Data model for object-relational data

• US 20060195460A1
• Filed: 09/16/2005
• Published: 08/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Anonsen, Steven P., Harter, Steven V., Pizzo, Michael J., Nori, Anil Kumar, Deem, Michael E.
• Application Number:
  US11/228,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20060195460A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/252 between a Database Management System and a front-end application

Abstract

A common data model (CDM) that is a data model common to multiple application-specific data models. The CDM supports both PIM (Personal Information Manager end-user application data and line-of-business (LOB) data. Similarly, an SDM-type (system definition model) application can specify its model on top of the CDM. The CDM enables improved interoperability between applications by employing an entity component that provides a data entity having a uniform identity across a plurality of disparate applications and a relationship component that defines a relationship between two or more of the data entities. The CDM provides a type system over which any algebra will operate.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented system that facilitates common data access, comprising:

an entity component that provides a data entity having a uniform identity across a plurality of disparate applications; and

a relationship component that defines a relationship between two or more of the data entities.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the data entity at least one of includes an entity type on which a property is defined and receives a typed parameter.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the entity type comprises identity data.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship between the two or more entities is Association such that the two or more entities are related to each other via explicit source-target data.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship between the two or more entities is associational such that the two or more entities are linked together by an Association entity.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship between the two or more entities is Composition such that a first entity is an integral part of a second entity.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the data entity is persisted by being added to an Entity table, which Entity table is a typed collection of entities.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship is expressed directly.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the data entity includes a member that has a type which is one of an inline type, an entity type, a table type, an enumeration type and an array type.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the inline type has no identity beyond that imposed by the entity in which it resides.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the data entity is referenceable by a key.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the entity component includes entity members that comprise at least one of a property, a navigation property, a calculated property and a method.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship between entities is conditional.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the relationship can be scoped to apply only to a particular table.

15. A computer-implemented method of providing common data access across disparate applications, comprising:

providing an entity that is a single identity of closely-related data and which is uniquely identifiable;

identifying structure of the entity as properties and behavior of the entity as methods; and

expressing semantic connections between entities using relationships.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the entity is composed of an entity member that one of allocates storage for an instance of a particular type, facilitates querying across entities related by an association, is a property that is calculated, and represents an operation that can be executed.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the entity member at least one of includes a type and takes type parameters.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the entity member includes an inline type whose data is stored inline on the entity.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the entity member includes a table type which is an unordered collection of instances of a specified entity type.

20. A system that facilitates common data access across disparate applications, comprising:

means for providing an entity that is a single identity of closely-related data and which is uniquely identifiable;

means for identifying structure of the entity as properties and behavior of the entity as methods; and

means for relating two or more of the entities by association using an explicit source-target relationship;

means for relating two or more entities by composition in a parent-child relationship; and

means for relating two or more entities by entity association.