Offline Business App Sync via Delta Extraction

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Mobile devices executing business applications face challenges in effectively tracking and synchronizing customer communication activities, especially when operating in offline mode and connecting to server-side systems.

Innovation Solution

A client-side business application on mobile devices establishes a connection with a server-side application, allowing users to log and store communication details locally when offline, and sync these details with the server once connected, using business objects to manage and store customer interactions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the mobile device operates in offline mode to allow field work without server connection, then ease of operation and adaptability are improved, but data synchronization and reliability are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveoffline operation capabilityVSAvoiddata synchronization

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by downloading and caching customer data, communication histories, and business objects to the mobile device before offline operation. This allows the device to function autonomously in the field while maintaining data availability, and automatically synchronizes changes with the server once connectivity is restored, resolving the contradiction between offline adaptability and data synchronization reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If communication details are stored locally in the mobile device during offline mode, then ease of operation is improved, but data integrity and security are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvelocal data accessVSAvoiddata integrity

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system creates local copies of business objects and communication details in the mobile device's database during offline operation. These copies are marked as local instances and automatically synchronized with the server when connectivity is restored. The copying mechanism allows fast local access while maintaining data integrity through version control and conflict resolution protocols that ensure the master copy on the server remains the source of truth

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If the device synchronizes all data changes with the server upon connection, then data integrity is improved, but communication overhead and energy consumption are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata synchronizationVSAvoidcommunication overhead

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts and transmits only the delta changes - specific communication details and business object modifications - rather than synchronizing entire data sets. The mobile device identifies changed records, extracts their updates, and transmits only these differences to the server. This delta synchronization approach maintains data integrity while dramatically reducing communication overhead and energy consumption compared to full data resynchronization

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS8996613B2Automated activity creation in a mobile device business application

Publication Date: 2015.03.31 SAP SE

AI summary

A mobile device logs communications with other communication devices by automatically logging the communication details with a business application backend server. The mobile device executes a client-side business application and coordinates with the backend server to ensure that communication logs are stored on the backend server and associated with customer accounts maintained by the backend server.