Property based mechanism for flexibility supporting front-end and back-end components having different communication protocols

• US 6,269,380 B1
• Filed: 08/31/1998
• Issued: 07/31/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Terry, Douglas B., Thornton, James D., Lamping, John O., LaMarca, Anthony G., Dourish, James P., Edwards, Warren K., Salisbury, Michael P., Petersen, Karin
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Colbert, Ella
• Application Number:
  US09/143,778
• Time in Patent Office: 1,065 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1-10, 707/100-104, 707/200-206, 707/500-514, 707/526-531, 709/310, 705/1, 705/26, 705/54
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

In a computer system having a number of applications and storage repositories using protocols which are different from each other, a document management system is interposed into a content and/or property read/write path of the computer system. The document management system provides for attachment of properties to documents, which allow for separating the content of the document from the properties which describe the document. This separation of the document content from its properties allows for a user level access and control of documents providing for flexibility in organizing, storing and retrieving documents. Further, interface mechanisms are provided which allow the different applications and storage repositories to interact with the document management system. The interface mechanisms include translators and bit providers. The bit providers are configured with the translators and mechanisms to retrieve document content from the different storage repositories and to deliver the document content to a requesting document. The foregoing configuration allows a user to arrange collections of documents irrespective of where the document content is stored. The properties are user and document specific in the sense that they are associated with the user which attached the properties and are directed to control of specific documents.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

a storage layer having at least two storage repositories which use storage protocols which are different from each other;

a plurality of properties configured for attachment to a document, the properties providing a manner of identifying the document or undertaking a behavior related to the document;

active properties of the plurality of properties, configured to provide a uniform mechanism by which content stored in the at least two storage repositories is accessed;

an application layer having at least two applications which use operational protocols which are different from each other;

a communication channel through which the storage layer and the application layer communicate; and

a document management system interposed within the communication channel such that the document management system intercepts communications between the storage layer and the application layer, the document management system including an interface which provides application translators to allow the applications to communicate with the document management system.

2. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein a plurality of properties can be attached to the document independently of where the content of the document is stored and, where any of the properties are available as a basis for organization and retrieval of the document.

3. The computer system according to claim 2 further including a plurality of predefined operations which are embedded within the computer system when the computer system is designed, the properties being configured to be responsive to issuance of a request to undertake at least one of the operations.

4. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein the document management system is configured such that the applications and storage repositories operate without being aware of the document properties.

5. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein the document management system is configured to function with a plurality of users.

6. The computer system according to claim 5 wherein the properties are one of public or private, the public properties being viewable by any user of the document management system and the private properties being viewable only by the user that applied the private properties.

7. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein all aspects of document control are provided through properties.

8. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein there are multiple properties for the same characteristic or document behavior.

9. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein the applications and storage repositories include applications and storage repositories that understand a file hierarchy.

10. The computer system according to claim 1 wherein the documents of the computer system include arbitrary collections of documents that can hold documents whose contents are stored in different repositories from each other.

11. A method for managing documents in a computer system comprising the step of:

attaching, to a document within a document management system of the computer system, properties related to at least one of characteristics of and behaviors of the document, the attaching being accomplished by a user of the computer system activating an input device which delivers operation requests in the computer system, the requests coming from an application running in the computer system and requiring an access to a document content stored in a storage repository of the computer system;

determining whether the operation request is a type that can communicate with the document management system which is interposed between the application and the storage repository;

translating, by the document management system, the operation request when it is determined it is not of the type that can communicate with the document management system, to a type which can communicate;

intercepting the issued operation request by the document management system; and

performing an operation including at least one of obtaining the document content based on at least one of the attached properties and performing some action based on another of the attached properties.

12. The method according to claim 11 wherein the translating step occurs within the document management system whereby the applications and storage repositories are unaware of the translations.

13. The method according to claim 11 wherein properties on a document are configured to be under the control of the user that attached the properties to the document, and the properties can be attached independently of where the content of the document is stored.

14. The method according to claim 11 wherein documents in the computer system include collections of documents, which are arbitrary collections that include documents whose contents are stored in different storage repositories.

15. A computer system comprising:

a front end including a plurality of applications, at least some of the applications having communication protocols different from each other;

a back end including a plurality of storage repositories,

at least some of the storage repositories having communication protocols different from each other;

a communication path located between the front end and the back end, to allow communication between the front end and the back end;

a document management system interposed on the communication path between the front end and the back end, whereby the document management system intercepts communications between the front end and the back end;

a front end interface configured to allow each of the applications to communicate with the document management layer; and

a back end interface configured to allow each of the storage repositories to communicate with the document management layer.

16. The computer system according to claim 15 wherein a bit provider includes:

a means for receiving a request to retrieve document content data stored in at least one of the storage repositories;

means to correlate a document id of the requested document content data to a content id indicating the location of the requested document content data in one of the storage repositories;

means for accessing the storage repository to retrieve the requested document content data;

a means for re-identifying the retrieved document content data with a document management system id; and

a means for delivering the requested document content data in accordance with the request.

17. The computer system according to claim 16 wherein the request is originated by an application in the front end and is received by a document in the document management system.

18. The computer system according to claim 17 wherein the request for document content to the bit provider is issued by the document within the document management system.

19. The computer system according to claim 18 wherein the bit provider is carried on the document making the request.

20. The computer system according to claim 16 wherein the bit provider is replaceable.

21. The computer system according to claim 16 wherein the bit provider is configured such that the document making the request is without information as to where the document content data is stored.