Mapping tool graphical user interface

• US 20050021513A1
• Filed: 08/18/2004
• Published: 01/27/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Taylor, William R., Bhandarkar, Aditya G., Shukla, Dharma K., Vedula, Nagender P.
• Granted Patent: US 7,636,894 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/34 Graphical or visual programming

Abstract

A graphical user interface and method for creating a mapping between a source object and a destination or target object are provided. The user interface includes a source screen region which displays a graphical representation of a source object, a target screen region which displays a graphical representation of a target object, and a mapping screen region which allows a user to create a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object using graphical mapping indicia. The methodology includes displaying a graphical representation of a source object in a source screen region, displaying a graphical representation of a target object in a target screen region, creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using graphical mapping indicia, and displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region. The source and target objects may be schemas, spreadsheets, documents, databases, or other information sources, and the graphical mapping indicia may include link indicia and/or function objects linking nodes in the target object with nodes in the source object. The mapping may be compiled into code used by a runtime engine to translate source documents into target documents.

Claims

1. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object including a source tree structure having a source root node, a source record node, and a source field node in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object including a target tree structure having a target root node, a target record node, and a target field node in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region located between the source and target screen regions using graphical mapping indicia;

indenting the field nodes toward the mapping screen region in hierarchical fashion from the record nodes; and

indenting the record nodes toward the mapping screen region in hierarchical fashion from the root nodes.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting a node in one of the source screen region and the target screen region;

displaying a node selection indicia adapted to indicate a selected node in one of the source object tree structure and the target object tree structure; and

displaying a property associated with the selected node in a node properties page in a node properties page screen region;

modifying the property associated with the selected node in the node properties page.

3. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using graphical mapping indicia;

displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region; and

displaying a graphical compiler object adapted to allow the user to generate compiled mapping output code using a compiler.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the source and target objects comprise at least one source node and at least one target node respectively, further comprising:

creating a compiler link between the at least one source node and the at least one target node using the compiler; and

displaying a compiler link indicia in the mapping screen region associated with the compiler link.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

selecting the compiler link indicia; and

moving the compiler link indicia to one of another source node and another target node.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

displaying an output code screen in an output screen region; and

displaying the compiled mapping output code in the output code screen.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising displaying a compiler warning in the output code screen.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

selecting the compiler warning; and

displaying a compiler warning indicia in the mapping region adapted to indicate at least one graphical mapping indicia as being associated with the selected compiler warning.

9. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object having a source node in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object having a target node in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using a graphical link indicia in the mapping screen region adapted to associate the target node with the source node; and

displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the graphical link indicia comprises a line in the mapping screen region between the target node and the source node.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein creating a mapping further comprises displaying a graphical function object, and wherein the graphical link indicia comprises a line in the mapping screen region between two of the target node, the source node, and the function object.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein creating a mapping further comprises:

creating a link including;

selecting one of the target node, the source node, and the function object; and

selecting another of the target node, the source node, and the function object; and

displaying a graphical link indicia between the one of the target node, the source node, and the function object, and the another of the target node, the source node, and the function object.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising moving a link including:

selecting the line near one of the two of the target node, the source node, and the function object; and

moving the line to the other of the target node, the source node, and the function object.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

selecting the graphical link indicia; and

displaying a link selection indicia adapted to indicate that the graphical link indicia has been selected.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

displaying a link properties page in a link properties screen region;

displaying a property associated with a link associated with the selected graphical link indicia in the link properties page; and

modifying the property.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the property comprises a compiler directive, and wherein the link properties page is further adapted to allow the user to select one of flattening, top-down, and bottom-up for the compiler directive.

17. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object with at least one source node in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object with at least one target node in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using a function object adapted to associate the at least one target node with the at least one source node; and

displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising associating the function object with script used by a compiler to generate compiled mapping output code.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

displaying a function object palette screen in a function object palette screen region, wherein the function object palette screen includes a plurality of function objects; and

allowing a user to drag and drop a function object from the function object palette screen onto the mapping screen region using a user interface selection device.

20. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

selecting the function object; and

displaying a function object selection indicia adapted to indicate that the function object has been selected.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

displaying a function object properties page in a function object properties page screen region adapted to display a property associated with the selected function object; and

modifying the property.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising entering a constant value in the function object properties page.

23. The method of claim 20, further comprising selecting a plurality of function objects, wherein the function object selection indicia is further adapted to indicate that the plurality of function objects have been selected.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising selecting the plurality of function objects by creating a box around the plurality of function objects using a user interface selection device.

25. The method of claim 17, further comprising displaying a user function object adapted to associate the at least one target node with the at least one source node.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the user function object is associated with user script used by a compiler to generate compiled mapping output code, further comprising:

displaying a function object creation interface in the mapping screen region; and

allowing the user to create the user script and to associate the user script with the user function object.

27. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using graphical mapping indicia;

displaying at least a portion of the mapping in the mapping screen region; and

displaying a scrolling indicia in the mapping screen region adapted to allow the user to selectively display portions of the mapping in the mapping screen region.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the mapping screen region comprises an outer perimeter, further comprising:

selectively displaying the scrolling indicia in the mapping screen region when the user moves a user interface selection device near the outer perimeter, wherein the scrolling indicia is further adapted to indicate a direction in which scrolling is possible;

selecting the scrolling indicia using the user interface selection device; and

scrolling the mapping display in the direction indicated by the scrolling indicia when the user selects the scrolling indicia using the user interface selection device.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising displaying a mapping preview page in a mapping preview page region adapted to display the entire mapping.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising displaying a current region indicia in the mapping preview page adapted to indicate the portion of the mapping currently displayed in the mapping screen region.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising:

moving the current region indicia within the mapping preview page region; and

changing the portion of the mapping currently displayed in the mapping screen region according to the movement of the current region indicia.

32. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using graphical mapping indicia;

displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region; and

displaying a test target object instance according to the mapping in a test screen region.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

displaying a test value page in the test screen region; and

associating a constant value with a node in one of the source object and the target object.

34. The method of claim 32, further comprising displaying a test output page in the test screen region adapted to display the test target object instance.

35. In a mapping tool graphical user interface, a method of creating a mapping, comprising:

displaying a graphical representation of a source object in a source screen region;

displaying a graphical representation of a target object in a target screen region;

creating a mapping between the graphical representation of the source object and the graphical representation of the target object in a mapping screen region using graphical mapping indicia;

displaying the mapping in the mapping screen region;

replacing one of the source and target objects; and

preserving at least a portion of the mapping.