Help! How to use pay_element_link API

Question

Hi all,
I am developing HRMS Interface to transfer employee element data from other system into EBS. And I want to use Pay element Link API to implement the requirement.
The requirement is:
1.     Using the primary key of NATIONAL_IDENTIFIER_NUMBER (ssn) check to see if the employee exists as an active employee in Oracle.
2.     Validate that the Element is a valid element and retrieve the Benefit Type from the DFF (ELEMENT_INFORMATION11). If the element is invalid or does not have a Benefit Type defined, flag the record as ‘REJECTED’ and write the error to the log file and move to next record in staging.
3.     If the employee has another active element assigned for the same Benefit Type, using the API’s terminate the existing element for that Benefit Type.
4.     Using the API’s add the new element to the employee with the appropriate element entries.
5.     Flag the status of the record in staging to ‘PROCESSED’.
The step1 and step2 is logic adjustment. And I have finished them. Next I will finish 3,4 and 5. The fifth step is easy to approach. I can not do 3 and 4 for I do not konw how to use the pay_element_link_API. And I know the 3 wiil use PAY_ELEMENT_LINK_API.update_element_link, the 4 step will use PAY_ELEMENT_LINK_API.CREATE_ELEMENT_LINK. But the most difficult is I do not konw what to pass the parameter to update_element_link and create_element_link. I do not know the meaning of the two procedure's parameter.
When the element has many entry values, how to import these entry value into the EBS. For example, an element names 'Retirement Plan' and the element has a input value names 'Amount' and the value is 80$. So I want to know how to import the 80$ into EBS by the API. Just means, the 80$ will pass to which one parameter in the create_element_link or update_element_link.
Please give me some ideas. Thank you so much

Answer 1

On troubleshooting the HR api's you can use the pyupip logging mechanism . This would allow you to pinpoint what stored procedure section is being executed when the error ocurred.
set serveroutput on
spool trace.log
begin
hr_utility.set_trace_options ('TRACE_DEST:DBMS_OUTPUT');
hr_utility.trace_on;
-- your code here
hr_utility.trace_off;
Exception
when others then
dbms_output.put_line(sqlerrm);
hr_utility.trace_off;
END;
spool off