Index structure of metadata, method for providing indices of metadata, and metadata searching method and apparatus using the indices of metadata

• US 20040210570A1
• Filed: 05/14/2004
• Published: 10/21/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Shin, Hyoseop
• Application Number:
  US10/845,210
• Publication Number:
  US 20040210570A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/81 Indexing, e.g. XML tags; Data structures therefor; Storage structures

Abstract

An index structure of metadata provided for searching for information on contents, a method for providing indices of the metadata, and a method and an apparatus for searching for the metadata using the index structure of the metadata are provided. The index structure of the metadata includes a list of keys corresponding to fields of the metadata, and location information for defining a key, wherein at least a part of the location information is expressed as a predetermined code.

Claims

1. A method of providing an index structure for metadata divided into fragments, the method comprising providing a list of keys corresponding to fields of the metadata, and location information for defining a key, wherein at least part of the location information is expressed as a predetermined code.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising providing values of the key and identification information on the metadata corresponding to the values of the key.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

providing a sub-section including ranges of values of the key and identification information on ones of the fragments of the metadata correspsonding to the values of the key; and

providing a section including representative key values representing the respective ranges of values of the key.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the location information comprises location information of a fragment including the key, and location information of the key within the fragment.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the providing of the list comprises providing the list having one of the location information of the fragment and location information of the key encoded as the predetermined code.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5, wherein the predetermined code comprises XPath as additional information where the respective fragment/key corresponds to a user defined type.

7. The method as claimed in claim 5, wherein the other one of the location information of the fragment and the location information of the key is expressed as another predetermined code or XPath.

8. A method of providing an index structure for metadata divided into fragments, the method comprising;

providing a key index list section comprising a list of keys corresponding to fields of the metadata, and location information defining the keys, wherein at least part of the location information is expressed as a predetermined code;

providing a key index section; and

providing a sub-key index section, wherein for a key of the key index list;

the sub-key index section comprises ranges of values of the key and identification information on ones of the fragments of the metadata corresponding to the values of the key, and

the key index section comprises representative key values representing the respective ranges of values of the key.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising providing a corresponding key index section and a corresponding sub-key index section for another key of the key index list.

10. A method of providing an index structure for metadata divided into fragments, the method comprising;

providing a list of keys corresponding to fields of the metadata, and location information for defining the keys, wherein at least part of the location information is expressed as a predetermined code; and

providing values of the keys and identification information on the metadata corresponding to the values of the keys.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the identification information comprises identification information on the fragments of the metadata corresponding to the values of the keys.

12. A method for providing an index to a tree structured metadata which is divided into a predetermined range of fragments, the method comprising the steps of:

providing values of keys and identification information of the metadata corresponding to the values of the keys, each key comprising at least one of fields in the metadata; and

providing a list of the keys including location information of said field in the metadata, wherein at least of a part of the location information are represented in an encoded format.