1-6 Concepts and Technologies Guide for Oracle Application Integration Architecture
their method of interaction phone, chat, email, fax, letter, and so forth. and get a consistent experience regardless of the medium.
1.3.5 Integration Through Web Services
XML-based Web services are a technology platform independent way of exposing application interfaces. Using XML as the common language, business transactions are
sent from one application to another in near real time. Web services are exposed using industry standards such as WSDL and SOAP or in a REST-ful manner, shielding the
implementation and connectivity details of the provider application from the consumer. The primary requirement which leads to the use of Web services is similar
to that of native integrations which involves the exchange of business messages. The key difference is the need to integrate applications across a wide variety of potentially
incompatible technology platforms including integration with third-parties for example business-to-business scenarios or the use of Software-as-a-Service eliminates
the use of the native interfaces as an option.
1.3.5.1 What Oracle Provides
Technology Foundation Oracle Fusion Middleware including SOA Suite and Adapters bridging from an
applications native interfaces to the world of Web services allows for the consumption, composition and integration of applications using Web services. The
inclusion of Fusion Middleware to support Web service-based integration enables an expanded set of Quality of Service characteristics like resiliency, scalability,
guaranteed delivery, and security.
Pre-Built Integrations Through the Oracle Validated Integration program a number of pre-built integrations
created by our partners exist which take advantage of our applications Web service-based interfaces. One partner has leveraged PeopleSofts Web services
interfaces along with Oracle Fusion Middleware to exchange standard HR-XML schemas. As a result, ordering a background check on an applicant is a matter of just a
few clicks, and once a report is complete, the detailed search results can be viewed immediately-from within the PeopleSoft Enterprise interface.
1.3.6 Reference Data Query
Reference data query addresses supplemental information that is important to completing and or facilitating business transactions, but is not in and of itself part of
the primary integration activity. Web services have further fueled the availability of reference data from third-party providers and there are many examples of companies
which offer reference data services on a subscription basis.
Typical use cases include geocode or tax code lookups, evaluating availability to promise ATP for inventorymanufactured goods, or something as a simple as
retrieving an account balance.
1.3.6.1 What Oracle Provides
Technology Foundation Oracle Fusion Middleware, including SOA Suite and Adapters bridging from an
applications native interfaces to the world of Web services allows for the consumption, composition and integration of applications using Web services. The
Understanding the Oracle AIA Reference Architecture 1-7
inclusion of Fusion Middleware to support Web service-based integration enables an expanded set of Quality of Service characteristics like resiliency, scalability,
guaranteed delivery, and security.
Pre-Built Integrations Through the Oracle Validated Integration program a number of pre-built integrations
created by our partners exist which take advantage of our applications Web service-based interfaces for reference data query. One of our partners provides a
pre-built integration with Oracle E-Business Suite for tax jurisdiction lookup and tax calculation. The partners solution includes a SOAP service, deployed at the customer
site, which then invokes their Software-as-a-Service system for geocode lookup and tax calculation. The interface leverages the tax partner subscription method of Oracle
E-Business Tax for third-party tax vendor integration.
1.3.7 Process-Centric Integration