FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENT RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and Rule 13)
Title of invention: SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATING SOFTWARE TESTING
Applicant:
Tata Consultancy Services Limited A company Incorporated in India under The Companies Act, 1956
Having address:
Nirmal Building, 9th Floor,
Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021,
Maharashtra, India
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to the field of software testing, more particularly, a system and a method of providing an integrated platform comprising of boxed solutions, processes, and unique techniques to create end-to-end automation in software
testing.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Computer software systems and applications, once built, are put through a rigorous testing process to minimize associates risks. A typical testing project will have planning, designing, executing, and closing phases. This is classically referred to as the software testing life cycle and is aligned with the software development life cycle.
The main objective of the software testing life cycle is to validate the compliance of the application or software system under test. The test execution phase is the most feasible candidate for automation and up to 60% of the activities in this phase can be automated.
Software needs to be tested before it is launched / delivered to the client. For example, several features of an application under test may be manually executed, and then the results may be compared with their expected outcomes in the excel sheet. Although the application can be tested manually, the recent trend is moving towards automated testing.
Commonly, automated testing involves automating a manual process already in place that uses a formalized testing process. Record and playback features of conventional automated testing tools (e.g., HP Quick test Pro or Selenium or Rational Functional Tester or any other open source/proprietary tools in market, etc.) may capture and record the user's actions or manual testing steps to generate test scripts, which may be used later for automatic testing of the application under test.

The automation in testing in an ideal scenario saves time and cost during software development. Although running automated test is faster than manual testing, the time saved is diverted to developing and maintaining automated test scripts, which do not increase any coverage. In addition, many talented testers prefer manual testing so that they can spend their time devising creative test cases rather than becoming proficient with complex automated languages.
The traditional approach for automation is to create scripts through record/playback or script by automation engineers. In this model, creation and maintenance of the scripts requires higher degree of technical skills.
The automation quotient levels achieved in the test execution phase is close to 60% for organizations with reasonable maturity in their testing processes. This percentage drops to less than 20% for the entire testing life cycle and the tools used are automation which negatively affects the appraisal cost for the software.
In view of aforementioned challenges, there exists a need to provide an integrated platform that combines a manual and an automation testing in a single step. Also, there exists a need to improvize upon the functional automation approach that takes the maximum automation coverage.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
The primary object of the present invention is to an integrated platform that is capable of creating end to end automation solutions for software testing
Another significant object of the invention is to provide a hybrid test automation framework developed irrespective of the underlying test automation tool being used.

Another object of the invention is to provide a system that combines the manual and automation testing as one step wherein an automation engineer is involved only in customizing the framework for the application under test.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a system that enables test engineers with minimal test automation experience to develop, execute, and maintain tests.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a method towards functional automation, which allows a user to take the maximum automation coverage considering the entire testing life cycle.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide an empowering tester to iteratively edit and execute test cases
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Before the present systems and methods, enablement are described, it is to be understood that this application is not limited to the particular systems, and methodologies described, as there can be multiple possible embodiments which are not expressly illustrated in the present disclosures. It is also to be understood that the terminology used in the description is for the purpose of describing the particular versions or embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application.
The present invention provides an automated testing system characterized in automated development of reusable test scripts, the system comprising; a tool independent layer configured to specify the test data and test cases in English like non-technical language, the tool independent layer comprises a test controller module adapted to control flow of test execution and choose the testing too! in which the test has to be executed; a tool dependent layer configured with mechanism to specify objects of the application under test and actions that can be executed on application under test, the tool dependent layer

comprises a keyword interpreter configured to map and convert keywords which are in non-technical language into at least one tool-specific command to generate a set of test scripts and execute the converted scripts using testing tool in application under test.
Another aspect of the invention provides test suites that require being executed using different testing tools in the same run to be executed. The tool independent layer is designed in a methodology so that in the same run/execution tests can be executed in more than one testing tools supported. Further, if the applications comprises of elements that are not recognized by a single testing tool and requires support of more than one testing tool, then the framework provides a feature for design and execution. In a single run test cases of the same application can be executed in different testing tools as specified.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of preferred
embodiments, is better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings.
For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings example
constructions of the invention; however, the invention is not limited to the specific
methods and apparatus disclosed in the drawings:
Figure 1 illustrates a traditional approach of software test automation using automation
framework
Figure 2 illustrates an automated software testing system according to one exemplary embodiment of the invention.
Figure 3 illustrates an automated testing system (Reusable Automation Framework for Testing (RAFT)) to effectuate test automation.
Figure 4 illustrates low level architecture and flow of automated testing system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Some embodiments, illustrating its features, will now be discussed in detail. The words "comprising," "having," "containing," and "including," and other forms thereof, are intended to be equivalent in meaning and be open ended in that an item or items following any one of these words is not meant to be an exhaustive listing of such item or items, or meant to be limited to only the listed item or items. It must also be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an." and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Although any methods, and systems similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments, the preferred methods, and systems are now described. The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the particular features of this invention, it will be appreciated that various modifications can be made, and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the invention. These and other modifications in the nature of the invention or the preferred embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the invention and not as a limitation.
Referring now to Figure 1, is a traditional approach illustrating the interactions between manual tester and an automation tester in a typical test automation phase.
In the existing scenario, the test automation process saves time and cost. Although running automated test is faster than manual testing, the time saved is diverted to developing and maintaining automated test scripts, which do not to increase any coverage as such. In addition, many talented testers prefer manual testing so that they can spend their time devising creative test cases rather than becoming proficient with complex automated languages.

Further, the traditional approach of automation testing is to create test scripts through record/playback or scripting by automation engineers. In this model creation and maintenance of the scripts requires a higher degree of technical skills.
The present invention provides an automated system and method for software testing that is characterized in automating the development of reusable test scripts. Broadly, the system comprises of; a tool independent layer configured to specify the test data and test cases in English like non-technical language, the tool independent layer comprises a test controller module adapted to control flow of test execution and choose the testing tool in which the test has to be executed; a tool dependent layer configured with mechanism to specify objects of the application under test and actions that can be executed on application under test, the tool dependent layer comprises a keyword interpreter configured to map and convert keywords which are in non-technical language into at least one tool-specific command to generate a set of test scripts and execute the converted scripts using testing tool in application under test.
Referring to figure 2, an automated testing system 100 having the following components is provided:
The system 100 is composed of a two layer architecture comprising of: a tool independent layer 102 and a tool dependent layer 104. Broadly, the tool independent layer comprises of components which are common for all testing tools. Further, the tool independent layer further comprises of test data 108, test case 116 and test controller module 112. The test controller module 112 is adapted to control flow of test execution and choose the testing tool in which the test has to be executed.
On the contrary, the tool dependent layer comprises of components which are specific for a testing tool. The tool dependent layer further comprises of an object map 106, action map 110, keyword interpreter module 114 and a library. The keyword interpreter module 114 of the tool dependent layer is configured to map and convert keywords which are in

non-technical language into at least one tool-specific command to generate a set of test scripts and execute the converted scripts using testing tool in application under test. The tool dependent library supports the keyword interpreter module 114
The system 100 further comprises an automatic defect logger module and a function
library.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention a tool independent layer 102 is configured to
specify the test data 108 and test cases 116 in English like non-technical language. The
tool independent layer 102 comprises the test controller module 112, which is adapted to
control flow of test execution and choose the testing tool in which the test has to be
executed.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to input dependency of test cases based on the test case results (PASS/FAIL/SKIP). The decision of execution of test cases based on dependency shall be done during the run time.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to prioritize the test case (HIGH/MEDIUM/LOW) and based on the priority configured for the current execution, the test cases will be executed.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to input execution flag of a test case (Y/N) based upon which the decision is taken whether to execute the test case for that particular run or not.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to input testing tool in which the test case has to be executed and based on the input the decision is taken as in which testing tool the test case has to be executed.

In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to input whether previous execution results need to be considered for the decision of test case execution.
In another embodiment of the invention in combination of the above inputs like dependency, priority, execution flag, testing tool configuration, previous execution results consideration, the system takes a dynamic decision to execute the test case or not and also in which testing tool the test case has to be executed.
The toot independent layer 102 of the present invention is designed in a way to enable same run/execution tests to be executed in more than one testing tools supported. Test suite that requires being executed using different testing tools in the same run can be executed. For example in a test suite, there are 20 tests to be executed in testing tool A, 20 in tool B and 30 in tool C, the tests can be configured accordingly and in a single execution all the 70 test cases can be executed on their respective tools.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has an optimized methodology designed to combine test cases of the same testing tools which are in sequence to execute in a batch of optimal set of test cases while also considering the dependency between the test cases which is decided only during run time.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool independent layer 102 has a mechanism to decide the flow within as well as between the test cases based on the run time conditions or values of the system. Based on dynamic conditions of the system under test a part of the test or the whole test can be executed once or more than once or it can also be skipped.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool dependent layer 104 is configured with mechanism to specify objects of the application under test 106 and actions that can be executed on application under test 110, the tool dependent layer 104 comprises the

keyword interpreter module 114 configured to map and convert keywords which are in non-technical language into at least one tool-specific command to generate a set of test scripts and execute the converted scripts using testing tool in application under test.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool dependent layer 104 comprises tool dependent library that includes the keyword library 114 converts the non technical keywords in to testing tool specific commands/scripts based on the testing tool selected in the tool independent layer 102.
In another embodiment of the invention the tool dependent layer 104 has a mechanism to execute any new scripts written apart from the keywords or scripts that are already available by default.
In another embodiment of the invention the automated system has a mechanism to facilitate reuse of any test case developed by any other test case through a simple call to the test case.
In another embodiment of the invention the combination of the tool independent layer 102 and tool dependent layer 104 abstracts the complexities of the underlying testing tool and provides a common platform/framework for test case development, execution and post execution analysis which can be done by manual testers or business users or non-technical persons.
Referring now to Figure 3, a novel approach of software test automation by using automated testing system (Reusable Automation Framework for Testing (RAFT)) for test automation is illustrated.
In another embodiment of the invention, the system enables Reusable Automation Framework for Testing (RAFT) for test automation wherein test engineers with minimal test automation experience can develop, execute, and maintain tests easily. RAFT combines manual and automation as one step. Automation Engineer will be involved

only in customizing the framework for the application under test and the framework enhancement activities required from time to time. Test development, execution, and maintenance of test cases can be done by manual testers with minimal automation knowledge.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention provides a tool agnostic hybrid automation framework that can be used for any test automation tool available in the market. Currently support for HP QTP, Selenium, and IBM- RFT are provided. For extending, the framework to any other testing tool minimal customization is required.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention has a User friendly interface to develop test cases so that manual testers with minimal automation knowledge of the testing tools can develop and execute test cases. RAFT for input uses excel sheet that does not have any technical information specific to the testing tools like Object Hierarchy details. Therefore, user can easily select actions, Objects along with reference for object hierarchy details.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention incorporates high reusability features at two levels. Reusable functions can be organized as a part of framework code and also test steps, which are common across the test cases such as login, logout test cases, can be organized as reusable transactions in the input excel sheet. Reusable Keywords present in RAFT can be used across technologies. The RAFT keyword can be used for any technology like Web, Java, Dot Net, Mainframe etc. provided the underlying testing tool supports the same.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention is application and technology independent. The system includes common keywords for all the commands of the testing tool supported. The commands shall also include technology specific keywords like mainframes, oracle, .net etc as supported by the testing tools. The

commands shall also include verification commands with options for regular expressions and trimming.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention has a sophisticated and detailed test reports that helps in faster debugging, reduced defect resolution time and easy metrics generation.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention creates customized HTML Test report that includes three levels of results Test Suite summary, Test cases summary and test steps summary. Detailed test metrics supported by graphical representations are provided. Further, it provides options for the user to select if screenshots needs to be enabled/ disabled based on the result of the test step. When more than one test case sheet is run, a consolidated report is also created along with individual reports.
In another embodiment result of each test case and test steps is provided in the Input excel sheet. Metrics on number of passed; failed and error test steps for each test case including reusable test cases shall also be given. Test case documentation shall also be provided in the excel sheet as well as in the HTML format.
In another embodiment the system of the present invention has detailed logs in text file format with details on execution flow, start, and end timings of test cases and severity of errors/log messages, if any.
In another embodiment the Input data for the system of the present invention is provided in two ways. Data can be embedded in the Input Excel sheet or data can be provided in an external data sheet. User also specifies that a random data be picked from a predefined data pool or that data to be generated as a random number. User can also specify the data as Global parameter which can be extended across test cases

In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention provides better control flow among the test steps of the test cases. This provides sharing of information among the test steps in a test case, better programming and also helps to avoid redundant test steps.
In another embodiment the system of the present invention provides an option to use run time values of variables. Meaning the output of one test step can be used as input data for another test step. The value shall be output and stored in a variable which henceforth used in another test step. This shall hold good for a single run, means scope of the variable will be within the test run and may not be used in a separate test run.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention provides an option to exit a partivular test case or failure of a critical step. This is used in situations
where there is no point in .continuing the test case when a particular step fails.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention incorporates programming features in the test cases in terms of conditioning Control shall be passed to another test step in the same test case on failure or succtss of a condition. Test steps can be repeated for specified number of times in a loop.
In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention provides an option to simply skip the test case on failure of a critical step in a test case. This shall be used in situations where there is no point in continuing the test when a particular step fails.
In another embodiment the system and method of the preset invention has a minimal maintenance of the framework code. This defines the coding conventions and organization of framework files.

In another embodiment the system and method of the present invention as an automation solution kit provide additional automation utilities which shall help in automation of tasks other than test execution phase activities like analyzing the change in the AUT prior to test execution, test development etc.
In another embodiment of the invention the test controller module 112 used to control the flow of test execution. It also handles calls to various internal libraries and exception handling. It also includes function libraries built to handle logging, test execution & reporting. The keyword interpreter module 114 is responsible for converting the RAFT keywords to tool-specific commands. Most of the commonly used keywords are already defined in the framework keyword interpreter. Keyword library can be extended with additional custom keywords
In another embodiment of the invention the results are easily readable and are captured with run time values of the system under test as well as screenshots of the system. As a part of test results documentation of the test cases are created as well.
Referring to figure 4, a flow diagram of automated testing system and method is illustrated. In the initial step 10 of the proposed method the test execution is triggered. , In the next step 20, action, data and object definition is received as input from input modules 106, 108 and 110. Step 30 iterates through the test driver sheet and for each test case calls the corresponding tool dependent library. Step 40 iterates through test steps and converts in to tool specific command. In the next step 50, the action-using tool on automation is executed and the corresponding result is retrieved. In the next step 60, the test log gets updated. Step 70 updates the result in the framework test case sheet and in the final step 80 an html test report is created along with test documentation and html test log using the framework test case sheet results.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the particular features of this invention, it will be appreciated that various modifications can be made, and that many

changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the invention. These and other modifications in the nature of the invention or the preferred embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the invention and not as a limitation.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
1) Automation of complex business scenarios with the Support of control flows in the test cases
2) Data driven testing support by execution of test cases for multiple iterations on multiple data sets
3) Automatic Documentation of test cases
4) High test case reusability
5) Multiple test data options
6) Debugging is made faster through detailed logs and screenshots for failed test cases
7) Multiple Modes of Execution including scheduling features
8) Robust Error handling that supports unattended runs
9) Integration with Test Management system for a standardized test management (Quality Center, TestLink)
10) Options for enabling or disabling the screenshot capture based on the test result
11) Test reports with detailed test metrics
12) Scheduling and Robust Error handling features for unattended runs
13) Flexible test Execution modes
a. Based on test case dependency
b. Based on test priority
c. Based on previous test results
14) Supports Object Repository concept as well as Descriptive Programming concepts
15) Well defined coding standards
16) Validations and checkpoints available

We Claim:
1. An automated testing system characterized in automated development of reusable
test scripts, the system comprising;
a two layer architecture comprising a tool independent layer and a tool
dependent layer;
an input processing unit configured to receive objects of an application
under test, generate test data and cases therefore ;
a keyword interpreter module disposed on the tool dependent layer
configured to map and convert keywords in the first set of test scripts into
at least one tool-specific command to generate a second set of test scripts;
and
a test controller module disposed on the tool independent layer adapted to
control flow of test execution and reutilize said first and second set of test
scripts for next analogous application for testing.
2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising an automatic defect logger module adapted to automatically logged for test case failures in test management tool.
3. The system according to claim 1, further comprising generating a test suite required being executed using different testing tools in the same run execution.
4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the tool independent layer is configured with a mechanism to input dependency of test case based on the test case results assigned as pass or fail or skip.
5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the tool independent layer is configured with a mechanism to input priority of test cases prioritize as high/medium/low and based on the priority for the current execution, the test cases is executed.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the tool independent layer is configured with a mechanism to input execution flag of the test case assigned as Yes or No and processing the execution of the test case based on the flag.
7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system is dynamically adapted in selection of test cases to be executed based on priority, execution flag, dependency and rerun flag.
8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the tool dependent layer is configured with a mechanism to execute new script written apart from the available keywords or scripts.
9. An automated testing method characterized in automated development of reusable test scripts, the method comprising processor implemented steps of:
extracting objects of an application under test, generating test data and
cases therefor, wherein each of said test cases configuration is
characterized in eliminating manual test development and tool
independent test data by using an Input processing unit;
mapping and converting keywords in the first set of test scripts into at
least one tooi-specific command to generate a second set of test scripts by
using a keyword interpreter module disposed on the tool dependent layer;
and
Controlling flow of test execution and choosing the testing tool in which
the test has to be executed by using a test controller module disposed on a
tool independent layer.
10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising generating a test suite
required being executed using different testing tools in the same run execution.

11. The method according to claim 9, further comprising configuring the tool independent layer with a mechanism to input priority of test cases prioritize as High/Medium/Low and based on the priority configured for the current execution, the test case is executed.
12. The method according to claim 9, further comprising configuring the tool independent layer with a mechanism to input execution flag of the test case assigned as Yes or No and processing the execution of the test case based on the flag.
13. The method according to claim 9, further comprising configuring the tool dependent layer with a mechanism for executing a new script written apart from the available keywords or scripts.
14. The method according to claim 9, wherein the method is dynamically adapted for executing the test case and selecting the testing tool, the test case to be executed.