Data processing: database and file management or data structures – Database design – Data structure types
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-25
2001-08-28
Alam, Hosain T. (Department: 2172)
Data processing: database and file management or data structures
Database design
Data structure types
C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C717S152000, C707S793000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06282547
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
The present invention relates to business intelligence tools for building applications on a database management system (DBMS).
The advent of powerful, yet economical computers made possible by advances in processor, memory and data storage devices has made computers an integral part of modern companies. An important class of application for these computers includes a DBMS where information is collected and organized according to a data model and searched using queries. The DBMS allows users to perform operations such as locating, adding, deleting and updating records stored in the computer without a detailed knowledge of how the information making up the records actually is stored in the computer.
One powerful type of DBMS is known as a relational DBMS where stored information appears to the user as a set of tables, each of which is termed a relation. In each relation, the information appears to be arranged in rows and columns, with columns of data being related to each other by one or more predetermined functions.
To access particular information in the relational DBMS, a query compiler converts a user request, typically expressed in a query language such as a Structured Query Language (SQL), into a set of operations to be performed on one or more input relations to yield a solution responsive to the user's request. Using the query language provided by the DBMS, the user may develop application programs which facilitate retrieval of the data from the DBMS, processing of the data, and organization of the data into reports.
One issue in developing business intelligence tools is the type of reports that the tool is to generate. Typically, the tool generates certain pre-formatted reports using the query language. Although the query language is easier to use then conventional programing languages such as Basic or C, the generation of each new report still requires a certain programming expertise and can often take a substantial amount of time.
SUMMARY
The invention provides user access to data through information spaces called scenes that allow the user to understand, view and navigate data. In one aspect, a hyperlink system is provided for viewing in context information associated with an application with a plurality of scenes from a viewpoint. The hyperlink system has a first scene having a first zoom factor from the viewpoint to the first scene; a second scene nested in the first scene, the second scene having a second zoom factor from the first scene to the second scene; and a wormhole projecting from the first scene to the second scene based on the first and second zoom factors.
Implementations of the invention include the following. The wormhole has an attribute property for setting the value of the one or more parameters associated with the second scene. The wormhole provides context information from each subsequent scene to each previous scene. Further, each scene may be displayed in one or more nested windows and may contain one or more objects representing the content of the database. The first elevation elev
1
may be determined in accordance with the first zoom factor Zoom
scene 1
as follows:
elev
1
=
1
Zoom
scene1
.
The second elevation elev
2
may be determined in accordance with the second zoom factor Zoom
wormhole
as follows:
elev
2
=
1
Zoom
scene1
+
[
1
Zoom
wormhole
-
1
]
.
Further, a query generator dynamically triggers queries to a database based on the first and second zoom factors. Additionally, one or more notification events may be generated as a user navigates the hyperlink system for triggering an object's behavior.
In a second aspect, a method for navigating a virtual world having a first scene and a second scene nested therein is disclosed. The virtual world has a wormhole projecting from the first scene to a second scene, each scene having one or more objects and each object having a behavior. The method involves interacting with the one or more objects; and generating notification events to trigger the behavior of the object depending on whether the object is viewed from the first scene or the second scene.
Implementations of the method include one or more of the following. The behavior is determined by setting the value of the scene or one or more global parameters. The object's behavior is determined by executing an action. Further, the first scene has a first zoom factor from a viewpoint to the first scene, the second scene having a second zoom factor from the first scene to the second scene, and wormhole projects from the first scene to the second scene based on the first and second zoom factors. The first elevation elev
1
is determined in accordance with the first zoom factor Zoom
scene 1
as follows:
elev
1
=
1
Zoom
scene1
.
and the second elevation elev
2
is determined in accordance with the second zoom factor Zoom
wormhole
as follows:
elev
2
=
1
Zoom
scene1
+
[
1
Zoom
wormhole
-
1
]
.
Additionally, the parameters include a global parameter, a scene parameter, or a query parameter. The method may dynamically trigger queries to a database based on the first and second zoom factors. The method also generates one or more notification events as a user manipulates the one or more objects.
Advantages of the invention include one or more of the following. The invention is a visual business intelligence tool for building applications that extend beyond the limitations inherent in conventional forms-based or report-based applications. Specialized programmers are removed from the application development process and users are moved closer to the data so that application development time is reduced. User interfaces can be created quickly and easily for information rich databases and for applications such as data warehousing and decision support.
The invention's hyperlinks provides context and “look-ahead” information to applications. This capability supports several powerful advantages in building data-driven applications. First, users can see through portals into other views of their data without losing the context of where they are. The navigational path taken by a user browsing the application can affect the application itself, thus providing dynamic customization of the application. In addition, context portals simplify the consolidation of diverse data sources in a single application. In the case of queries that are parameterized with parameters being set by the portal, it in effect provides universal, client-side query joins, allowing the data from different databases to be combined together in a meaningful way. As a result, context portals allow users to attain a greater level of understanding of their data and thus to make better business decisions.
The dynamic object properties simplify development of data-driven applications, enabling domain experts with no programming experience other than spreadsheet usage to use the tool create powerful applications easily. Dynamic object properties have several advantages over static object properties which are hard-coded into the application when compiled. The first is that the properties are seamlessly and automatically bound to data. Furthermore, the bindings are applied to an entire class of object (all objects represented by the data element node) rather than simply to a single object (i.e., the calculated value for each object is dependent upon the row represented by the object). Another advantage is that it eliminates the specialized coding that would otherwise be required to perform such simple tasks as to make the color of an object dependent on the value of a column or set of columns from a data source. Further, more than one property of an object can be tied to a column in one row (or even a computation performed on all rows). In contrast to conventional development tools where each object is limited to a single link, the invention allows each column or row associated with an object to be linked to a separate property.
The generation of code from a scene graph eliminates the need for manual programming, thus allowing developers to concentrate on the problem
Alam Hosain T.
Fish & Richardson P.C.
Informix Software, Inc.
LandOfFree
Hyperlinked relational database visualization system does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Hyperlinked relational database visualization system, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Hyperlinked relational database visualization system will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2453992