US 8,713,144 B2 · Workflow-enabled client

Abstract

A workflow-enabled client comprises a client and a workflow manager interface unit. The workflow manager interface unit couples the client to a workflow manager to provide the automatic discovering, distributed processing and dynamic user interface generating functionality of the present invention. A communication manager of the workflow-enabled client has a registration unit that registers, and unregisters, the client with the workflow manager such as by providing a name, a data and other commands. A polling module uses a received location from the workflow manager to retrieve data. The process control module performs a plurality of processing functions such a processing polled data, storing it or providing it to other clients. The process control module can also initiate other clients. The present invention also includes a number of novel methods including a method for registering a client, a method for polling data, and a method for initiating other clients.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A method for performing a task in a workflow-enabled system, the method comprising:

registering, by a workflow manager, a first workflow-enabled client to receive a first service;
sending a first location identifier to the first workflow-enabled client from the workflow manager;
registering, by the workflow manager, a second workflow-enabled client to receive a second service;
sending a second location identifier to the second workflow-enabled client from the workflow manager;
advertising, by the workflow manager, the first and second workflow-enabled clients and their first and second services to a workflow-enabled provider so that the workflow-enabled provider can discover the first and second workflow-enabled clients responsive to the workflow-enabled provider being capable of performing the first and second services;
receiving from the workflow-enabled provider data corresponding to the first service performed by the workflow-enabled provider for the first workflow-enabled client;
and
enabling to be retrieved by the first workflow-enabled client the data corresponding to the first service, the retrieval performed using the first location identifier.

5 more elements

An apparatus for controlling performance of a task in a workflow-enabled system, the apparatus comprising:

one or more processors;
a workflow manager stored on a memory and executed by the one or more processors, the workflow manager registering a first workflow-enabled client to receive a first service receiving registration of a second workflow-enabled client to receive a second service advertising the first and second workflow-enabled clients and their first and second services to a workflow-enabled provider so that the workflow-enabled provider can discover the first and second workflow-enabled clients responsive to the workflow-enabled provider being capable of performing the first and second services, receiving from the workflow-enabled provider data corresponding to the first service performed by the workflow-enabled provider for the first workflow-enabled client, and enabling to be received by the first workflow-enabled client the data corresponding to the first service, the retrieval performed using the first location identifier.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Workflow-enabled client

Life of this patent

Workflow-enabled client

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims24