Multiple server repository and multiple server remote application virtual client computer

• US 5,859,972 A
• Filed: 05/10/1996
• Issued: 01/12/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Board of Trustees of The University of Illinois
• Original Assignee: Board of Trustees of The University of Illinois
• Inventors: Subramaniam, Shankar, Stupar, Mark, Jakobsson, Eric, Jamison, Curtis
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOMERE, JEAN RAYMOND
• Application Number:
  US08/662,771
• Time in Patent Office: 977 Days
• Field of Search: 395/604, 395/610, 395/616, 395/200.03, 395/200.08, 395/200.33, 395/200.47, 395/200.53, 707/4, 707/3, 707/10
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/258 Data format conversion from or to a database
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation

Abstract

A system and method for managing informatics in a specialty field, such as medicine, biology, and so on. A local workstation is connected to a server over a network. A user runs a browser application on the local workstation. A plurality of remote data repositories are accessible to the server. The informatics management system includes a gateway program running on the server. The gateway program receives a query request in a first format from the user over the network. The gateway program includes a query translator routine that translates the query request from the first format to a plurality of different formats. The translated query requests are sent to the remote data repositories and results are received therefrom. The gateway program includes a results translator routine that translates the results received from the remote data repositories into results in the first format and sends the results in the first format to the user'"'"'s workstation. In a further aspect of the system, query results can be used as input data to analysis tools and programs. The gateway program includes a translator routine that translates the query results into input data for a remote tool or analysis program. A driver routine launches the remote analysis program. The gateway program includes a translator routine that translates the computed results from the remote analysis program into results in the first format and sends the results in the first format to the user'"'"'s workstation. In one embodiment, the network is the Internet and the first format is HTML.

Claims

1. A method of managing informatics in a networked system comprising:

from a client workstation on the networked system, sending a query request to a server on the networked system to search for information, said query request being in a first format;

from the server, receiving the query request from the client workstation and translating the query request into a plurality of translated query requests in different formats;

from the server, sending the plurality of translated query requests in different formats to a plurality of remote data repositories;

on the server, receiving a plurality of results from the plurality of remote data repositories to which said plurality of translated query requests were sent;

on the server, translating the plurality of results into results in the first format; and

from the server, sending the translated results in the first format to the client workstation.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of translating the received results into the first format further comprises the step of formatting the results into HTML.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

using software tools to manipulate the translated results, said software tools located on said client workstation.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said software tools are launched from a browser application running on said client workstation.

12. The method of claims 1 or 5 further comprising the step of:

prior to the step of sending a query request from the client workstation to the server, sending an initial message from the server to the client workstation, said initial message requesting input for formulating a search of said remote data repositories.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein said initial message comprises at least one page in HTML format.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein said initial message comprises a first page requesting selection of which remote data repositories to search and a second page requesting terms to be searched in the selected remote data repositories.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said initial message requests selection of which remote data repositories to search and which terms to be searched in the selected remote data repositories.

16. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said query request is sent from a forms-capable browser application running on said client workstation.

17. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said networked system includes the Internet.

18. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said server and said client application are connected to the Internet.

19. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said remote data repositories are accessible via the Internet.

20. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said step of sending the plurality of translated query requests to the remote data repositories is done in parallel.

21. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said query request is sent from a browser application running on said client workstation and wherein said results in the first format are sent from said server to said browser application.

22. The method of claims 1 or 5 further comprising the step of:

inserting hypertext links into the results before sending the results to the client workstation.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the inserted hypertext links point to additional pages from the data repositories.

24. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said remote data repositories include biology information.

25. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein said remote data repositories include at least one of the following databases:

ACeDB, SolGenes, Entrez, PIR, and the WBG.

26. The method of claims 1 or 5 wherein the remote data repositories are genome databases.

27. The method of claims 1 or 5 further comprising:

maintaining a data store on said server for a user of said client workstation.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein at least a portion of said plurality of results from the plurality of remote data repositories are kept in said data store.

5. A method of managing informatics and doing computing in a networked system comprising:

from a client workstation on the networked system, sending a query request to a server on the networked system to execute at least one search for information, said query request being in a first format;

from the server, receiving the query request from the client workstation and translating the query request into a plurality of translated query requests in different formats;

from the server, sending the plurality of translated query requests in different formats to a plurality of remote data repositories;

on the server, receiving a plurality of results from the plurality of remote data repositories to which said plurality of translated query requests were sent;

on the server, translating the plurality of results into results in the first format;

from the client workstation on the networked system, sending a command to the server to execute at least one remote application, utilizing as input to the remote application program the translated results in the first format;

on the server, receiving the command from the client workstation and sending the translated results to the remote application;

on the server, receiving application results from the remote application; and

from the server, sending the application results to the client workstation in the first format.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of:

on the server, after the step of receiving the command from the client workstation, translating the command into a format other than the first format; and

wherein the command is sent to the remote application in the other-than-first format.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of:

on the server, after receiving the application results from the remote application, translating the application results into the first format.

8. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of:

prior to the step of sending a command from the client workstation, sending a second message from the server to the client workstation requesting input for formulating an execution command for at least one remote application program.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the second message comprises at least one page requesting selection of which remote application program to execute and parameters for execution of the selected remote application program.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the selection of which application is on a first page and the selection of parameters for the application program are on a second page.

11. The method of claim 5 wherein at least a portion of the application results are kept in a data store on said server.

29. A method of managing informatics and doing computing on a system connected to the World Wide Web including a means for building a command for a remote program, the method comprising:

sending a first Web page over the Internet to a client'"'"'s browser, said first Web page including a means for building a command for executing a remote program;

receiving an execution command over the Internet from the client'"'"'s browser in response to the first Web page, said execution command being in a first format;

translating the query into a second format;

sending the execution command in the second format over the Internet to at least one remote application program;

receiving results over the Internet from the remote application program;

translating the results received from the remote application program into results in the first format; and

sending the results in the first format over the Internet to the client'"'"'s browser.

30. The method of claims 5 or 29 wherein said remote application program includes at least one of:

NCBI BLAST, SSEARCH, MSA, CLUSTALW, SIM, ALIGN, AMPS, AMAS, LALIGN, STAMP, fastDNAML, PHYLIP, ClustalW, Boxshade, VisProt, ALSCRIPT, Modeller, ProfileScan, PDF, DSSP, LIGPLOT, HBPLUS, PROCHECK, VOLBL, ALVIS, Sleuth, ASC, TMpred, TMAP, GARNIER, CHOFAS, HTH, PHD, PSSP, nnPredict, ZIPSCAN, and Kinsim/Fitsim.

31. The method of claims 5 or 29 wherein said remote application program provides for the analysis of biological information.

32. A method of managing informatics on a system connected to the World Wide Web, comprising:

sending a first Web page over the Internet to a client'"'"'s browser, said first Web page including a means for building a query;

receiving a query over the Internet from the client'"'"'s browser in response to the first Web page, said query being in a first format;

translating the query into a plurality of different formats;

sending the query in the plurality of different formats over the Internet to a plurality of remote data repositories;

receiving results over the Internet from the plurality of remote data repositories;

translating the received results into results in the first format; and

sending the results in the first format over the Internet to the client'"'"'s browser.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein said remote data repositories include biology information.

34. The method of claim 32 wherein said remote data repositories include at least one of the following databases:

ACeDB, SolGenes, Entrez, PIR, PDB, GenBank, and the WBG.

35. The method of claim 32 wherein the remote data repositories are genome databases.

36. The method of claim 32 wherein said first format is HTML.

37. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

maintaining a data store on said server for a user of said client workstation.

38. The method of claim 37 wherein at least a portion of said plurality of results from the plurality of remote data repositories are kept in said data store.

39. The method of claim 37 wherein at least a portion of said translated results in the first format are kept on said data store.

40. An informatics system for managing users'"'"' access to a plurality of remote data repositories from a plurality of user-workstations connected to a server over a network, said informatics system comprising:

a client-communicating program on said server for sending messages to and receiving messages from a client application on one of said plurality of user-workstations, said messages including a query request for information, said query request being in a first format;

a query-translator program on said server and connected to receive said request in said first format from the client-communicating program, said query-translator program having a plurality of translation modules, each of said plurality of translation modules adapted to translate said query request from said first format into a query message to be submitted to one of the remote data repositories, said query message being a format different from said first format;

a communication program on said server and connected to the query-translator, said communication program adapted to send the translated query messages to the remote data repositories and receive results-messages therefrom; and

a results-translator program on said server and connected to the communication program, to translate the results-messages received from the remote data repositories into results in said first format;

wherein said results-translator program is also connected to said client-communicating program to provide the translated response messages thereto.

41. The system of claim 40 wherein said results-translator program has a plurality of modules, each of said results-translator modules adapted to translate results-messages from one of said remote data repositories into said first format.

42. The system of claim 41 wherein each of said translation modules translates said query request into a different format.

44. The system of claims 40 or 43 wherein said first format is HTML.

45. The system of claims 40 or 43 wherein said network includes the Internet.

46. The system of claims 40 or 43 further comprising:

a data store on said server, said data store for use by programs on said users'"'"' workstations.

47. The system of claim 46 wherein said data store includes at least a portion of said results-messages received.

48. The system of claim 46 wherein said data store includes at least a portion of said results in said first format.

49. The system of claim 46 wherein said client application is a browser.

43. An informatics and computing system for managing users'"'"' access to remote application programs from a plurality of user-workstations connected to a server over a network, said informatics system comprising:

a client-communicating program on said server for sending messages to and receiving messages from a client application on one of said plurality of user-workstations, said messages including a command request for executing computation, said command request being in a first format;

a command-translator program on said server and connected to receive said command request in said first format from the client-communicating program, said command-translator program having a plurality of translation modules, each of said plurality of translation modules adapted to translate said command request from said first format into a command message to be submitted to one or more of said remote application programs, said command message being a format different from said first format;

a communication program on said server and connected to the command-translator, said communication program adapted to send the translated command message to the remote application program and receive results-messages therefrom; and

a results-translator program on said server and connected to the communication program, to translate the results-messages received from the remote application program into results in said first format;

wherein said results-translator program is also connected to said client-communicating program to provide the translated response messages thereto.