GRAPHICAL MODELING TOOL

• US 20100325605A1
• Filed: 06/14/2010
• Published: 12/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Ding, Li, Litani, Elena H., Lau, Diana H., Ng, Joanna W., Nigul, Leho
• Granted Patent: US 10,776,725 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/105
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A method for implementing a graphical modeling tool in a web-based environment is disclosed herein. In one embodiment, such a method may include enabling a user to import, into a web-based environment, a domain meta model comprising a number of meta model elements. The method may further enable the user to associate the meta model elements with graphical representations in the web-based environment, thereby allowing the user to create palette elements. The user may then assemble the palette elements on a canvas to create a diagram. This diagram may be converted into an instance of the domain meta model. This instance may be validated for conformance with the rules and constraints associated with the domain meta model. A corresponding apparatus and computer program product are also disclosed and claimed herein.

Claims

1. A method for implementing a graphical modeling tool in a web-based environment, the method comprising:

enabling a user to import, in a web-based modeling tool executing in memory by at least one processor of a computer, a domain meta model comprising a plurality of meta model elements;

enabling the user to associate, in the web-based environment, the meta model elements with graphical representations to create palette elements;

enabling the user to assemble, in the web-based environment, the palette elements on a canvas to create a diagram;

converting the diagram into an instance of the domain meta model; and

validating the instance of the domain meta model for conformance with rules and constraints associated with the domain meta model.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising associating multiple palette elements with a palette.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising storing at least one of the palette and palette elements as sharable server-side resources.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising storing at least one of the palette and palette elements as RESTful, URL-able web resources.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising tagging each palette element in the palette to enable semantic association and searching.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising using declarative access control to enable multiple users to simultaneously access the palette and palette elements over the web.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the palette elements and palette are declarative constructs.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling the user to create diagrams associated with multiple domain meta models on the canvas.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising enabling palette elements from different domain metal models to be associated with the same palette.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein validating comprises dynamically validating the palette elements in the context of the diagram and domain specific rules.

11. An apparatus for implementing a graphical modeling tool in a web-based environment, the apparatus comprising:

a web-based modeling tool executing in memory by at least one processor of a computer;

a meta model processing module coupled to the tool to enable a user to import, in a web-based environment, a domain meta model comprising a plurality of meta model elements;

a palette manager module coupled to the tool to enable the user to associate, in the web-based environment, the meta model elements with graphical representations to create palette elements;

a diagramming module coupled to the tool to enable the user to assemble, in the web-based environment, the palette elements on a canvas to create a diagram;

a diagram-to-model conversion module coupled to the tool to convert the diagram into an instance of the domain meta model; and

a model validator module coupled to the tool to validate the instance of the domain meta model for conformance with rules and constraints associated with the domain meta model.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the palette manager module is further configured to associated multiple palette elements with a palette.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the palette manager module is further configured to store at least one of the palette and palette elements as sharable server-side resources.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the palette manager module is further configured to store at least one of the palette and palette elements as RESTful, URL-able web resources.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the palette manager module is further configured to tag each palette element in the palette to enable semantic association and searching.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the palette elements and palette are declarative constructs.

17. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the diagramming module is further configured to enable the user to create diagrams from multiple domain meta models on the canvas.

18. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the palette manager module is further configured enable palette elements from different domain metal models to be associated with the same palette.

19. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the model validator module is further configured to dynamically validate the palette elements in the context of the diagram and domain specific rules.

20. A computer program product for implementing a graphical modeling tool in a web-based environment, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-usable medium having computer-usable program code embodied therein, the computer-usable program code comprising:

computer-usable program code to enable a user to import, in a web-based environment, a domain meta model comprising a plurality of meta model elements;

computer-usable program code to enable the user to associate, in the web-based environment, the meta model elements with graphical representations to create palette elements;

computer-usable program code to enable the user to assemble, in the web-based environment, the palette elements on a canvas to create a diagram;

computer-usable program code to convert the diagram into an instance of the domain meta model; and

computer-usable program code to validate the instance of the domain meta model for conformance with rules and constraints associated with the domain meta model.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, further comprising computer-usable program code to associate multiple palette elements with a palette.

22. The computer program product of claim 21, further comprising computer-usable program code to store at least one of the palette and palette elements as sharable server-side resources.

23. The computer program product of claim 20, further comprising computer-usable program code to dynamically validate the palette elements in the context of the diagram and domain specific rules.