Metadata modelling for reporting

• US 7,747,651 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2004
• Issued: 06/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: X Corp. (f/k/a Twitter, Inc.) (X Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Potter, Charles M., Seeds, Glen M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong; Don
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lie; Angela M
• Application Number:
  US10/835,236
• Publication Number:
  US 20050027674A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,252 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/3, 707/1, 707/2, 707/4, 707/5, 707/102
• US Class Current: 707/795
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2423 Interactive query statement specification based on a database schema

Abstract

The invention comprises a method and system for reducing the apparent complexity faced by a user when confronted by this modeling environment. It provides for a metadata model that represents one or more data sources, the metadata model comprising a query layer combining the functions of a data access layer and a business layer. The query layer includes query subjects that describe how to retrieve data from the data sources, and the query subjects contain query items. The query layer also allows the use of data access language statements which permit the use of more complex computed query subjects and query items.

Claims

1. A method for providing a query to obtain data from a data source using a client application, the method comprising:

providing, by a computer, a metadata model including model objects representing the data source, the metadata model having a query layer and a package layer, the query layer providing a business view of the data in the data source, the query layer including query subjects, wherein the query subjects directly describe actual physical data within an underlying database, are used in creating reports, and are abstracted and separate from the underlying database that includes physical data from one or more data sources, and wherein the package layer includes packages having direct references to the query subjects;

generating a query specification based on a user input using the client application, the query specification is not in a form applicable to the data source directly;

translating the generated query specification by the computer into a query applicable to the data source based on the query subjects referred to by the packages in the package layer in the metadata model, wherein the query is executed using a data source specification language of the data source, and wherein the query includes data query language statements that are embedded within the query subjects in the metadata model; and

providing the query to the data source for execution.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising including filters and calculation blocks that act on the query subjects.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising converting the query subjects to objects including the data query language statements embedded within the objects.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the query subjects translate different kinds of databases, and provide a translation of the data and metadata into a terminology of a user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating further comprises providing in the query specification a reference to the query;

and the translating further comprises using the model objects based on a reference in the query specification to translate the query specification.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising directly changing definitions of the query subjects in the metadata model without reliance on a separate modeling layer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the query layer includes query items that are attributes of the physical data.

8. A system comprising:

at least one computing device;

a metadata model generator configured in the at least one computing device to provide a metadata model including model objects representing a data source, the metadata model having a query layer and a package layer, the query layer providing a business view of the data in the data source, the query layer including query subjects, wherein the query subjects directly describe actual physical data within an underlying database, are used in creating reports, and are abstracted and separate from the underlying database that includes physical data from one or more data sources, and wherein the package layer includes packages having direct references to the query subjects;

a query specification interface configured in the at least one computing device to allow a client application to generate a query specification based on a user input, the query specification is not in a form applicable to the data source directly; and

a translator configured in the at least one computing device to translate the generated query specification into a query applicable to the data source based on the query subjects referred to by the packages in the package layer in the metadata model, wherein the query is executed using a data source specification language of the data source, and wherein the query includes data query language statements that are embedded within the query subjects in the metadata model; and

a sender configured in the at least one computing device to provide the query to the data source for execution.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the translator comprises filters and calculation blocks that act on the query subjects.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the translator converts the query subjects to objects including the data query language statements embedded within the objects.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the query subjects translate different kinds of databases, and provide a translation of the data and metadata into a terminology of a user.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the metadata model generator directly changes definitions of the query subjects in the metadata model without reliance on a separate modeling layer.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the query layer includes query items that are attributes of the physical data.

14. A computer readable storage medium comprising instructions that cause a computing device to:

provide a metadata model including model objects representing the data source, the metadata model having a query layer and a package layer, the query layer providing a business view of the data in the data source, the query layer including query subjects, wherein the query subjects directly describe actual physical data within an underlying database, are used in creating reports, and are abstracted and separate from the underlying database that includes physical data from one or more data sources, and wherein the package layer includes packages having direct references to the query subjects;

generate a query specification based on a user input using the client application, the query specification is not in a form applicable to the data source directly;

translate the generated query specification by the computer into a query applicable to the data source based on the query subjects referred to by the packages in the package layer in the metadata model, wherein the query is executed using a data source specification language of the data source, and wherein the query includes data query language statements that are embedded within the query subjects in the metadata model; and

provide the query to the data source for execution.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising instructions that cause the computing device to convert the query subjects to objects including the data query language statements embedded within the objects.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the query subjects translate different kinds of databases, and provide a translation of the data and metadata into a terminology of a user.

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising instructions that cause the computing device to directly change definitions of the query subjects in the metadata model without reliance on a separate modeling layer.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the query layer includes query items that are attributes of the physical data.