Universal application framework for streamlined frontend development of user interface applications

Abstract

A universal application framework enables efficient user purposeful interface (UI) application development with a novel perspective editor which itself can be an UI application. The perspective editor can be utilized to create perspectives, each of which can be specific to a purpose. UI applications thus developed can be mapped to the same target mapping which points to a technical application component of a frontend server of the universal application framework. The technical application component can provide action and navigation information for a part of the UI applications not specific to any purpose. A perspective is bound to logical entities such as a node representing rows from a table. The perspective can have a perspective type and a data view of the rows from the table in a layout. The perspective type controls which data view is usable in the perspective.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for launching a user interface (UI) application, comprising:
 receiving, by a browser running a UI engine on a user computer, application parameters of the UI application;   determining, by the UI engine from the application parameters of the UI application, an application mode and a logical entity of the UI application, the logical entity bound to a perspective;   fetching, by the UI engine from a server machine operating in an enterprise computing environment, the perspective bound to the logical entity, the perspective having a perspective type and hosting a layout container and a data view, the layout container containing layout information for building a layout in which the data view for the perspective is displayed, the perspective type controlling which data view is usable in the perspective; and   populating, by the UI engine, a perspective-driven area of the UI application with the data view in the layout, the layout decoupled from application logic and navigation.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the logical entity comprises an item, a work object type, a node, or a workspace. 
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the item represents a selectable object in the UI application, wherein the work object type describes a data structure, how data is accessed at runtime, how an item key is built, an applicable action for an item, or an association to another work object type, wherein the node belongs to a work object type instance, defines a data source row selection criterion, includes a search field, a sort field, or a filter field, or includes a display definition of an item for a master list or full screen list, and wherein the workspace represents a grouping mechanism for grouping node instances to form a solution. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the logical entity comprises an application node object, wherein the perspective-driven area of the UI application displays details of the application node object, and wherein the UI application is read-only. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the perspective type comprises an item perspective type, an action dialog perspective type, or a field perspective type. 
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the application mode comprises a master detail mode, a full screen list mode, or an object mode. 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the logical entity is defined to be filled with data directly from a table or tables. 
     
     
         8 . A system for launching a user interface (UI) application, comprising:
 a processor;   a non-transitory computer-readable medium; and   stored instructions translatable by the processor for:
 receiving application parameters of the UI application; 
 determining, from the application parameters of the UI application, an application mode and a logical entity of the UI application, the logical entity bound to a perspective; 
 fetching, from a server machine operating in an enterprise computing environment, the perspective bound to the logical entity, the perspective having a perspective type and hosting a layout container and a data view, the layout container containing layout information for building a layout in which the data view for the perspective is displayed, the perspective type controlling which data view is usable in the perspective; and 
 populating, by the UI engine, a perspective-driven area of the UI application with the data view in the layout, the layout decoupled from application logic and navigation. 
   
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the logical entity comprises an item, a work object type, a node, or a workspace. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the item represents a selectable object in the UI application, wherein the work object type describes a data structure, how data is accessed at runtime, how an item key is built, an applicable action for an item, or an association to another work object type, wherein the node belongs to a work object type instance, defines a data source row selection criterion, includes a search field, a sort field, or a filter field, or includes a display definition of an item for a master list or full screen list, and wherein the workspace represents a grouping mechanism for grouping node instances to form a solution. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the logical entity comprises an application node object, wherein the perspective-driven area of the UI application displays details of the application node object, and wherein the UI application is read-only. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the perspective type comprises an item perspective type, an action dialog perspective type, or a field perspective type. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the application mode comprises a master detail mode, a full screen list mode, or an object mode. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the logical entity is defined to be filled with data directly from a table or tables. 
     
     
         15 . A computer program product for launching a user interface (UI) application, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions translatable by a processor for:
 receiving application parameters of the UI application;   determining, from the application parameters of the UI application, an application mode and a logical entity of the UI application, the logical entity bound to a perspective;   fetching, from a server machine operating in an enterprise computing environment, the perspective bound to the logical entity, the perspective having a perspective type and hosting a layout container and a data view, the layout container containing layout information for building a layout in which the data view for the perspective is displayed, the perspective type controlling which data view is usable in the perspective; and   populating, by the UI engine, a perspective-driven area of the UI application with the data view in the layout, the layout decoupled from application logic and navigation.   
     
     
         16 . The computer program product of  claim 15 , wherein the logical entity comprises an item, a work object type, a node, or a workspace. 
     
     
         17 . The computer program product of  claim 16 , wherein the item represents a selectable object in the UI application, wherein the work object type describes a data structure, how data is accessed at runtime, how an item key is built, an applicable action for an item, or an association to another work object type, wherein the node belongs to a work object type instance, defines a data source row selection criterion, includes a search field, a sort field, or a filter field, or includes a display definition of an item for a master list or full screen list, and wherein the workspace represents a grouping mechanism for grouping node instances to form a solution. 
     
     
         18 . The computer program product of  claim 15 , wherein the logical entity comprises an application node object, wherein the perspective-driven area of the UI application displays details of the application node object, and wherein the UI application is read-only. 
     
     
         19 . The computer program product of  claim 15 , wherein the perspective type comprises an item perspective type, an action dialog perspective type, or a field perspective type. 
     
     
         20 . The computer program product of  claim 15 , wherein the application mode comprises a master detail mode, a full screen list mode, or an object mode.