U.S. patent application number 16/880058 was filed with the patent office on 2021-11-25 for generating work plans which include work steps when creating new work orders.
The applicant listed for this patent is salesforce.com, inc.. Invention is credited to Dai Duong Doan, Shanis Kurundrayil, Keye Liu, Tyler Shopshire, Rupa Singh.
Application Number | 20210365855 16/880058 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005955181 |
Filed Date | 2021-11-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210365855 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Doan; Dai Duong ; et
al. |
November 25, 2021 |
GENERATING WORK PLANS WHICH INCLUDE WORK STEPS WHEN CREATING NEW
WORK ORDERS
Abstract
Generating work plans which include work steps when creating new
work orders is described. A database system trains a machine
learning model to use inputs for creating work orders to select
work plan templates, which include sets of work steps, from a
training set of work plan templates, in response to receiving the
inputs for creating the work orders. The database system receives
an input for creating a work order and identifies work plan
criteria based on the input for creating the work order. The
trained machine learning model uses the work plan criteria to
select at least one work plan template, which includes work steps,
from work plan templates. The database system creates a work order
that includes work plan(s) corresponding to the selected work plan
template(s) and includes at least part of the input for creating
the work order. The database system outputs the created work
order.
Inventors: |
Doan; Dai Duong; (Alameda,
CA) ; Liu; Keye; (Hercules, CA) ; Singh;
Rupa; (Fremont, CA) ; Kurundrayil; Shanis;
(Fremont, CA) ; Shopshire; Tyler; (El Cerrito,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
salesforce.com, inc. |
San Francisco |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005955181 |
Appl. No.: |
16/880058 |
Filed: |
May 21, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06N 20/00 20190101;
G06F 3/0482 20130101; G06Q 10/06311 20130101; G06K 9/6228
20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 10/06 20060101
G06Q010/06; G06N 20/00 20060101 G06N020/00; G06K 9/62 20060101
G06K009/62; G06F 3/0482 20060101 G06F003/0482 |
Claims
1. A system for generating work plans which include work steps when
creating new work orders, the system comprising: one or more
processors; and a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a
plurality of instructions, which when executed, cause the one or
more processors to: train, by a database system, a machine learning
model to use inputs for creating work orders to select sets of work
plan templates, comprising sets of work steps, from a training set
of work plan templates, in response to receiving the inputs for
creating the work orders; identify, by the database system, work
plan criteria based on an input for creating a work order, in
response to receiving the input for creating the work order;
select, by the trained machine learning model using the identified
work plan criteria, at least one work plan template, comprising a
plurality of work steps, from a plurality of work plan templates;
create, by the database system, a work order comprising at least
one work plan corresponding to the selected at least one work plan
template and comprising at least part of the input for creating the
work order; and cause, by the database system, the created work
order, comprising the at least one work plan and the at least part
of the input for creating the work order, to be outputted.
2. The system of claim 1, comprising further instructions, which
when executed, cause the one or more processors to train, by the
database system, the machine learning model to use the inputs for
creating the work orders to perform additions, deletions, and
modifications of a plurality of work steps in the sets of work
steps in the sets of work plan templates, in response to receiving
the inputs for creating the work orders; and perform, by the
machine learning model using the identified work plan criteria, at
least one of an addition, a deletion, and a modification of at
least one of the plurality of work steps in the selected at least
one work plan template.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the plurality of work steps in
the sets of work steps in the sets of work plan templates and the
plurality of work steps in the selected at least one work plan
template correspond to a plurality of work step templates.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the input for creating the work
order is received from at least one of a system user and a software
application that generates the input based on a maintenance
plan.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the identified work plan criteria
are associated with at least one of an asset, a product, a work
type, a service contract, a service territory, a location, and a
customer account.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of work steps is
associated with at least one of an execution order, an execution
status, a start time, a stop time, and a duration.
7. The system of claim 1, comprising further instructions, which
when executed, cause the one or more processors to enable execution
of at least one of a user action and an automated business process
via any user interface page associated with any of the plurality of
work steps.
8. A computer program product comprising computer-readable program
code to be executed by one or more processors when retrieved from a
non-transitory computer-readable medium, the program code including
instructions to: train, by a database system, a machine learning
model to use inputs for creating work orders to select sets of work
plan templates, comprising sets of work steps, from a training set
of work plan templates, in response to receiving the inputs for
creating the work orders; identify, by the database system, work
plan criteria based on an input for creating a work order, in
response to receiving the input for creating the work order;
select, by the trained machine learning model using the identified
work plan criteria, at least one work plan template, comprising a
plurality of work steps, from a plurality of work plan templates;
create, by the database system, a work order comprising at least
one work plan corresponding to the selected at least one work plan
template and comprising at least part of the input for creating the
work order; and cause, by the database system, the created work
order, comprising the at least one work plan and the at least part
of the input for creating the work order, to be outputted.
9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the program
code comprises further instructions to: train, by the database
system, the machine learning model to use the inputs for creating
the work orders to perform additions, deletions, and modifications
of a plurality of work steps in the sets of work steps in the sets
of work plan templates, in response to receiving the inputs for
creating the work orders; and perform, by the machine learning
model using the identified work plan criteria, at least one of an
addition, a deletion, and a modification of at least one of the
plurality of work steps in the selected at least one work plan
template.
10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the plurality
of work steps in the sets of work steps in the sets of work plan
templates and the plurality of work steps in the selected at least
one work plan template correspond to a plurality of work step
templates.
11. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the input for
creating the work order is received from at least one of a system
user and a software application that generates the input based on a
maintenance plan.
12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the identified
work plan criteria are associated with at least one of an asset, a
product, a work type, a service contract, a service territory, a
location, and a customer account.
13. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the plurality
of work steps is associated with at least one of an execution
order, an execution status, a start time, a stop time, and a
duration.
14. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the program
code comprises further instructions to enable execution of at least
one of a user action and an automated business process via any user
interface page associated with any of the plurality of work
steps.
15. A computer-implemented method for generating work plans which
include work steps when creating new work orders, the
computer-implemented method comprising: training, by a database
system, a machine learning model to use inputs for creating work
orders to select sets of work plan templates, comprising sets of
work steps, from a training set of work plan templates, in response
to receiving the inputs for creating the work orders; identifying,
by the database system, work plan criteria based on an input for
creating a work order, in response to receiving the input for
creating the work order; selecting, by the trained machine learning
model using the identified work plan criteria, at least one work
plan template, comprising a plurality of work steps, from a
plurality of work plan templates; creating, by the database system,
a work order comprising at least one work plan corresponding to the
selected at least one work plan template and comprising at least
part of the input for creating the work order; and causing, by the
database system, the created work order, comprising the at least
one work plan and the at least part of the input for creating the
work order, to be outputted.
16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, the
computer-implemented method further comprising training, by the
database system, the machine learning model to use the inputs for
creating the work orders to perform additions, deletions, and
modifications of a plurality of work steps in the sets of work
steps in the sets of work plan templates, in response to receiving
the inputs for creating the work orders; and performing, by the
machine learning model using the identified work plan criteria, at
least one of an addition, a deletion, and a modification of at
least one of the plurality of work steps in the selected at least
one work plan template.
17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein the
plurality of work steps in the sets of work steps in the sets of
work plan templates and the plurality of work steps in the selected
at least one work plan template correspond to a plurality of work
step templates.
18. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the input
for creating the work order is received from at least one of a
system user and a software application that generates the input
based on a maintenance plan.
19. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the
identified work plan criteria are associated with at least one of
an asset, a product, a work type, a service contract, a service
territory, a location, and a customer account, and the plurality of
work steps is associated with at least one of an execution order,
an execution status, a start time, a stop time, and a duration.
20. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, the
computer-implemented method further comprising enabling execution
of at least one of a user action and an automated business process
via any user interface page associated with any of the plurality of
work steps.
Description
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
[0001] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains
material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright
owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of
the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the
Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise
reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The subject matter discussed in the background section
should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its
mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned
in the background section or associated with the subject matter of
the background section should not be assumed to have been
previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the
background section merely represents different approaches, which in
and of themselves may also be inventions.
[0003] A work order can be a physical or electronic document that
specifies what physical and/or mental activity is to be completed
to accomplish a goal, and which can provide additional details,
such as any materials used to accomplish the goal and the
materials' prices. Sometimes referred to as a service ticket, job
order, or work ticket, a work order may be sent from an outside
customer to an organization or used internally by an organization
to request work from a specific department. A user such as a
customer service representative can enter work order information
into a computer that displays various work order templates to
generate specific types of work orders. For example, maintenance
work order templates can include sections for a user to enter work
details, labor and material costs, location, and a start date. A
service work order template enables a user to input the service
provided, any parts required, any additional charges, and the
service date. In a template for repairs to a building, a user can
describe the repairs needed, assign due dates for completing the
repairs, and document any expenses. A user can fill out information
about a car at the top of an automotive work order template for
maintenance or repair work, and then add details about labor and
parts in the spaces below. A user can record a requested
Information Technology (IT) action, the date of the request, and
details about the work in an IT services work order. Additionally,
a user can keep track of work orders with a work order spreadsheet
template which can organize work orders by their assigned tracking
number, the allocated workers, the requestors, and/or other
criteria.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0004] A user who is providing information in a work order template
typically has to supply the plans and the plans' steps required to
complete a work order. Such a user typically bases such plans and
steps on their own knowledge, the knowledge of system
administrators and subject matter experts who the user consults,
and/or knowledge articles that the user can reference.
Consequently, such a user can easily make mistakes when creating
work plans and work steps in a work order template, particularly
when the user is a customer service representative for an
organization that generates work orders for millions of assets at
thousands of locations.
[0005] In accordance with embodiments, there are provided systems
and methods for generating work plans which include work steps when
creating new work orders. A database system trains a machine
learning model to use inputs to select sets of work plan templates,
which include sets of work steps, from a training set of work plan
templates, in response to receiving the inputs for creating work
orders. The database system receives an input for creating a work
order, and then identifies work plan criteria based on the input
for creating the work order. The trained machine learning model
uses the work plan criteria to select at least one work plan
template, which includes work steps, from work plan templates. The
database system creates a work order that includes work plan(s)
corresponding to the selected work plan template(s) and also
includes at least part of the input for creating the work order,
The database system causes the output of the created work
order.
[0006] For example, a work order generating system trains a work
order machine learning model to use previous customer service
representatives' inputs into automotive maintenance work order
templates to select specific automotive maintenance work plan
templates, which include automotive maintenance work steps, from a
training set of automotive maintenance work plan templates. The
work order generating system receives the inputs "oil change," a
car's license plate characters "XYZ123," and "Joe Smith," the name
of the customer service representative who is creating a work order
for the car. The work order generating system uses the "oil change"
input to identify an oil change work type and uses the car's
license plate characters "XYZ123" to identify the car owner's
bronze service contract, and the car as a Mercedes Benz. The work
order machine learning model selects a safety check work plan
template for all work orders, an oil change work plan template for
the oil change work type, a bronze maintenance package work plan
template for the car owner's bronze service contract, and creates
and then selects a select synthetic oil work plan template because
previous technicians' completion notes specified that Mercedes Benz
cars require synthetic oil.
[0007] The safety check work plan template includes the work steps
of wearing protective glasses and wearing a helmet, the select
synthetic oil work plan template includes the work steps of
identifying synthetic oil selection criteria for a car and using
the synthetic oil selection criteria to select the appropriate
synthetic oil, the oil change work plan template includes the work
steps of changing the oil and putting an updated sticker on the
car's windshield, and the bronze maintenance package work plan
template includes the work steps of checking the windshield water
and checking the tire pressure. The system uses the safety check,
select synthetic oil, oil change, and bronze maintenance package
work plan templates to create a work order. The work order includes
the work steps of wearing protective glasses, wearing a helmet,
identifying synthetic oil selection criteria for a car, using the
synthetic oil selection criteria to select the appropriate
synthetic oil, changing the oil, putting an updated sticker on the
car's windshield, checking the windshield water, and checking the
tire pressure. The work order also includes the inputs "oil
change," "XYZ123," the car's license plate characters, and "Joe
Smith," the name of the customer service representative. The system
outputs the work order that includes the four work plans' eight
work steps to the customer service representative Joe Smith, who
only had to enter "oil change" and the car's license plate
characters to automatically generate this correct and comprehensive
work order.
[0008] Any of the above embodiments may be used alone or together
with one another in any combination. The one or more
implementations encompassed within this specification may also
include embodiments that are only partially mentioned or alluded to
or are not mentioned or alluded to at all in this brief summary or
in the abstract. Although various embodiments may have been
motivated by various deficiencies with the prior art, which may be
discussed or alluded to in one or more places in the specification,
the embodiments do not necessarily address any of these
deficiencies. In other words, different embodiments may address
different deficiencies that may be discussed in the specification.
Some embodiments may only partially address some deficiencies or
just one deficiency that may be discussed in the specification, and
some embodiments may not address any of these deficiencies.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] In the following drawings like reference numbers are used to
refer to like elements. Although the following figures depict
various examples, the one or more implementations are not limited
to the examples depicted in the figures.
[0010] FIG. 1 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a
high-level overview of a method 100 for generating work plans which
include work steps when creating new work orders, in an
embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 2 depicts an example frame 200 of a work order template
for generating work plans which include work steps when creating
new work orders, in an embodiment;
[0012] FIG. 3 depicts an example representation of a work plan data
model 300 for generating work plans which include work steps when
creating new work orders, in an embodiment;
[0013] FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B depict example frames 400 and 430 of
lists of work plan templates and work plan selection rules for
generating work plans which include work steps creating new work
orders, in an embodiment;
[0014] FIG. 5A, FIG. 5B, and FIG. 5C depict example frames 500,
530, and 560 of work plan templates for generating work plans which
include work steps when creating new work orders, in an
embodiment;
[0015] FIG. 6 depicts an example frame 600 of a work order for
generating work plans which include work steps when creating new
work orders, in an embodiment;
[0016] FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B depict example frames 700 and 730 of
work order steps for generating work plans which include work steps
when creating new work orders, in an embodiment;
[0017] FIG. 8 illustrates a block diagram of an example of an
environment 800 wherein an on-demand database service might be
used; and
[0018] FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment 900 of
elements of FIG. 8 and various possible interconnections between
these elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
General Overview
[0019] Systems and methods are provided for generating work plans
which include work steps when creating new work orders. As used
herein, the term multi-tenant database system refers to those
systems in which various elements of hardware and software of the
database system may be shared by one or more customers. For
example, a given application server may simultaneously process
requests for a great number of customers, and a given database
table may store rows for a potentially much greater number of
customers. As used herein, the term query plan refers to a set of
steps used to access information in a database system. Next, a
method, frames, a data model and systems for generating work plans
which include work steps when creating new work orders will be
described with reference to example embodiments. The following
detailed description will first describe an example method, frames,
and work plan data model for generating work plans which include
work steps when creating new work orders. Then systems for
generating work plans which include work steps when creating new
work orders are described.
[0020] While one or more implementations and techniques are
described with reference to an embodiment in which generating work
plans which include work steps when creating new work orders is
implemented in a system having an application server providing a
front end for an on-demand database service capable of supporting
multiple tenants, the one or more implementations and techniques
are not limited to multi-tenant databases nor deployment on
application servers. Embodiments may be practiced using other
database architectures, i.e., ORACLE.RTM., DB2.RTM. by IBM and the
like without departing from the scope of the embodiments
claimed.
[0021] FIG. 1 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a
high-level overview of a method 100 for generating work plans which
include work steps when creating new work orders. A
machine-learning model begins training by receiving inputs for
creating work orders, block 102. The machine-learning model begins
training by receiving previous user's inputs in work order
templates which created previous work orders. For example, and
without limitation, this can include a database system, such as a
work order generating system, receiving previous inputs from
customer service representatives who created previous work orders,
which include automotive maintenance inputs that created automotive
maintenance work orders. A database system can be computer software
and/or hardware that interacts with a user and software
applications to capture and analyze the quantities, characters,
and/or symbols on which operations are performed by a computer,
being stored and transmitted in the form of electrical signals and
being recorded on magnetic, optical, and/or mechanical recording
media. An input can be information that enters a system.
[0022] After receiving previous inputs which created previous work
orders, a machine learning model is trained to use the inputs to
select sets of work plan templates, which include sets of work
steps, from a training set of work plan templates, block 104. The
system trains a machine-learning model to use work order inputs to
select work plan templates. By way of example and without
limitation, this can include the work order generating system
training a work order machine-learning model to use previous
customer service representatives' inputs in automotive maintenance
work order templates to select specific automotive maintenance work
plan templates, which include automotive maintenance work steps,
from a training set of automotive maintenance work plan templates.
Continuing this example, the work order machine-learning model
learns to select automotive maintenance work plan templates by
being trained on automotive maintenance work orders that include
technicians' completion notes specifying that Mercedes Benz cars
require synthetic oil. A machine-learning model can be a computer
system that scientifically studies algorithms and/or statistical
models to perform a specific task effectively by relying on
patterns and inference instead of using explicit instructions. A
set can be a group of entities that resemble each other. A work
plan template can be a preset format of a document or file for an
outline of a set of goals and processes by which a team or a person
can accomplish those goals, which is used so that the format does
not have to be recreated each time that such a document or file is
used. A work step can be an outline of a task for a team or a
person to accomplish a goal. A training set can be a group of
entities that resemble each other and is used to teach a particular
type of behavior through practice and instruction over a period of
time.
[0023] In addition to being trained to select work plan templates,
the machine learning model may be optionally trained to use the
inputs to perform additions, deletions, and modifications of work
steps in sets of work steps in sets of work plan templates, block
106. The system can train a machine-learning model to use work
order inputs to change the work steps in work plan templates. In
embodiments, this can include the work order generating system
training the work order machine-learning model to use the previous
customer service representatives' inputs in automotive maintenance
work order templates to make changes in the automotive maintenance
work steps in automotive maintenance work plan templates. Further
to this this example, the work order machine-learning model learns
to add, delete, and modify automotive maintenance work step
templates by being trained on automotive maintenance work orders
that include technicians' completion notes specifying that Mercedes
Benz cars require synthetic oil. An addition can be the action of
inserting an entity into a group of entities. A deletion can be the
action of removing an entity from a group of entities. A
modification can be the action of altering an entity to improve the
entity.
[0024] Following the training of a machine-learning model, input is
received for creating a work order, block 108. The system receives
a user's input in a work order template for creating a work order.
For example, and without limitation, this can include a work order
generating system receiving the inputs "oil change" in the work
type field 202, a car's license plate characters "XYZ123" in the
asset field 204, and "Joes Smith," the name of the customer service
representative who is creating a work order for the car, in the
owner field 206, as depicted in the work order template frame 200
by FIG. 2. This example describes how some inputs may be entered
via a pick list, such as the "oil change" work type, and other
inputs may be entered via a free form field, such as the car's
license plate characters "XYZ123." A work type can be a category of
a physical and/or mental activity in order to achieve a purpose or
result, especially related to a job. An asset can be property owned
by a company or an individual and regarded as having value
[0025] Although this example describes the input for creating the
work order as being received from a system user, the input for
creating the work order may be received from a software application
that generates the input based on a maintenance plan. For example,
every six months a maintenance plan application inputs "tire
rotation" in the work type field 202 and the car's license plate
characters "XYZ123" in the asset field 204 to generate a work order
for rotating the car's tires. A system user can be a person who
operates a computer. A software application can be a computer
program designed to perform a group of coordinated functions,
tasks, and/or activities. A maintenance plan can be a physical or
electronic document that defines work done to keep an asset in
working condition by checking and/or repairing the asset
regularly.
[0026] The frame 200 also includes a location field 208, a service
territory field 210, and an (customer) account field 212, in which
a system user can enter inputs for creating a work order. Although
not depicted by FIG. 2, the frame 200 can also include fields for
the user to input information for a product, a service contract,
and any other information that may be input for creating a work
order. A location can be a particular place or position. A service
territory can be a geographical area where an individual or a team
works. A customer account can be a business relationship with the
buyer of a product and/or a service. A product can be an article
that is manufactured for sale. A service contract can be a business
agreement with a customer covering the maintenance of equipment
over a specified time period.
[0027] Having received an input for creating a work order, work
plan criteria are identified based on the input for creating the
work order, block 110. The system determines which inputs are used
to select any work plan templates and/or identify any work steps to
be changed. By way of example and without limitation, this can
include the work order generating system referencing a table of
work plan criteria 302 to determine that the "oil change" input
directly identifies a work type 304 of an oil change in the work
plan criteria table 302, and that the car's license plate
characters "XYZ123" directly identifies an asset 306 of a car in
the work plan criteria table 302, as depicted in the data model 300
by FIG. 3. Since the asset 306 in the work plan criteria table 302
includes a foreign key for a table of assets 308, the system uses
this identified car asset 306 to indirectly identify the car
owner's service contract as a bronze service contract in the asset
table 308, as depicted in the data model 300 by FIG. 3. In a
contrasting example, the system did not directly or indirectly
identify any work plan criteria from the input of "Joe Smith," the
name of the customer service representative. Work plan criteria can
be standards for deciding which information corresponds to an
outline of a set of goals and processes by which a team or a person
can accomplish those goals.
[0028] The system enables customers to customize features and add
custom features to extend the "out of the box" capabilities of the
data model 300, which are described as follows. The work plan
criteria table 302 includes foreign keys for work plan criteria,
such as asset 306, work type 304, product, service territory,
location, and service contract, and a relationship to a library of
work plans 310. The asset table 308 includes relationships to a
table of work orders/work order line items 312 and a table of
maintenance assets 314. The work plan library 310 includes work
plan templates and relationships to the work plan criteria table
302, a table of work plan-work step associations 316, a table of
work plans 318, and a library of maintenance assets-work plans 320.
The work order/work order line item table 312 includes
relationships to the asset table 308, the maintenance asset table
314, the work plan table 318, a table of work steps 322, and a
table of maintenance plans 324.
[0029] The maintenance asset table 314 includes relationships to
the asset table 308, the maintenance asset-work plan library 320,
and the maintenance plan table 324. The work plan-work step
association table 316 associates the work plan library 310 with a
library of work steps 326. The work plan table 318 includes
relationships to the work plan library 310, the work order/work
order line item table 312, the maintenance asset table 314, and the
work step table 322. The maintenance asset-work plan library 320
includes relationships to the work plan library 310 and the
maintenance asset table 314. The work step table 322 includes
relationships to the work order/work order line item table 312, the
work plan table 318; and the work step library 326.
[0030] The maintenance plan table 324 includes relationships to the
work order/work order line item table 312 and the maintenance asset
table 314. The work step library 326 includes work step templates
and relationships to the work plan-work step association table 316,
the work step table 322, and a table of skills required 328. The
skills required table 328 includes relationships to the work step
library 326 and a table of skills 330. The skills table 330
includes a relationship to the skills required table 328.
[0031] After the work plan criteria is identified, the trained
machine-learning model uses the identified work plan criteria to
select at least one work plan template, which includes work steps,
from the work plan templates, block 112. The machine-learning model
uses work plan criteria to select work plan templates. In
embodiments, this can include the work order machine-learning model
using the work plan criteria identified in the work plan criteria
table 302 to select a safety check work plan template from the work
plan library 310 for all work orders, an oil change work plan
template from the work plan library 310 for the oil change work
type 304, and a bronze maintenance package work plan template from
the work plan library 310 for the car owner's bronze service
contract in the asset table 308. For this example, the work order
machine-learning model did not select a platinum maintenance
package because the work plan criteria related to the asset table
308 specified a bronze maintenance package, and did not select a
San Francisco customer service survey because the work plan
criteria identified in the work plan criteria table 302 did not
specify San Francisco as the location. Due to being trained on
automotive maintenance work orders that include technicians'
completion notes specifying that Mercedes Benz cars require
synthetic oil, the work order machine-learning model can use the
car's license plate characters "XYZ123," which identify the car as
a Mercedes Benz, to select an existing work plan template for
selecting the appropriate synthetic oil for the car. The select
synthetic oil work plan template includes the work steps of
identifying synthetic oil selection criteria for a car and using
the synthetic oil selection criteria to select the appropriate
synthetic oil. Alternatively, the work order machine-learning model
can create a new work plan template for selecting the appropriate
synthetic oil for a car, and then select the newly created work
plan template for creating the current work order. A trained
machine-learning model can be a computer system that has
scientifically studied algorithms and/or statistical models to
perform a specific task effectively by relying s and inference
instead of using explicit instructions.
[0032] In some embodiments, the work order machine-learning model
is trained to make selections of work plan templates, and then
creates work plan selection rules that reflect this training. In
such embodiments, the work order machine-learning model applies the
work plan selection rules that it created to the work plan criteria
identified in the work plan criteria table 302, including a rule
402 that selects a safety check work plan template from the work
plan library 310 for all work orders, as depicted in the frame 400
by FIG. 4. The work plan selection rules applied to the work plan
criteria identified in the work plan criteria table 302 also
includes a rule 404 that selects an oil change work plan template
from the work plan library 310 for the oil change work type 304, as
depicted in the frame 400 by FIG. 4. The work plan selection rules
applied to the work plan criteria identified in the work plan
criteria table 302 further includes a rule 406 that selects a
bronze maintenance package work plan template from the work plan
library 310 for the car owner's bronze service contract in the
asset table 308, as depicted in the frame 400 by FIG. 4. For this
example, the work order machine-learning model did not apply the
rule 408 that selects a platinum maintenance package because the
work plan criteria related to the asset table 308 specified a
bronze maintenance package, and did not apply the rule 410 that
selects a San Francisco customer service survey because the work
plan criteria identified in the work plan criteria table 302 did
not specify San Francisco as the location.
[0033] While the work plan selection rule 404 could be the
equivalent of "if work type equals oil change, then select oil
change work plan template," the work plan selection rules may be
more complex and use logical ANDs and/or logical ORs. For example,
an additional work plan selection rule that could be executed after
rule 406 could be the equivalent of "if service contract equals
bronze AND service contract expires in less than 30 days, then
temporary upgrade the customer by selecting a platinum maintenance
package work plan template," which offers a incentive for the car
owner to consider upgrading their service contract upon
renewal.
[0034] The frame 430 depicts the six work plan templates that
correspond to the rules 402-410 in the frame 400, with the six work
plan templates listed according to their relative execution order
432. Although the frame 400 depicts five automotive maintenance
work plan selection rules for six automotive maintenance work plan
templates and the frame 430 depicts six automotive maintenance work
plan templates, the work order machine-learning model can create
and use any numbers of any types of work plan selection rules to
select from any numbers of any types of work plan template. For
example, the work order machine-learning model can create and use
monthly, quarterly, and annual work plan selection rules to select
work plan templates for high performance process manager
maintenance, general data and safety, software and backup,
controller inspection, and final inspection.
[0035] FIG. 5A depicts that the safety check work plan template 500
from the work plan library 310 may include work step templates from
the work step library 326 for wearing protective glasses 502 and
wearing a helmet 504. FIG. 5B depicts that the oil change work plan
template 530 from the work plan library 310 may include work step
templates from the work step library 326 for changing the oil 532
and putting an updated sticker on the car's windshield 534. FIG. 5C
depicts that the bronze maintenance package work plan template 560
from the work plan library 310 may include work step templates from
the work step library 326 for checking the windshield water 562 and
checking the tire pressure 564. The work plan-work step association
table 316 that associates the work plan library 310 with the work
step library 326 enables these work plan templates to include these
work step templates. The system can use the relationships from the
work step library 326 to the skills required table 328 and from the
skills required table 328 to the skills table 330 to identify the
technicians with the skills required to perform the related work
steps. A work step template can be a preset format of a document or
file for an outline of a task for a team or a person to accomplish
a goal, which is used so that the format does not have to be
recreated each time that such a document or file is used.
[0036] Although these example work plan templates 500, 530, and 560
include work step templates 502, 504, 532, 534, 562, and 564,
respectively, the reusable work plan templates do not require
reusable work step templates because every work step may be
recreated each time that such a work step is required for the
reusable work plan templates. Due to the modularity and efficiency
of reusable templates, the system may reference reusable work step
templates, instead of newly recreating work steps, in the reusable
work plan templates, and can reference the same reusable work step
template in many different reusable work plan templates. For
example, the work step depicted in FIG. 7A as the configurable work
step 700, depicted by FIG. 7B as the executable work step 730, and
described below in reference to FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B displays five
standard data fields and four standard selectable actions. If a
customer wants to add a work step with two custom actions to twelve
different work plans, a system administrator would enter the name
of the work step in one of the standard fields of a work step
template, enter the two custom actions in the work step template,
and then enter a dozen references to the work step template into
the dozen work plan templates, which auto-fills the data in the
remaining four standard data fields. By using a work step template,
the system administrator needed to make a total of only fifteen
entries, which are the entries for one standard field plus two
custom actions plus twelve references. If the system used work
steps instead of work step templates, the same system administrator
would have to enter the data in the five standard fields and the
two custom actions in each of the twelve work plan templates, such
that the system administrator would make a total of eighty-four
entries, which are the entries for five standard fields plus two
custom actions equals seven entries that are multiplied by twelve
work plan templates. While this example illustrates an increase of
sixty-nine entries required when configuring work steps instead of
work step templates, in real-world scenarios, the differences
between configuring work steps and work step templates could be
significantly greater.
[0037] Although the frames 500 530, and 560 depicts six automotive
maintenance work steps for three automotive maintenance work plan
templates, the system can provide any numbers of any types of work
steps for any numbers of any types of work plan templates, such as
the work steps for high performance process manager maintenance.
Such work steps could include (in execution order) checking and
cleaning fans and filters, checking card status indicators,
checking communication and control CPU free to ensure they meet
minimum requirements for the node, checking for excessive
processing overruns and recommending actions to correct the
problem, checking power supply statuses, checking the alarm system
(power supply, battery) if not disabled, checking the I/O link
bandwidth free and ensure they meet minimum requirements, checking
the I/O link communication statistics, resetting the I/O link
communication statistics, and resetting UCN communication
statistics.
[0038] Following the use of the identified work criteria to select
at least one work plan template, the machine learning model
optionally uses the identified work plan criteria to perform an
addition, a deletion, and/or a modification of at least one work
step in the selected at least one work plan template, block 114.
The system can use the work plan criteria to also make changes in
the work plans' work steps. For example, and without limitation,
this can include the work order machine-learning model using the
car's license plate characters "XYZ123," which identify the car as
a Mercedes Benz, to modify the existing work step "changing the
oil" to become the new work step "selecting synthetic oil for a
Mercedes Benz and changing the oil" in the oil change work plan
template for the Mercedes Benz. The work order machine-learning
model modified the work step to incorporate synthetic oil due to
being trained on automotive maintenance work orders that included
technicians' completion notes specifying that Mercedes Benz cars
require synthetic oil. In this example, the modification of this
work step in the oil change work plan template for the Mercedes
Benz does not affect the oil change work plan template for any
other work orders.
[0039] Having selected work plan template(s), a work order is
created that includes work plan(s) corresponding to selected work
plan template(s) and also includes at least a part of the input for
creating the work order, block 116. The system generates work plans
which include work steps when creating new work orders. By way of
example and without limitation, this can include the work order
generating system copying the safety check 602, synthetic oil
change 604, and bronze maintenance package 606 work plan templates
in the work plan library 310 into the work plan table 318 to create
a work order in the work order/work order line items table 312, as
depicted in the frame 600 by FIG. 6. The work order in the work
order/work order line items table 312 is related to the work steps
of wearing protective glasses 608, wearing a helmet 610, changing
the oil 612, putting an updated sticker on the car's windshield
614, checking the windshield water 616, and checking the tire
pressure 618 in the work step table 322, as also depicted in the
frame 600 by FIG. 6. The work order in the work order/work order
line items table 312 also includes the inputs "oil change" 620, the
car's license plate characters "XYZ123" 622, the name of the
customer service representative "Joe Smith" 624, and the derived
information "bronze contract" 626, as further depicted in the frame
600 by FIG. 6. A work plan can be an outline of a set of goals and
processes by which a team or a person can accomplish those goals. A
part can be a portion of an entity.
[0040] After creating the work order, the created work order is
caused to be output, including the work plan(s) and at least a part
of the input for creating the work order, block 118. The system
outputs the new work order that was created when generating work
plans which include work steps. In embodiments, this can include
the work order generating system outputting the work order from the
work order/work order line items table 312, which includes the
three work plans' six work steps 608-618 in their relative
execution order, from the work steps table 322, as depicted in the
frame 600 by FIG. 6, to the mobile device of the customer service
representative, Joe Smith. The customer service representative only
had to enter "oil change" and the car's license plate characters to
automatically generate this correct and comprehensive work order.
Although this example describes a work order for a single asset,
the work order may include work order line items that each
correspond to a different asset. For example, an application may
use a large organization's maintenance plan, from the maintenance
plan table 324, to access the work plan library 310 via the
maintenance asset-work plan library 320 and generate a single work
order in the work order/work order line items table 312, which
schedules a large number of cars, which are identified in the
maintenance asset table 314, for an oil change within the same time
period,
[0041] Following the output of the work order, execution of a user
action and/or an automated business process is optionally enabled
via any user interface page associated with any of the work steps,
block 120. The system enables a technician in the field to flexibly
capture data by entering actions or flows while viewing specific
work steps. For example, and without limitation, this can include
the work order generating system responding to the technician
entering completion information via the user interface for the work
step of checking the I/O link bandwidth, by enabling the technician
to launch a salesforce.com lightning flow from the same user
interface to check the I/O link communication statistics, which is
the next work step for the high performance process manager
maintenance. A user action can be the process of a person operating
a computer to achieve an aim. An automated business process can be
a collection of linked tasks with little or no direct human
control, which find their end in the delivery of a service or
product to a customer. A user interface page can be a section of
information displayed on a screen by which a person operating a
computer interacts with the computer.
[0042] A customer's system administrator can configure which user
interfaces for work steps may execute which actions and which
flows. For example, the frame 700 depicts a customer configuring a
new work step template to enable a technician working in the field
to execute various actions 702 specified in the work step library
326, such as launching a flow test, logging a call, creating a new
account, and creating a new case. Frame 730 depicts the user
interface for a technician in the field, in which the technician is
selecting from a pick list 732 from the work step table 322, to
update a record field by indicating that the status of the
displayed work step is complete. Subsequently, the system can
analyze the completed work orders, and then generate dashboards and
service reports that monitor and improve key performance
indicators.
[0043] A work step may be associated with an execution order, an
execution status, a start time, a stop time, and/or a duration. For
example, the start time of the first work step for high performance
process manager maintenance is scheduled for 3:00 A.M. Sunday, the
stop time for the last work step for high performance process
manager maintenance is scheduled for 4:00 A.M. Sunday, the
maintenance duration is scheduled for an hour, and at 3:10 A.M. the
status of the first work step is completed, the status of the
second work step is executing, and the statuses of the remaining
work steps are pending. An execution order can be the sequence for
carrying out or putting into effect a plan or course of actions. An
execution status can be the position of affairs at a particular
time, especially in commercial contexts, for carrying out or
putting into effect a plan or course of actions. A start time can
be a chronological beginning of an activity. A stop time can be a
chronological ending of an activity. A duration can be the time
during which an activity continues.
[0044] The frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or
730 may be parts of larger display screens that include fields for
users to enter commands to create, retrieve, edit, and store
information. Because the frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600,
700, and/or 730 are samples, the frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530,
560, 600, 700, and/or 730 could vary greatly in appearance. For
example, the relative sizes and positioning of the graphical images
are not important to the practice of the present disclosure. The
frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or 730 may be
depicted by any visual display, but they are preferably depicted by
a computer screen. The frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600,
700, and/or 730 could also be output as reports and printed or
saved in electronic formats, such as PDF.
[0045] The frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or
730 may be parts of a personal computer system and/or a network,
and operated from system data received by the network, and/or on
the Internet. The frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700,
and/or 730 may be navigable by a user. Typically, a user can employ
a touch screen input, voice command, or a mouse input device to
point-and-click to locations on the frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530,
560, 600, 700, and/or 730 to manage the graphical images on the
frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or 730.
Alternately, a user can employ directional indicators, or other
input devices such as a keyboard. The graphical images depicted by
the frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or 730 are
examples, as the frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700,
and/or 730 may include much greater amounts of graphical images.
The frames 200, 400, 430, 500, 530, 560, 600, 700, and/or 730 may
also include fields in which a user can input information.
[0046] The method 100 may be repeated as desired. Although this
disclosure describes the blocks 102-120 executing in a particular
order, the blocks 102-120 may be executed in a different order. In
other implementations, each of the blocks 102-120 may also be
executed in combination with other blocks and/or some blocks may be
divided into a different set of blocks.
System Overview
[0047] FIG. 8 illustrates a block diagram of an environment 810
wherein an on-demand database service might be used. The
environment 810 may include user systems 812, a network 814, a
system 816, a processor system 817, an application platform 818, a
network interface 820, a tenant data storage 822, a system data
storage 824, program code 826, and a process space 828. In other
embodiments, the environment 810 may not have all of the components
listed and/or may have other elements instead of, or in addition
to, those listed above.
[0048] The environment 810 is an environment in which an on-demand
database service exists. A user system 812 may be any machine or
system that is used by a user to access a database user system. For
example, any of the user systems 812 may be a handheld computing
device, a mobile phone, a laptop computer, a work-station, and/or a
network of computing devices. As illustrated in FIG. 8 (and in more
detail in FIG. 9) the user systems 812 might interact via the
network 814 with an on-demand database service, which is the system
816.
[0049] An on-demand database service, such as the system 816, is a
database system that is made available to outside users that do not
need to necessarily be concerned with building and/or maintaining
the database system, but instead may be available for their use
when the users need the database system (e.g., on the demand of the
users). Some on-demand database services may store information from
one or more tenants stored into tables of a common database image
to form a multi-tenant database system (MTS). Accordingly, the
"on-demand database service 816" and the "system 816" will be used
interchangeably herein. A database image may include one or more
database objects. A relational database management system (RDMS) or
the equivalent may execute storage and retrieval of information
against the database object(s). The application platform 818 may be
a framework that allows the applications of the system 816 to run,
such as the hardware and/or software, e.g., the operating system.
In an embodiment, the on-demand database service 816 may include
the application platform 818 which enables creation, managing and
executing one or more applications developed by the provider of the
on-demand database service, users accessing the on-demand database
service via user systems 812, or third-party application developers
accessing the on-demand database service via the user systems
812.
[0050] The users of the user systems 812 may differ in their
respective capacities, and the capacity of a particular user system
812 might be entirely determined by permissions (permission levels)
for the current user. For example, where a salesperson is using a
particular user system 812 to interact with the system 816, that
user system 812 has the capacities allotted to that salesperson.
However, while an administrator is using that user system 812 to
interact with the system 816, that user system 812 has the
capacities allotted to that administrator. In systems with a
hierarchical role model, users at one permission level may have
access to applications, data, and database information accessible
by a lower permission level user, but may not have access to
certain applications, database information, and data accessible by
a user at a higher permission level. Thus, different users will
have different capabilities with regard to accessing and modifying
application and database information, depending on a user's
security or permission level.
[0051] The network 814 is any network or combination of networks of
devices that communicate with one another. For example, the network
814 may be any one or any combination of a LAN (local area
network), WAN (wide area network), telephone network, wireless
network, point-to-point network, star network, token ring network,
hub network, or other appropriate configuration. As the most common
type of computer network in current use is a TCP/IP (Transfer
Control Protocol and Internet Protocol) network, such as the global
internetwork of networks often referred to as the "Internet" with a
capital "I," that network will be used in many of the examples
herein. However, it should be understood that the networks that the
one or more implementations might use are not so limited, although
TCP/IP is a frequently implemented protocol.
[0052] The user systems 812 might communicate with the system 816
using TCP/IP and, at a higher network level, use other common
Internet protocols to communicate, such as HTTP, FTP, AFS, WAP,
etc. In an example where HTTP is used, the user systems 812 might
include an HTTP client commonly referred to as a "browser" for
sending and receiving HTTP messages to and from an HTTP server at
the system 816. Such an HTTP server might be implemented as the
sole network interface between the system 816 and the network 814,
but other techniques might be used as well or instead. In some
implementations, the interface between the system 816 and the
network 814 includes load sharing functionality, such as
round-robin HTTP request distributors to balance loads and
distribute incoming HTTP requests evenly over a plurality of
servers. At least as for the users that are accessing that server,
each of the plurality of servers has access to the MTS' data;
however, other alternative configurations may be used instead.
[0053] In one embodiment, the system 816, shown in FIG. 8,
implements a web-based customer relationship management (CRM)
system. For example, in one embodiment, the system 816 includes
application servers configured to implement and execute CRM
software applications as well as provide related data, code, forms,
webpages and other information to and from the user systems 812 and
to store to, and retrieve from, a database system related data,
objects, and Webpage content. With a multi-tenant system, data for
multiple tenants may be stored in the same physical database
object, however, tenant data typically is arranged so that data of
one tenant is kept logically separate from that of other tenants so
that one tenant does not have access to another tenant's data,
unless such data is expressly shared. In certain embodiments, the
system 816 implements applications other than, or in addition to, a
CRM application. For example, the system 816 may provide tenant
access to multiple hosted (standard and custom) applications,
including a CRM application. User (or third party developer)
applications, which may or may not include CRM, may be supported by
the application platform 818, which manages creation, storage of
the applications into one or more database objects and executing of
the applications in a virtual machine in the process space of the
system 816.
[0054] One arrangement for elements of the system 816 is shown in
FIG. 8, including the network interface 820, the application
platform 818, the tenant data storage 822 for tenant data 823, the
system data storage 824 for system data 825 accessible to the
system 816 and possibly multiple tenants, the program code 826 for
implementing various functions of the system 816, and the process
space 828 for executing MTS system processes and tenant-specific
processes, such as running applications as part of an application
hosting service. Additional processes that may execute on the
system 816 include database indexing processes.
[0055] Several elements in the system shown in FIG. 8 include
conventional, well-known elements that are explained only briefly
here. For example, each of the user systems 812 could include a
desktop personal computer, workstation, laptop, PDA, cell phone, or
any wireless access protocol (WAP) enabled device or any other
computing device capable of interfacing directly or indirectly to
the Internet or other network connection. Each of the user systems
812 typically runs an HTTP client, e.g., a browsing program, such
as Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser, Netscape's Navigator
browser, Opera's browser, or a WAP-enabled browser in the case of a
cell phone, PDA or other wireless device, or the like, allowing a
user (e.g., subscriber of the multi-tenant database system) of the
user systems 812 to access, process and view information, pages and
applications available to it from the system 816 over the network
814. Each of the user systems 812 also typically includes one or
more user interface devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse,
trackball, touch pad, touch screen, pen or the like, for
interacting with a graphical user interface (GUI) provided by the
browser on a display (e.g., a monitor screen, LCD display, etc.) in
conjunction with pages, forms, applications and other information
provided by the system 816 or other systems or servers. For
example, the user interface device may be used to access data and
applications hosted by the system 816, and to perform searches on
stored data, and otherwise allow a user to interact with various
GUI pages that may be presented to a user. As discussed above,
embodiments are suitable for use with the Internet, which refers to
a specific global internetwork of networks. However, it should be
understood that other networks may be used instead of the Internet,
such as an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN),
a non-TCP/IP based network, any LAN or WAN or the like.
[0056] According to one embodiment, each of the user systems 812
and all of its components are operator configurable using
applications, such as a browser, including computer code run using
a central processing unit such as an Intel Pentium.RTM. processor
or the like. Similarly, the system 816 (and additional instances of
an MTS, where more than one is present) and all of their components
might be operator configurable using application(s) including
computer code to run using a central processing unit such as the
processor system 817, which may include an Intel Pentium.RTM.
processor or the like, and/or multiple processor units. A computer
program product embodiment includes a machine-readable storage
medium (media) having instructions stored thereon/in which may be
used to program a computer to perform any of the processes of the
embodiments described herein. Computer code for operating and
configuring the system 816 to intercommunicate and to process
webpages, applications and other data and media content as
described herein are preferably downloaded and stored on a hard
disk, but the entire program code, or portions thereof, may also be
stored in any other volatile or non-volatile memory medium or
device as is well known, such as a ROM or RAM, or provided on any
media capable of storing program code, such as any type of rotating
media including floppy disks, optical discs, digital versatile disk
(DVD), compact disk (CD), micro-drive, and magneto-optical disks,
and magnetic or optical cards, nano-systems (including molecular
memory ICs), or any type of media or device suitable for storing
instructions and/or data. Additionally, the entire program code, or
portions thereof, may be transmitted and downloaded from a software
source over a transmission medium, e.g., over the Internet, or from
another server, as is well known, or transmitted over any other
conventional network connection as is well known (e.g., extranet,
VPN, LAN, etc.) using any communication medium and protocols (e.g.,
TCP/IP, HTTP, HTTPS, Ethernet, etc.) as are well known. It will
also be appreciated that computer code for implementing embodiments
may be implemented in any programming language that may be executed
on a client system and/or server or server system such as, for
example, C, C++, HTML, any other markup language, Java.TM.,
JavaScript, ActiveX, any other scripting language, such as
VBScript, and many other programming languages as are well known
may be used. (Java.TM. is a trademark of Sun Microsystems,
Inc.).
[0057] According to one embodiment, the system 816 is configured to
provide webpages, forms, applications, data and media content to
the user (client) systems 812 to support the access by the user
systems 812 as tenants of the system 816. As such, the system 816
provides security mechanisms to keep each tenant's data separate
unless the data is shared. If more than one MTS is used, they may
be located in close proximity to one another (e.g., in a server
farm located in a single building or campus), or they may be
distributed at locations remote from one another (e.g., one or more
servers located in city A and one or more servers located in city
B). As used herein, each MTS could include one or more logically
and/or physically connected servers distributed locally or across
one or more geographic locations. Additionally, the term "server"
is meant to include a computer system, including processing
hardware and process space(s), and an associated storage system and
database application (e.g., OODBMS or RDBMS) as is well known in
the art. It should also be understood that "server system" and
"server" are often used interchangeably herein. Similarly, the
database object described herein may be implemented as single
databases, a distributed database, a collection of distributed
databases, a database with redundant online or offline backups or
other redundancies, etc., and might include a distributed database
or storage network and associated processing intelligence.
[0058] FIG. 9 also illustrates the environment 810. However, in
FIG. 9 elements of the system 816 and various interconnections in
an embodiment are further illustrated. FIG. 9 shows that the each
of the user systems 812 may include a processor system 812A, a
memory system 812B, an input system 812C, and an output system
812D. FIG. 9 shows the network 814 and the system 816. FIG. 9 also
shows that the system 816 may include the tenant data storage 822,
the tenant data 823, the system data storage 824, the system data
825, a User Interface (UI) 930, an Application Program Interface
(API) 932, a PL/SOQL 934, save routines 936, an application setup
mechanism 938, applications servers 900.sub.1-900.sub.N, a system
process space 902, tenant process spaces 904, a tenant management
process space 910, a tenant storage area 912, a user storage 914,
and application metadata 916. In other embodiments, the environment
810 may not have the same elements as those listed above and/or may
have other elements instead of, or in addition to, those listed
above.
[0059] The user systems 812, the network 814, the system 816, the
tenant data storage 822, and the system data storage 824 were
discussed above in FIG. 8. Regarding the user systems 812, the
processor system 812A may be any combination of one or more
processors. The memory system 812B may be any combination of one or
more memory devices, short-term, and/or long-term memory. The input
system 812C may be any combination of input devices, such as one or
more keyboards, mice, trackballs, scanners, cameras, and/or
interfaces to networks. The output system 812D may be any
combination of output devices, such as one or more monitors,
printers, and/or interfaces to networks. As shown by FIG. 9, the
system 816 may include the network interface 820 (of FIG. 8)
implemented as a set of HTTP application servers 900, the
application platform 818, the tenant data storage 822, and the
system data storage 824. Also shown is the system process space
902, including individual tenant process spaces 904 and the tenant
management process space 910. Each application server 900 may be
configured to access tenant data storage 822 and the tenant data
823 therein, and the system data storage 824 and the system data
825 therein to serve requests of the user systems 812. The tenant
data 823 might be divided into individual tenant storage areas 912,
which may be either a physical arrangement and/or a logical
arrangement of data. Within each tenant storage area 912, the user
storage 914 and the application metadata 916 might be similarly
allocated for each user. For example, a copy of a user's most
recently used (MRU) items might be stored to the user storage 914.
Similarly, a copy of MRU items for an entire organization that is a
tenant might be stored to the tenant storage area 912. The UI 930
provides a user interface and the API 932 provides an application
programmer interface to the system 816 resident processes to users
and/or developers at the user systems 812. The tenant data and the
system data may be stored in various databases, such as one or more
Oracle.TM. databases.
[0060] The application platform 818 includes the application setup
mechanism 938 that supports application developers' creation and
management of applications, which may be saved as metadata into the
tenant data storage 822 by the save routines 936 for execution by
subscribers as one or more tenant process spaces 904 managed by the
tenant management process 910 for example. Invocations to such
applications may be coded using the PL/SOQL 934 that provides a
programming language style interface extension to the API 932. A
detailed description of some PL/SOQL language embodiments is
discussed in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 7,730,478 entitled,
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ALLOWING ACCESS TO DEVELOPED APPLICATIONS VIA
A MULTI-TENANT ON-DEMAND DATABASE SERVICE, by Craig Weissman, filed
Sep. 21, 2007, which is incorporated in its entirety herein for all
purposes. Invocations to applications may be detected by one or
more system processes, which manages retrieving the application
metadata 916 for the subscriber making the invocation and executing
the metadata as an application in a virtual machine.
[0061] Each application server 900 may be communicably coupled to
database systems, e.g., having access to the system data 825 and
the tenant data 823, via a different network connection. For
example, one application server 900.sub.1 might be coupled via the
network 814 (e.g., the Internet), another application server
900.sub.N-1 might be coupled via a direct network link, and another
application server 900.sub.N might be coupled by yet a different
network connection. Transfer Control Protocol and Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP) are typical protocols for communicating between
application servers 900 and the database system. However, it will
be apparent to one skilled in the art that other transport
protocols may be used to optimize the system depending on the
network interconnect used.
[0062] In certain embodiments, each application server 900 is
configured to handle requests for any user associated with any
organization that is a tenant. Because it is desirable to be able
to add and remove application servers from the server pool at any
time for any reason, there is preferably no server affinity for a
user and/or organization to a specific application server 900. In
one embodiment, therefore, an interface system implementing a load
balancing function (e.g., an F5 Big-IP load balancer) is
communicably coupled between the application servers 900 and the
user systems 812 to distribute requests to the application servers
900. In one embodiment, the load balancer uses a least connections
algorithm to route user requests to the application servers 900.
Other examples of load balancing algorithms, such as round robin
and observed response time, also may be used. For example, in
certain embodiments, three consecutive requests from the same user
could hit three different application servers 900, and three
requests from different users could hit the same application server
900. In this manner, the system 816 is multi-tenant, wherein the
system 816 handles storage of, and access to, different objects,
data and applications across disparate users and organizations.
[0063] As an example of storage, one tenant might be a company that
employs a sales force where each salesperson uses the system 816 to
manage their sales process. Thus, a user might maintain contact
data, leads data, customer follow-up data, performance data, goals
and progress data, etc., all applicable to that user's personal
sales process (e.g., in the tenant data storage 822). In an example
of a MTS arrangement, since all of the data and the applications to
access, view, modify, report, transmit, calculate, etc., may be
maintained and accessed by a user system having nothing more than
network access, the user can manage his or her sales efforts and
cycles from any of many different user systems. For example, if a
salesperson is visiting a customer and the customer has Internet
access in their lobby, the salesperson can obtain critical updates
as to that customer while waiting for the customer to arrive in the
lobby.
[0064] While each user's data might be separate from other users'
data regardless of the employers of each user, some data might be
organization-wide data shared or accessible by a plurality of users
or all of the users for a given organization that is a tenant.
Thus, there might be some data structures managed by the system 816
that are allocated at the tenant level while other data structures
might be managed at the user level. Because an MTS might support
multiple tenants including possible competitors, the MTS should
have security protocols that keep data, applications, and
application use separate. Also, because many tenants may opt for
access to an MTS rather than maintain their own system, redundancy,
up-time, and backup are additional functions that may be
implemented in the MTS. In addition to user-specific data and
tenant specific data, the system 816 might also maintain system
level data usable by multiple tenants or other data. Such system
level data might include industry reports, news, postings, and the
like that are sharable among tenants.
[0065] In certain embodiments, the user systems 812 (which may be
client systems) communicate with the application servers 900 to
request and update system-level and tenant-level data from the
system 816 that may require sending one or more queries to the
tenant data storage 822 and/or the system data storage 824. The
system 816 (e.g., an application server 900 in the system 816)
automatically generates one or more SQL statements (e.g., one or
more SQL queries) that are designed to access the desired
information. The system data storage 824 may generate query plans
to access the requested data from the database.
[0066] Each database can generally be viewed as a collection of
objects, such as a set of logical tables, containing data fitted
into predefined categories. A "table" is one representation of a
data object, and may be used herein to simplify the conceptual
description of objects and custom objects. It should be understood
that "table" and "object" may be used interchangeably herein. Each
table generally contains one or more data categories logically
arranged as columns or fields in a viewable schema. Each row or
record of a table contains an instance of data for each category
defined by the fields. For example, a CRM database may include a
table that describes a customer with fields for basic contact
information such as name, address, phone number, fax number, etc.
Another table might describe a purchase order, including fields for
information such as customer, product, sale price, date, etc. In
some multi-tenant database systems, standard entity tables might be
provided for use by all tenants. For CRM database applications,
such standard entities might include tables for Account, Contact,
Lead, and Opportunity data, each containing pre-defined fields. It
should be understood that the word "entity" may also be used
interchangeably herein with "object" and "table".
[0067] In some multi-tenant database systems, tenants may be
allowed to create and store custom objects, or they may be allowed
to customize standard entities or objects, for example by creating
custom fields for standard objects, including custom index fields.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,779,039, filed Apr. 2, 2004, entitled "Custom
Entities and Fields in a Multi-Tenant Database System", which is
hereby incorporated herein by reference, teaches systems and
methods for creating custom objects as well as customizing standard
objects in a multi-tenant database system. In certain embodiments,
for example, all custom entity data rows are stored in a single
multi-tenant physical table, which may contain multiple logical
tables per organization. It is transparent to customers that their
multiple "tables" are in fact stored in one large table or that
their data may be stored in the same table as the data of other
customers.
[0068] While one or more implementations have been described by way
of example and in terms of the specific embodiments, it is to be
understood that one or more implementations are not limited to the
disclosed embodiments. To the contrary, it is intended to cover
various modifications and similar arrangements as would be apparent
to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the scope of the appended
claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to
encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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