Abstract data linking and joining interface

• US 7,085,757 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2003
• Issued: 08/01/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dettinger, Richard D., Rath, Cale T., Stevens, Richard J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Metjahic, Safet
• Assistant Examiner(s): DANG, THANH HA T
• Application Number:
  US10/618,409
• Publication Number:
  US 20050010557A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,117 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/104.1, 707/4, 707/104, 715/853, 715/854, 715/780, 715/968
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2428 Query predicate definition using graphical user interfaces, including menus and forms G06F16/2423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/903 Querying for retrieval from the web G06F16/953
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/968 interface for database querying and retrieval

Abstract

A method, apparatus and article of manufacture provide a user interface allowing user selection and arrangement of result fields selected, in one embodiment, from a logical model. In one embodiment, the user interface is a graphical user interface and comprises input cells for user-selected logical result fields. The cells are arranged to define a geometric relationship between logical result fields which dictates the combinatorial statement type by which the logical result fields in the cells are related in a query.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for building queries, comprising:

providing a logical model to logically describe the physical fields, the logical model comprising logical fields corresponding to respective physical fields, wherein as least some of the logical fields are selectable as logical result fields in an abstract queries;

providing a graphical user interface allowing user selection and arrangement of logical result fields selected from the logical model;

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in the graphical user interface, of a first logical result field;

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in the graphical user interface, of a second logical result field, wherein the first and second logical result fields have a relative geometric relationship as displayed in the graphical user interface and define at least a portion of an abstract query; and

transforming the abstract query into an executable query containing at least one combinatorial statement containing representations of the first and second logical result fields, the at least one combinatorial statement being generated as a result of the relative geometric relationship.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the combinatorial statement is a UNION.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying each of the logical fields of the logical model as selectable logical result fields in the graphical user interface.

4. A computer readable storage medium containing a graphical user interface program which, when executed, performs an operation for building abstract queries defined with respect to a logical model comprising a plurality of definitions for logical fields mapping to physical fields of physical entities of the data, wherein as least some of the logical fields are selectable as logical result fields in the abstract queries, the operation comprising:

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in the graphical user interface, of a first logical result field;

wherein the graphical user interface allows user selection of logical result fields from the logical model and supports combinatorial relations between user selected logical result fields;

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in the graphical user interface, of a second logical result field, wherein the first and second logical result fields define at least a portion of an abstract query and

transforming the abstract query into an executable query containing at least one combinatorial statement containing counterparts of the first and second logical result fields.

5. The computer readable storage medium of claim 4, wherein the combinatorial statement is a UNION.

6. A computer readable storage medium containing a program which, when executed, performs an operation for building abstract queries defined with respect to a logical model comprising a plurality of definitions for logical fields mapping to physical fields of physical entities of the data, wherein as least some of the logical fields are selectable as logical result fields in the abstract queries, the operation comprising:

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in a graphical user interface, of a first logical result field;

wherein the graphical user interface allows user selection and arrangement of logical result fields selected from the logical model;

receiving user input specifying a selection and a location, in the graphical user interface, of a second logical result field, wherein the first and second logical result fields have a relative geometric relationship as displayed in the graphical user interface and define at least a portion of an abstract query; and

transforming the abstract query into an executable query containing at least one combinatorial statement containing counterparts of the first and second logical result fields, the at least one combinatorial statement being generated as a result of the relative geometric relationship.

7. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6, wherein the combinatorial statement is a UNION.

8. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6, wherein the relative geometric relationship is vertical.

9. A computer system, comprising:

at least one memory containing;

a logical model comprising a plurality of logical field definitions mapping to physical fields of physical entities of data, whereby the logical model defines a plurality of logical fields providing a logical view of the data, wherein each of the logical field definitions comprising a logical field name, at least one location attribute identifying a location of physical data corresponding to the logical field name and a reference to an access method selected from at least two different access method types;

wherein each of the different access methods types defines a different manner of exposing the physical data corresponding to the logical field name of the respective logical field definition;

a query specification defining an interface to the plurality of logical field definitions thereby allowing abstract queries to be composed on the basis of the plurality of logical field definitions; and

a graphical user interface allowing user selection and arrangement of logical fields selected from the logical model;

wherein the graphical user interface comprises input cells for user-selected logical fields and wherein a predefined geometric relationship between cells specifies whether user-selected logical fields in the cells are related by a first combinatorial statement type or a second combinatorial statement type; and

at least one processor configured to access the one or more memories.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the first combinatorial statement type is a UNION and the second combinatorial statement type is a JOIN.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the predefined geometric relationship is vertical.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein user-selected logical fields in horizontally adjacent cells are JOINed.

13. The system of claim 9, further comprising a relational database containing the physical entities of data.