study of sap erp connection system driven in smartphone · analysis of sap erp client connection...

Study of SAP ERP Connection System Driven in Smartphone

1Jong Youel Park, *

2Dea-Woo Park,

3Young Hyun Chang,

4Kyung Bae Yoon

1, First AuthorHoseo Graduate School of Venture

Korea, [email protected] *2,Corresponding Author

Hoseo Graduate School of Venture

Korea, [email protected] 3Baewha Women's University

Korea, [email protected] 4Kimpo College

Korea, [email protected]

Abstract This study suggests a method of an SAP ERP connection system which uses a GUI, without using

the SAP mobile platform provided in the SAP. The interface of the SAP ERP connection system is

implemented as a GUI to be driven in smartphones so that users can easily establish the part for

interworking in the SAP ERP. The case described in this study is to provide communication for client

applications and the SAP service through TCP/IP as a web service, and to implement a method of

transferring server’s and client’s data request and result values in XML, to suggest a new method of

efficient underworking of the SAP ERP.

Keywords: ERP, SAP, Mobile, SmartPhone, SmartOffice, Platform

1. Introduction

One of products generally used in the ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system is the ERP

solution available from SAP.

While services converged on communication and banking are vitalized by means of smartphones in

the smart convergence environment, a new commercial transaction environment is rapidly growing, for

example, non-financial institutions’ entry into the e-transaction market, sharply increasing mobile

banking transactions, and increasing e-payment by means of mobile credit cards. The scale of Korea’s

e-transactions in 2010 is approximately 824 trillion won in total, increased by 22.5% in comparison

with approximately 672 trillion won in 2009. B2B which describes commerce transactions between

businesses acounts for 746 trillion and 34.6 billion won in the total volume of transactions, and B2G

which describes e-transactions for public sector marketing between the government and businesses

accounts for 6.4%[1].

The concept of smart work is a future-oriented business environment in which people use IT

technology to work conveniently and efficiently anytime and anywhere. The mobile office is for

working without spacial limitations by using smartphones, PDAs, laptop computers, smart pads, etc.,

and is one type of services for providing a business environment through a mobile communication

network and portable terminals, not just typically using an in-house radio network and laptop

computers. It enables staffs to do office work in other places by accessing the in-house computer

network, and to access the in-house system and data by externally using a security network in

connection with the ERP and the CRM including e-mails, groupware and e-approval [2].

The Smart Revolution led by smartphones is changing the IT industry and the overall economic

paradigm into the mobile era as well as ordinary daily living [3].

Large and medium-scale enterprises have already changed their PC and PDA-based system into a

system fit for smartphones, and use the MEAP platform to develop products. However, the

development by the MEAP platform requires a lot of costs to be connected with the SAP ERP system,

and work forces to develop the products for smartphones. Small- and medium- scale enterprises which

do not appreciate the importance of development do not want their system to be connected to

smartphones in consideration of costs.

Study of SAP ERP Connection System Driven in Smartphone Jong Youel Park, Dea-Woo Park, Young Hyun Chang, Kyung Bae Yoon

Research Notes in Information Science (RNIS) Volume14,June 2013 doi:10.4156/rnis.vol14.47

273

Using the SAP Mobile Platform for connection of smartphones with the SAP ERP requires a lot of

costs, and the ERP experts should be equipped with a proper ERP system and business technology.

Therefore, enterprises always have difficulty in recruiting good experts [4].

This study aims to devise an interface for common modules to develop the system for smartphones,

to reduce enterprises’ development cost, to implement users’ easy connection to the SAP ERP system,

and to connect the PC-based system with smartphones in Android and IOS.

This study has the following chapters. Chapter 2 describes the architecture and the environment for

development with smartphones. Chapter 3 describes the design for interworking the SAP ERP with

smartphones. Chapter 4 describes the details of the system interworking of the SAP ERP with

smartphones. Chapter 5 summarizes this study and suggests the direction of future studies.

2. RELATED STUDY 2.1. Current smartphone OS and development language

The current smartphone OS is based on Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, Microsoft’s Windows7,

Samsung/Intel’s Tizen, and Samsung’s Bada to develop applications. The leaders of the market are

Google’s Android, and Apple’s iOS. The development language used by each OS is shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Smartphone OS and development language

OS Development

language Development tool

Android Java

Eclipse-based

installation

of Android SDK

iOS Objective-

C/C++ X-Code tool

Windows7 C# Visual Studio

2010

bada C++ bada2.0

Tizen Javascript,

C/C++ Tizen2.0

The iOS architecture which is the iPhone platform is an OS embedded in iPhone of Apple’s

smartphone, iPod touch which is a digital media player, and iPad which is a tablet computer [5].

The iOS architecture is actually similar to the basic architecture of Mac OS X, and is composed of

four software layers, that is, the core OS layer, the core services layer, the media layer, and the cocoa

touch layer [6].

The Android architecture works on the Linux kernel, and is developing fast thanks to the free open

OS. This can be used by enterprises which use an open OS to develop business solutions. Here,

applications are executed through a virtual machine, Dalvik, which is different from the existing Java

virtual machine [7].

Windows7 is an OS for mobile applications, similar to Microsoft’s PC OS [8].

It is greatly improved for the features and speed of smartphones, and has enhanced the functions of

SNS, the multimedia hub, and user-centered design. Bada and Tizen are an OS operating on the Linux

kernel, and are being developed by Samsung. This study is based on Android and iOS the most usually

used currently.

2.2. Comparison of architectures for each development environment

In the development of smartphones, it is required to study the SAP ERP connection system which

can be driven in smartphones with reference to matters of the Android architecture, the iPhone


274

architecture, the development environment, and the mobile Web development environment in order to

develop native Apps [6][7].

3. Designing smartphone-SAP ERP connection system 3.1. Analysis of SAP ERP client connection system

A client application communicates with the SAP interface through TCP/IP communication, and the

SAP API is established to be a GUI type. Apps developed with the SAP API transmits and receive data

through the SAP interface.

When the client application requests a service to a server, the application in the server drives the

SAP service to be connected to the SAP ERP, and transmits the return value in XML to the client.

Figure 1 shows the process.

3.2. Designing SAP ERP server connection system

For designing the SAP ERP connection system modules of a server, it is essential to use computing

resources for high performance data processing, data sharing and access to the SAP system data from

other functions of applications. It is essential to implement stable services to address greatly increasing

request of applications on the server side, and to design the system which implements distributed

processing.

Figure 2 shows the system design for applications on the server side.

Figure 2. Server Application

4. Implementing smartphone-SAP ERP connection system

Figure 1. SAP ERP Interface Interface


275

4.1. Analysis of SAP ERP client connection system

The SAP service applications in a server is designed to use simple scripts to drive services so that

users can easily use them, and to implement distributed processing in the applications. The server

application should be driven in the form of services in the Window Server or the Linux Server. Matters

for script settings to implement SAP ERP interworking are described below.

• Setting Java JCO connection

4.2. Implementing client application SAP API

The client application SAP API is implemented to enable users to communicate with the server

application by simple operation in the client application. The client application is developed to be the

GUI type, and implemented to specify service name, path and service type, and to set communication

protocols, and transmission methods. Figure 3 shows how to set the SAP API of the client application.

Figure 3. Setting the SAP API in client

4.3. Implementing client application SAP API

The client application is implemented to be a GUI type to enable users to easily access the SAP.

Users use their own development tools, to call the SAP API of a relevant module so that the client

application can process it. When the client application calls the SAP RFC required for the relevant

logic, the server data is processed in XML through the SAP interface to be transferred to the client.

Figure 4 shows the client application implemented for automatically setting the XML values.


276

Figure 4. Client Application

4.4. SAP ERP interworking test

It was identified that, when the client application requested the RFC service, the server transferred

the result in XML to the client through the SAP service. The operator could receive and process the

result in an XML file format or a structure. Figure 5 shows that the XML file name is processed to be

the same as the RFC name.

Figure 5 Result of SAP ERP interworking test

5. Conclusion

A major issue involved in implementing a system which can be driven in smartphones by means of

the SAP mobile platform is increasing costs and a difficulty in connection with the SAP ERP system

due to non-open interfaces. A simplified interface system is thus needed. This study aims to design and

implement a simplified SAP ERP connection system that can be driven in smartphones.

Required future studies include implementation of interworking with other mail servers as well as

the SAP ERP, Microsoft’s share point, and interworking with other external connection systems.

6. References

[1] "Korea Internet White Paper",Korea Internet and Security Agency(2011), 2011. Oct, pp.272-276.


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[2] "Korea Internet White Paper",Korea Internet and Security Agency(2012), 2012. Oct, pp.311-316.

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[4] Yeong-Real Kim, 2011. March "A New Effective SAP ERP Education Approach Through The

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[6] Yang-Sun Lee, JaeSung Kim, MyoungJin Kim, 2011. March "Design and Implementation of the

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[7] Jusung Kim, Oh-Chul Kwon, Chang-Gun Lee, 2010. Dec "Development of Frame Buffer

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Proceedings of the computing science and engineering, vol.16, no.12, pp.1210-1211.

[8] Sanghwa Lee, Bup-Ki Min, Seung Hak Kuk, Hyeon Soo Kim, 2012. April "Automating GUI Test

of Windows Phone7 Applications", Journal of KISS : Software and Applications, vol.39, no.4,

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[9] Seung-In Kim, Gwi-Ja Shin, 2010. Jan "The Relationship of Brand Awareness and User

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Elements," Korea Digital Design Council, pp.657-658.


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