configured to perform one or more specific functions or jobs including importing and exporting data, configuring the database, executing workflow and process automation, processing to support mobile web clients for data synchronization and replication, and enforcing business rules, etc. In one embodiment, the server  255  can be an NT Service (under Windows NT operating system) or a daemon (e.g., a background shell process) under UNIX operating system. In one embodiment, the server  255  supports both multi-process and multi-threaded components and can operate components in batch, service, and interactive modes.  
         [0045]    In one embodiment, the server manager  260  is configured as a utility that allows common control, administration and monitoring across disparate programs for the servers  255  and the enterprise server  250 . In one embodiment, the server manager  260  can be used to perform the following tasks: start, stop, pause, and resume servers  255 , components, and tasks; monitor status and collect statistics for multiple tasks, components, and servers within an enterprise server; and configure the enterprise server, individual servers individual components, and tasks, etc.  
         [0046]    In one embodiment, the gateway server can be configured as a logical entity that serves as a single entry point for accessing servers. In one embodiment, it can be used to provide enhanced scalability, load balancing and high availability across the enterprise server. In one embodiment, the gateway server may include a name server and a connection brokering component. In one embodiment, the name server is configured to keep track of the parameters associated with the servers. For example, the availability and connectivity information associated with the servers can be stored in the name server. The various components in the system can query the name server for various information regarding the servers&#39; availability and connectivity. In a Windows NT environment, the name server can be run as a NT service. In a UNIX environment, the name server can run as a daemon process. In one embodiment, the connection brokering component is used to perform load balancing function such as directing client connection requests to an appropriate server (e.g., the least-busy server).  
         [0047]    In one embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the various types of clients that can be supported by the system may include the following clients: dedicated web clients, mobile web clients, web clients, wireless clients, and handheld clients, etc.  
         [0048]    In one embodiment, dedicated web clients (also called connected clients) are connected directly to a database server for data access via a LAN or WAN connection. In one embodiment, these connected or dedicated web clients do not store data locally. These dedicated web clients can also access the file system directly. In one embodiment, the user interface, the object manager, and the data manager layers of the multi-layered architecture reside on the dedicated web client.  
         [0049]    In one embodiment, the mobile web clients are designed and configured for local data access and thus can have their own local database and/or local file system. In one embodiment, mobile web clients can interact with other components within the system via the gateway server. Through synchronization, the modifications from the local database and the server database can be exchanged. Mobile web clients are described in more detail below.  
         [0050]    In one embodiment, a web client runs in a standard browser format from the client&#39;s machine. In one embodiment, the web client can connect to a system server  255  through a web server. In one embodiment, the system server  255  is designed and configured to execute business logic and access data from the database  290  and file system  295 . In one embodiment, the web client described herein is designed and configured in accordance with the teachings of the present invention to operate in an interactive mode. In one embodiment, the interactive web client framework as described herein utilizes dynamically created objects implemented in JavaScript on the browser side that correspond to objects on the server side. In one embodiment, these dynamically created objects on the browser side may include the current view and its corresponding applets, the current business object and the corresponding business components, etc. The web client is described in more details below.  
         [0051]    In one embodiment, wireless clients are essentially thin clients enabled on wireless devices. The wireless clients can use a wireless application protocol (WAP)-based user interface to communicate and exchange information/data with the system server.  
         [0052]    The system configuration illustrated in FIG. 2 is described in more details below with references to various structures, databases, tables, file systems, etc. as illustrating examples.  
         [0053]    [0053]FIG. 3 shows a block diagram illustrating another logical representation of a multi-layered architecture in which applications can be built in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. Again, the multi-layered architecture as illustrated in FIG. 3 provides the configured platform for various common services designed and to support the various applications. In one embodiment, these various services may include presentation services logic layer  315  which corresponds to an applet manager and user interface layer  310 , application services logical layer  325  which corresponds to an object manager (OM) layer  320  and a data manager (DM) layer  330 , and data services logical layer  345  which corresponds to a database layer  340 .  
         [0054]    In one embodiment, the presentation services  315  may be designed and configured to support various types of clients and may provide them with user interface applets, views, charts, and reports, etc. As described above, a large variety of clients may be supported including wireless clients, handheld clients, web clients, mobile web clients, and dedicated (connected) clients, etc.  
         [0055]    In one embodiment, the application services  325  may include business logic services and database interaction services. In one embodiment, business logic services provide the class and behaviors of business objects and business components. In one embodiment, database interaction services may be designed and configured to take the user interface (UI) request for data from a business component and generate the database commands (e.g., SQL queries, etc.) necessary to satisfy the request. For example, the data interaction services may be used to translate a call for data into DBMS-specific SQL statements.  
         [0056]    In one embodiment, data storage services  345  may be designed and configured to provide the data storage for the underlying data model which serves as the basis of the various applications. For example, the data model may be designed and configured to support various software products and applications including call center, sales, services, and marketing, etc., as well as various industry vertical products and applications such as eFinance, elnsurance, eCommunications, and eHealthcare, etc.  
         [0057]    [0057]FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of one embodiment of an application framework in which the teachings of the present invention may be implemented. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the application framework may include various logical groupings of various types of services and various types of tools that can be used to design and configure particular applications based on business needs and environments.  
         [0058]    In one embodiment, the core services are designed and configured to provide the framework in which the applications execute. In one embodiment, the core services may include the following:  
         [0059]    The enterprise server, which is the middle-tier application server  
         [0060]    The networks that link all of these pieces together  
         [0061]    Facilities like event manager and data replication, which allow sharing data between multiple installations of various applications as well as between the various applications and other external applications  
         [0062]    The authentication and access control, the security facilities.  
         [0063]    In one embodiment, application integration services may be designed and configured to allow the various applications built in accordance with this framework to communicate with the external world. In one embodiment, the various types of services in this logical grouping may be designed and configured to provide for real-time, near-real-time, and batch integration with external applications. For example, these integration services may be used to enable communications between external applications and the internal applications using available methods, technologies, and software products. In one embodiment, application integration services allow the systems or applications to share and replicate data with other external enterprise applications. Accordingly, these services allow a particular application or system to be both a client requesting information, and a server having information requested from it.  
         [0064]    In one embodiment, business processes services are designed and configured to allow the client to automate business processes through the application. In one embodiment, these various business process services may include the following:  
         [0065]    Assignment of tasks through Assignment Manager  
         [0066]    Enforcement of business practices through Workflow Manager  
         [0067]    Reuse of custom business logic through Business Services  
         [0068]    Ensuring proper product configuration and pricing through the Product Configurator and Pricing Configurator  
         [0069]    In one embodiment, creation of these business processes can be done through Run-Time tools such as Personalization Designer, Workflow Designer, SmartScript Designer, Assignment Administration Views, and the Model Builder, etc.  
         [0070]    In one embodiment, integration services may be designed and configured to provide the client with user interface and thin client support. In one embodiment, these may include capabilities for building and maintaining web-based applications, providing web support facilities such as user Profile Management, Collaboration Services and Email and Fax services, as well as advanced Smart Scripting, etc.  
         [0071]    In one embodiment, design time tools may be designed and configured to provide the services to customize, design, provide integration points, and maintain the application. These various tools provide one common place to define the application.  
         [0072]    In one embodiment, admin services are designed and configured provide one place to monitor and administer the application environment. In one embodiment, these services allow the user to administer the application either through a graphic user interface (GUI) or from a command line, etc.  
         [0073]    III. Facility and Its Implementation  
         [0074]    To further describe the facility, its implementation and operation is discussed hereafter in conjunction with a number of sample display diagrams.  
         [0075]    [0075]FIG. 5 is a display diagram showing the first in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility. FIG. 5 shows an approval process definition window  500  displayed by the facility. The request approval process definition window  500  is divided into a palette subwindow  510  and a workspace subwindow  520 . The palette  510  contains icons  511 - 518 , each corresponding to a different element used to construct request approval processes. The set of approval process element icons shown in palette  510  is merely exemplary; those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that different sets of icons could be displayed, including icons each having the same significance as one of the icons shown, but a different appearance, and/or icons having a different significance.  
         [0076]    The workspace  520  is where the user constructs a pictorial representation of the approval process that the user is defining. In order to add approval process elements to the pictorial representation of the approval process being defined, the user drags the corresponding icon from the palette into a desired position in the workspace. FIG. 5 shows that the user has dragged a visual representation  511  of a start approval process element into the workspace to create an approval process element instance  521 . This represents the starting point in the request approval process, when the request is submitted by the user seeking its approval.  
         [0077]    [0077]FIG. 6 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the start approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 5. Window  600  shows various attributes of the element instance itself, including its type  601 , name  602 , approval process  603 , corresponding business object  604 , creator identity  605 , creation date  606 , and processing mode  607 . The second window  610  contains information describing the subsequent element instance or element instances to which the process passes after this element instance. Information items  611 - 613  show the element instance  521  being connected to an AND approval process element instance. The information shown in window  610  is typically determined and stored in conjunction with element instance  521  only after the next element instance or element instances in the process are created in the workspace. In this example, the specific information shown in window  610  is created and stored after the user has performed the interactions reflected in FIG. 7, described below.  
         [0078]    [0078]FIG. 7 is a display diagram showing the second in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility. FIG. 7 shows the result of dragging icons  716  and  713  into the workspace to create an AND approval process element instance  722  following the start approval process element instance  721  in the request approval process being defined. The AND approval process element splits the approval process into two or more parallel paths, each of which is typically pursued simultaneously, and all of which must be satisfied in order for the request to ultimately be approved.  
         [0079]    [0079]FIG. 8 is display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the AND approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 7. Window  800  shows various attributes of the element instance itself, while window  810  contains information describing the subsequent element instance or element instances to which the process passes after this element instance.  
         [0080]    [0080]FIG. 9 is a display diagram showing the third in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility. FIG. 9 shows the result of dragging icon  917  into the workspace to create an OR approval process element instance  923  following the AND approval process element instance  922  in the request approval process being defined. The OR approval process element splits the approval process into two or more parallel paths, each of which is typically pursued simultaneously, and at least one of which must be satisfied in order for the request to ultimately be approved.  
         [0081]    [0081]FIG. 10 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the OR approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 9. Window  1000  shows various attributes of the element instance itself, while window  1010  contains information describing the subsequent element instance or element instances to which the process passes after this element instance.  
         [0082]    [0082]FIG. 11 is a display diagram showing the fourth in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility. FIG. 11 shows the result of dragging icon  1112  into the workspace to create two gate approval process element instances  1124  and  1125  following the OR approval process element instance  1123 . Each gate approval process element specifies approval by one or more approvers. Such approval may be obtained from approvers in a variety of ways, including displaying information about the request as part of an approvals inbox displayed to each approver, as is more fully described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (patent counsel&#39;s matter No. 38481-8004), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.  
         [0083]    FIGS.  12 - 18  are display diagrams showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the gate approval process element instances whose creation is shown in FIG. 11. Window  1200  shows various attributes of the element instance itself including a gate type  1207  assigned to the gate approval process element instance. Window  1220  shows a list of possible gate types from which the user may select, including relative position gate type  1221 , absolute position gate type  1222 , person gate type  1223 , query gate type  1224 , read from object gate type  1225 , team gate type  1226 , and access group gate type  1227 . Each of these gate types is discussed in greater detail below.  
         [0084]    A relative position gate specifies an approver based upon the approver&#39;s position relative to the creator of the request. Window  1230  shows sample relative positions that may be selected for a relative position gate, including a direct manager relative position  1231 , a manager&#39;s manager relative position  1232 , and a direct report relative position  1233 .  
         [0085]    An absolute position gate specifies an approver based upon the approver&#39;s absolute position in the organization. Window  1330  in FIG. 13 shows a number of sample absolute positions that may be selected for an absolute position gate, such as director of internal audit absolute position  1331 , software engineer of consumer goods absolute position  1332 , and regional manager of expert services absolute position  1333 .  
         [0086]    A person gate specifies an approver based upon the approver&#39;s individual identity. Window  1430  in FIG. 14 shows a number of sample people that may be selected for a person gate, including the person Willie Aaron  1431 , the person John Abraham  1432 , and the person David Ackerman  1433 .  
         [0087]    A query gate specifies an approver based upon a database-type query that may be processed when the request is created. Window  1530  in FIG. 15 shows a sample query that may be selected for a query gate. Window  1530  contains a query row  1531  divided into a number of columns  1541 - 1546 , each corresponding to a different employee attribute. The user may type query text into any of these fields in order to specify a query selecting employees whose information matches. In query row  1531 , the user has entered the query string “*555*” into field  1548  for work telephone number. As a result, this query selects all employees in whose work phone number the substring “555” appears at any point. Window  1560  shows employees, such as employees  1561 - 1563 , that are selected by this query when the user clicks go button  1550  in window  1530 . In some embodiments, the query specified for a query gate is executed during the routing process for a particular request, and its results reflect the contents of employee database at that moment. In these embodiments, the contents of window  1560  are merely advisory, since they correspond to the contents of the employee database at an earlier time. In other embodiments, the query results shown in window  1560  that is generated by executing the query at approval process design time is used to identify the approvers that are specified by the query gate. In this embodiment, the query is not reexecuted as part of routing each request through the defined approval process. In some of these embodiments, the user may modify this list of approvers, such as by adding approvers to or deleting approvers from this list.  
         [0088]    A read from object gate specifies an approver by reading the identity of the approver out of a business object. Window  1630  in FIG. 16 shows sample information  1631  specifying how to read the approver&#39;s identity out of a business object. It shows that the identity is to be read from a processing center field residing in an expenses business component of an expense report business object.  
         [0089]    A team gate specifies approvers who are members of a pre-defined team. Window  1730  in FIG. 17 shows a sample team  1731  that may be selected for a team gate.  
         [0090]    An access group gate specifies approvers who are members of an access group to which a particular type of information is typically sent. Window  1830  shown in FIG. 18 lists a sample access group  1831  that may be selected for an access group gate.  
         [0091]    [0091]FIG. 19 is a display diagram showing the fifth in a sequence of typical displays depicting the act of defining a request approval process using the facility. FIG. 19 shows the result of dragging icon  1915  into the workspace to create a decision point approval process element instance  1926  in the request approval process being defined. The decision point approval process element branches the approval process into one of two different paths based upon the result of a test: if the test is passed, the approval process follows a Yes branch, while if the test is failed, the approval process follows a No branch.  
         [0092]    [0092]FIG. 20 is a display diagram showing further user interface features of the facility for displaying and/or editing information associated with the decision point approval process element instance whose creation is shown in FIG. 19. Window  2000  shows various attributes of the element instance itself, including a test  2007  that is to be performed at the decision point to determine which branch the approval process is to follow. Here, the test is whether the amount of an expense report exceeds $5,000. Window  2010  contains information describing the subsequent element instances to which the process passes after this element instance. In particular, information items  2011 - 2013  indicate that, where the test is passed, the process passes to gate E, while information items  2014 - 2016  indicate that, if the test is failed, the process ends.  
         [0093]    [0093]FIG. 21 is a display diagram showing a fully-defined version of the request approval process. It can be seen that additional approval process element instances  2128 - 2133  have been added by the user by dragging the corresponding icons from the palette  2110  into the workspace  2120 . These include an end, or request approved, approval process element instance  2133 . If the approval process reaches this element instance, the approval request is considered approved.  
         [0094]    At this point, the user may identify the type of approval requests to be processed in accordance with this approval process. The facility then saves this approval process for use in processing each created approval request of this type. In some embodiments, the approval process saved by the facility includes references to one or more of the following: a view of the application that creates approval requests of this type; a class of business objects corresponding to approval requests of this type; and a business service for creating approval requests of this type.  
         [0095]    To more fully convey the effect of the fully-defined approval process shown in FIG. 21, it is hereafter described in detail.  
         [0096]    A user submits an expense report approval request. This request takes the following route:  
         [0097]    The request is sent simultaneously to A, B, C, and D. Two loops follow, one involving A and B, the other involving C and D.  
         [0098]    In the first loop, either A or B must approve the request. Once one of them approves:  
         [0099]    The approval request automatically disappears from the other&#39;s approvals inbox. For example, if B approves, the request disappears from A&#39;s approvals inbox.  
         [0100]    If the amount exceeds $5000, the request is sent to E for approval.  
         [0101]    E approves the request. If the loop below is completed and the amount exceeds $10000, the item is sent on to F.  
         [0102]    In the other loop, both C and D must approve the request (independently of A and B).  
         [0103]    Once one of them has approved the request, the other person is notified of the first approval.  
         [0104]    Once C &amp; D have both approved the request, and the loop above is completed, the item is sent on to F for approval (if the amount exceeds $10000). F only gets the item when all previous gates have been cleared.  
         [0105]    (If amount exceeds $10000) Once F approves the request, the approval process is completed, and the status of the item is “approved.” 
         [0106]    (If amount is less than $10000) Once both loops are completed, and E has approved if amount exceeds $5000, the approval process is completed, and the status of the request is “approved.” 
         [0107]    This approval process can be depicted symbolically as follows, where ∪ is the logical symbol for OR and ∩ is the logical symbol for AND, and where A, B, C, D, E, and F represent gates (people/positions/functions) that must approve the item:  
         [((A∪B)∩E)∩(C∩D))]∩F  
         [0108]    Table 1 below shows a number of different intermediate and final resolutions of approval requests subjected to this approval process. 
         
 
         [0109]    IV. Conclusion  
         [0110]    It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the above-described facility may be straightforwardly adapted or extended in various ways. For example, the facility may provide a variety of different approval process elements that diverge from those discussed and shown herein. Additionally, embodiments of the facility may employ any subset or superset of the features discussed herein. While the foregoing description makes reference to preferred embodiments, the scope of the invention is defined solely by the claims that follow and the elements recited therein.

Technology Category: y