DATABASE MANAGEMENT USING FORMAT DESCRIPTION

• US 20080140605A1
• Filed: 07/10/2007
• Published: 06/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Gelhar, Jens
• Granted Patent: US 9,835,461 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/387 Organisation of map data, e.g. version management or database structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/258 Data format conversion from or to a database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00

Abstract

A system manages a database through a format description table. The format description table provides instructions for operating an abstract machine. Based on the instructions, the abstract machine reads application data and parses the application data to an application software. The abstract machine may provide the application software with semantic information related to the application data to enable the application software to interpret and process the application data.

Claims

1. A system for managing a database comprising a data file, the system comprising:

application data stored in the data file;

a format description table associated with the data file, the format description table comprising parser instructions; and

an abstract machine coupled to the database, the abstract machine operable to;

read the application data; and

parse the application data to an application software in response to the parser instructions.

2. The system of claim 1, where the data file comprises a header that defines types of records used in the data file and identifies a sequence of elements in the records.

3. The system of claim 2, where the format description table is implemented in the header.

4. The system of claim 1, where the format description table comprises multiple rows, each row comprising:

a predetermined number of data entries; and

at least one of the parser instructions

5. The system of claim 4, each row comprising a syntax ID.

6. The system of claim 4, each row comprising a semantic ID.

7. The system of claim 4, where the abstract machine is operable to ignore data entries in a row that follow a predetermined number of data entries.

8. The system of claim 1, the abstract machine comprising a register.

9. The system of claim 1, where the application data is at least partially packed, the abstract machine being operable to interpret packed navigation data.

10. The system of claim 1, where the application data comprises navigation data and the application software comprises navigation software.

11. A method for providing a navigation software product with navigation data, comprising:

providing a navigation database comprising a data file;

storing the navigation data in a data file of the navigation database;

implementing a format description for the data file comprising generating parser instructions;

implementing an abstract machine operable to interpret the navigation data stored the data file and to parse the data to the navigation software product; and

where the abstract machine is controlled by the parser instructions in the format description

12. The method of claim 11, where implementing the format description comprises generating a format description table in a header of the data file, the format description table defining record types used the data file and declaring a sequence of elements that comprise the records.

13. The method of claim 12, where the format description table comprises multiple rows of data entries, each row comprising:

a same number of data entries, the data entries being associated with the navigation data; and

at least one of the parser instructions.

14. The method of claim 13, where the abstract machine is operable to ignore data entries of a row that follow a predetermined number of data entries.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising generating a semantic ID for each row of the format description table.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising generating a syntax ID for each row of the format description table.

17. The method of claim 12 where implementing the abstract machine comprises providing at least one register for storing information or data read from the format description table.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising arranging the at least one register in a register stack.

19. The method of claim 11 where implementing the abstract machine comprises providing at least one register for performing arithmetic operations.

20. The method of claim 11, where the parser instructions comprise conditional instructions.

21. The method of claim 11, where the parser instructions comprise loop commands for reading arrays or lists of the navigation data stored in the data file.

22. The method of claim 11, further comprising installing the format description in the data file of the navigation database.

23. The method of claim 11, further comprising packing the navigation data, the abstract machine being operable to interpret packed data.

24. A method for managing data in a navigation database comprising at least one data file, the method comprising:

in response to instructions provided in a format description table associated with the data file;

reading navigation data stored in the data file;

passing the navigation data read from the data file to a navigation software; and

passing a semantic ID associated with the navigation data to the navigation software.

25. The method of claim 24, where the format description table comprising multiple rows of data entries, each row comprising:

at least one of the instructions provided in the format description table;

a semantic ID associated with the data entries; and

a syntax ID.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising ignoring data entries of a row that follow a predetermined number of data entries.

27. The method of claim 25, further comprising ignoring an unknown semantic ID.

28. The method of claim 24, where the navigation data is read by an abstract machine.

29. The method of claim 24, where passing the navigation data to the navigation software comprises parsing the navigation data to the navigation software.

30. The method of claim 24, where the format description table includes information related to the format of the navigation data.

31. A product comprising:

a computer readable medium; and

instructions stored on the medium that, when executed, cause a processor in a vehicle navigation system to;

read navigation data stored in navigation database in response to instructions stored in a format description table, the navigation database comprising a data file;

parse the navigation data read from the navigation database to a navigation software in response to the instructions; and

pass a semantic ID associated with the parsed navigation data to the navigation software in response to the instructions.

32. The product of claim 31, where the format description table is stored on the computer readable medium.

33. The product of claim 31, where the instructions stored on the format description table are based on the format of the navigation data to be read from the navigation database.

34. The product of claim 31, where the format description table is installed in a header of the data file.

35. The product of claim 31, where the instructions include a syntax ID.

36. The product of claim 35, where the syntax ID provides instructions for performing arithmetic operations on the navigation data read from the navigation database.

37. The product of claim 35, where the syntax ID provides instructions related to a format type of the navigation data to be read from the navigation database.

38. A vehicle navigation system, the system comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory comprising;

a navigation database comprising a data file, the data file comprising navigation data;

an abstract machine;

a format description table installed in the data file, the format description table comprising;

parser instructions for controlling the abstract machine; and

a semantic ID associated with the navigation data; and

a navigation software; and

instructions stored on the memory that, when executed, cause the processor to;

read the navigation data in response to the parser instructions;

parse the navigation data to the navigation software in response to the parser instructions; and

pass the semantic ID to the navigation software.

39. The system of claim 38, the memory further comprising a syntax ID.

40. The system of claim 39, where the abstract machine is operable to perform arithmetic operations on the navigation data based on the syntax ID.

41. The system of claim 38, the abstract machine comprising multiple registers.

42. The system of claim 38, where the format description table is installed in the header of the data file.

43. The system of claim 38, where the abstract machine is operable to ignore data entries in a row that follow a predetermined number of data entries.

44. The system of claim 38, where the navigation data is packed and the abstract machine is operable to interpret packed data.

45. The system of claim 38, where the first row of the format description table is a header.

46. The system of claim 38, where the format description table is structured to enable to navigation database to be compatible with a new navigation software without modification of the navigation database.