SAP ABAP | Object Orientation

The• SAP ecosystem creates applications with the programming language SAP
ABAP (Advanced Business Application Programming) t is created
by SAP which is a domain-specific language, it is the 4th generation
programming language. It is also called ABAP/4(Fourth Generation
Language” or 4GL). mainly for enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.
The introduction of Object Orientation in ABAP increased the language’s
capabilities and brought it in line with modern programming paradigms.
Object Orientation in SAP ABAP
Object-oriented programming aims to implement real-world entities like
inheritance, polymorphism, etc. in programming. The main aim of OOP is to
bind together the data and the functions that operate on them so that no other
part of the code can access this data except that function. Object Orientation
was introduced to ABAP to improve its flexibility and versatility in complex
business environments. It makes it possible for programmers to structure
their code in a more modular and reusable manner.

Oops in SAP ABAP

Key Principles of SAP ABAP:

• Objects: ABAP objects are instances of classes that include both data
(attributes) and methods (functions or procedures). Objects
represent real-world elements or concepts, making complex systems
easier to describe and operate with.
• Attributes: Attributes in ABAP refer to the data or variables
associated with a class or object. These attributes define the state or
properties of an object and are used to store and manage data within
the context of an object-oriented program
• Methods: Methods in ABAP are the functions or processes that are
associated with a class. They define the actions or procedures that
may be performed on objects of that class. Methods can be called to
change the data of an object or to perform certain tasks.
• Interfaces: The interface in SAP ABAP is different from the class, it
can not have any implementation like the class. It defines a set of
method declarations that a class must implement without providing
any implementation detail of that method. Interface helps in
achieving multiple inheritance. Multiple inheritance can be defined
as a class can inherit multiple interfaces. Due to Inheritance interface
provides a base for polymorphism because the method declared in
the interface behaves differently in different classes. Like class
Interface can be defined locally or globally in the ABAP programming
language.
Pillars of SAP ABAP:
ABAP(Advanced Business Application Programming) is an object-oriented
programming language that supports many oops concepts like other
programming languages. It supports all the four pillars of oops i.e. Inheritance,
Polymorphism, Abstraction, and Encapsulation.
• Abstraction: – Abstraction in ABAP is the process of hiding
irrelevant data and showing the essential data only.
• Encapsulation: Encapsulation in ABAP is one of the fundamental
principles of OOP. In SAP ABAP, it means that classes encapsulate
their internal details, such as data and methods, The internal
implementation is hidden.
• Polymorphism: Polymorphism in ABAP enables the use of different
implementations of methods with the same name. it allows us to
write code that can work with objects of different classes in a
uniform way.
• Inheritance: Inheritance in ABAP allows you to create new classes
based on existing classes, inheriting their attributes and methods.
This leads to code reuse and establishes a hierarchical relationship
between classes. It is often used to model “is-a” relationships.
Real Life Examples of OOPs in SAP ABAP:
Abstraction:
• Real-life example: – A car company shows the accelerator, clutch,
and brake to the driver which is relevant, they do not show the
mechanic of the brake which is non-essential for the driver.
Encapsulation:
• Real-life example: – When a kid goes to school, they put books,
pens, pencils, lunchbox, etc. in a single bag. So, here bag acts as an
encapsulation.
Polymorphism:
• Real-life example: – A student named Kanu acts as a student in
school. When he goes home, he acts as a son. So here, the object is
the same i.e. Kanu but his behavior changes according to the places.
Inheritance:
• Real-life example: – Let’s consider a father and a child. Father’s
name is Shekhar and son’s name is Kanu. Shekhar has brown skin,
black hair, and grey eyes. Kanu also has grey eyes. So here, Kanu
inherited the property of grey eyes from his father. Kanu acts as a
derived class and Shekhar acts as a base class.
Procedural Approach Vs Object-Oriented Approach in
SAP ABAP:
Below are some of the differences between procedural and object-oriented
programming in SAP ABAP:
Object – Oriented
Features Procedural Approach Approach

OOP in SAP ABAP is

In procedural organized around classes
programming in SAP and objects. Classes define
1. Structure ABAP, the code is both data (attributes) and
organized around behavior (methods), and
procedures and objects are instances of
functions. classes.

OOP allows for

inheritance, where new
classes can be derived
from existing classes,
2. Code Reusability inheriting their attributes
In procedural and methods. This leads to
programming in SAP code reuse and the
ABAP, codes are less creation of specialized
reusable. classes.

In procedural OOP Polymorphism

programming in SAP allows different classes to
3. Function Name ABAP, we can not have have methods with the
more than one function same name but different
with same name. behaviors.

OOP can make

maintenance easier
because classes are self-
In procedural contained and changes to
4. Maintenance Programming one class are less likely to
Language in SAP affect other parts of the
ABAP, maintenance of codebase. It leads to
codes can be more modular and reusable
challenging. code.

Procedural Object-oriented approach

5. Real World
programming in SAP is based on the real world.
 Object – Oriented
Features Procedural Approach Approach

ABAP is based
on the unreal world.

Benefits of Object Oriented Approach:

• Real-World Entity Modeling: Using object-oriented ABAP,
developers may represent real-world things such as clients,
commodities, and orders as objects. As a consequence, the code is
more understandable and aligned with the business domain.
• Encapsulation ensures that information stored within objects may
only be accessed and altered through certain methods. As a
consequence, there is less likelihood of unintentional data change
and better data security.
• Code reuse: By establishing classes and using inheritance,
programmers may reuse code in several regions of an application. As
a consequence, redundancy is reduced and the development process
is made more efficient.