System and method for automatic data mapping

• US 20070179939A1
• Filed: 06/11/2003
• Published: 08/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Loo, Kevin, O'Neil, Owen, Bardini, Agnes
• Granted Patent: US 7,596,573 B2
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation

Abstract

A system and method for automatic data mapping of a source object to a target object. Field maps can be automatically determined from the source and target objects, database platform, ETL maps, user-defined and data conversion rules, default values, or other pre-defined parameters. Where a change occurs in the source or target data structure, the present invention ensures proper mapping between the source and target data structures occurs, thus reducing the burden of exception handling on the user and preventing oversight in correcting improper mapping. The present invention can also be used by a compiler to generate SQL steps during compile-time processes to design field maps that can be stored as an application class.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for generating a data map, the method comprising:

identifying a section of data in a data repository having a source object and a target object;

defining, absent direct user intervention, a field map for the section of data in the data repository based on matching the source object to the target object using a rule and a default value, wherein the field map assigns the default value to the target object when the rule to match the target object to the source object does not yield a match; and

generating the field map.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the default value comprises a record-level default value.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the default value comprises a system-level default value.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the rule defines a transformation of the source object to the target object.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the rule defines a translation of the source object to the target object.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the rule assigns the source object to the target object.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein assigning the default value further comprises assigning a system level or a record level default value to the target object.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising processing background information to further define the target object.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein processing the background information further comprises processing information based on a platform type and a data type.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

detecting a modification; and

adjusting the target object based on the modification.

7. (canceled)

12. An automatic mapping system comprising:

a data repository;

an application server configured to exchange data with the data repository; and

a mapping engine configured to exchange data with the application server and to generate a field map, absent direct user intervention, using a source object and a target object from a data repository based on matching the source object to the target object using a map rule and a default value, wherein the field map assigns the default value to the target object when the rule to match the target object to the source object does not yield a match.

13. The automatic mapping system of claim 12 wherein the data repository further comprises:

a management system; and

an interface for exchanging data and information with the application server and the mapping engine.

14. The automatic mapping system of claim 12 wherein the data repository further comprises:

a presentation layer;

a data layer; and

an engine layer.

15. The automatic mapping system of claim 14 wherein the presentation layer further comprises:

a data source for providing a source field;

a map designer for designing the field map; and

a scheduler for integrating the field map.

16. The automatic mapping system of claim 14 wherein the data layer further comprises:

an ETL engine for extracting, transforming, or loading data;

a data transformation module exchanging data with the mapping engine; and

a query module for structured calling of data from the data repository based on the field map.

17. The automatic mapping system of claim 12 wherein the mapping engine further comprises:

an initialization module for initializing field map generation;

a rules module for administering the map rule for the mapping engine;

default module for specifying the default field value;

a map definition module for integrating the map rule and the default field value to define a target field;

a field conversion module for converting the target field using the map definition module; and

a field map generator for generating the field map.

18. An apparatus for generating a data map, the apparatus comprising:

means for identifying a section of data in a data repository having a source object and a target object; and

means for defining, absent direct user intervention, a field map for the section of data in the data repository based on matching the source object to the target object using a rule and a default value, wherein the field map assigns the default value to the target object when the rule to match the target object to the source object does not yield a match; and

means for generating the field map.

19. A computer program product embodied on a computer readable medium storing instructions operational when executed by a computer system for generating a field map, the computer program product comprising:

code for identifying a section of data in a data repository having a source object and a target object; and

code for defining, absent direct user intervention, a field map for the section of data in the data repository based on matching the source object to the target object using a rule and a default value, wherein the field map assigns the default value to the target object when the rule to match the target object to the source object does not yield a match; and

code for generating the field map.

20. A computer-implemented method for generating a data map operational when used by an application to exchange data with a data repository, the method comprising:

in response to a receiving a request from the application, identifying a source field and a target field associated with a section of data in a data repository;

creating, using a rule and a default value, a data map for the section of data in the data repository based on matching the identified source field to the identified target field absent direct user intervention wherein the data map assigns the default value to the identified target field when the rule to match the identified target field to the identified source field does not yield a match;

storing the data map; and

using the data map to service the request from the application.