Configurable Workflow Framework Reduces Manual Coding
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Large organizations face inefficiencies in constructing complex workflow applications due to repetitive manual coding efforts, lack of reusability, and variability in user experience, leading to long lead times and disjointed design practices.
Innovation Solution
A framework of configurable components, services, and modules is provided to reduce manual coding requirements, allowing users to input criteria, analyze and identify suitable software modules, and construct applications using a graphical user interface (GUI) with tools like a workflow modeler and data dictionary, facilitating reusable and configurable workflow applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If workflow applications are constructed using manual coding, then applications can be built with custom functionality, but the construction time and effort increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments workflow applications into reusable components and modules that can be independently developed, configured, and assembled. This allows custom functionality to be built by combining pre-built modules rather than coding everything from scratch, significantly reducing construction time while maintaining adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-building and pre-configuring reusable workflow components, services, and modules before they are needed. These pre-prepared building blocks can be quickly assembled and configured for specific applications, eliminating the need to code everything from scratch and reducing construction time.
2Adaptability or versatility
If workflow applications are built from scratch by different teams, then each team can optimize for their specific needs, but reusability and consistency across the organization decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements universality by creating a shared library of reusable workflow components, services, and modules that can be used across multiple applications and teams. These universal building blocks maintain consistency and reusability while allowing each team to optimize their specific applications by configuring and combining these standardized elements in team-specific ways.
3Productivity
If configurable components and reusable modules are implemented, then manual coding efforts are reduced, but the initial setup and framework complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces an intermediary layer - a configurable framework and component library - that sits between the developers and the underlying complex infrastructure. This intermediary provides pre-built, configurable components that abstract away the complexity of the underlying system, allowing developers to focus on configuration and assembly rather than dealing with raw complexity, thus improving productivity while managing framework complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and a system for providing a framework of configurable components, services, and modules that are reusable for construction of complex workflow applications in order to reduce volume and redundancy in manual coding requirements are provided. The method includes: receiving user criteria that relate to a task to be performed by executing the application to be constructed; analyzing each of the criteria; identifying, based on a result of the analysis, component software modules that are usable for satisfying some of the criteria; and transmitting information that relates to constructing the application by using the identified component software modules to the user.