Multi-layer Track & Trace System Landscape with Smart Contract Validation Instances

Abstract

Ideas about blockchain-based applications are soaring, while the realization of existing enterprise architecture landscapes is more cumbersome. This is also valid for applications based on track & trace blockchains. The main impediment to implementing smart contracts with a subsequent financial flow from one blockchain peer to another is trust. Trust issues are prevalent in many business areas. One of the most effective countermeasures is a demonstration of the power of blockchain information systems. By showing the actors of a supply chain how their nodes in a common blockchain are interacting, suspiciousness is traded for knowledge. For this reason, an example of a realistic blockchain application is discussed in detail. The main components are a widely used SAP Business Technology Platform and Hyperledger Firefly. Since multiple layers are part of such an instance, the focus will be on the Hyperledger side. This study presents a notable advancement in the realm of blockchain-enabled track & trace solutions through the use of a novel system architecture for its end-to-end implementation. Its architecture achieves crucial integrations between web3 technologies and established enterprise systems. It offers new functionalities, such as AI integration, while simultaneously acknowledging the inherent challenges and charting potential trajectories for future research. Received: 9 May 2024 | Revised: 21 June 2024 | Accepted: 29 July 2024 Conflicts of Interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to this work. Data Availability Statement The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in SAP at https://help.sap.com/docs/SAP_S4HANA_ON-PREMISE/671fe27096664c2c82ac6d2cabb38dea/74c6b169bfb74953b07a66aa248cd9aa.html?locale=en-US and https://help.sap.com/docs/SAP_S4HANA_ON-PREMISE/671fe27096664c2c82ac6d2cabb38dea/02b0ed279b5b430f9f48ad41c7e37f4f.html?locale=en-US. Author Contribution Statement Markus Rabe: Conceptualization, Validation, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing, Supervision. Henrik Rainer Körsgen: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data curation, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing, Visualization, Project administration.