Composition of analytics models

• US 8,620,635 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2008
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Rubin, Darryl E., Gittelman, Arye, Voss, Florian, Mital, Vijay
• Primary Examiner(s): Lo, Suzanne
• Application Number:
  US12/163,872
• Publication Number:
  US 20090326885A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,013 Days
• Field of Search: 703/6, 703/2
• US Class Current: 703/6
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/00 Computer-aided design [CAD]

Abstract

The composition of multiple analytical visual composition models into a single whole. A model importation mechanism allows a model author or other user import all or portions of other models. By so doing, the author might cause the following to be supplemented or changed in an existing analytics-driven model: 1) additional model input data as well to generate a supplemented set of model input data; 2) additional bindings between the supplemental set of model input data to the model parameters; 3) additional model parameters to generate a supplemental set of model parameters; and 4) additional analytical relationships between the supplemental set of model parameters. Accordingly, the author may borrow from models by other authors, allowing for effective collaboration in order to construct increasingly complex models.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising one or more physical computer storage devices having thereon one or more stored computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a computing system, cause the computing system to instantiate an extensible analytics-driven pipeline for an analytical modeling application that graphically displays one or more results of an analytical analysis, the analytics-driven pipeline including:

a data access component and a plurality of data canonicalization components,

the data access component being configured to;

evaluate input data having a plurality of different formats, the input data being received from a plurality of different sources, and

assign the input data to one or more correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components based on an identification of correlated data characteristics associated with both of the input data and the correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components,

each canonicalization component being preconfigured to convert corresponding input data having the correlated data characteristics into model input data having a predefined model input format;

a data-model binding component that is configured to bind the model input data to one or more of a plurality of model parameters as one or more input model variables of an analytics-driven model;

an analytics solver mechanism that is configured to solve for one or more of the plurality of model parameters as one or more output model variables of the analytics-driven model using the one or more input model variables as input and using a plurality of analytical relationships between the plurality of model parameters to compute one or more values for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of analytical relationships being defined by a plurality of expressions that use the one or more input model variables as input data and that solve for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of expressions comprising;

one or more equations that define mathematical relationships among the one or more input model variables and the one or more output model variables, the one or more equations being used by the analytics solver mechanism to solve for the one or more output model variables based on values of the one or more input model variables,

one or more rules that define one or more actions to be taken by the analytics solver mechanism when one or more conditions are satisfied on one or more of the one or more input model variables or the one or more output model variables, and

one or more constraints that define one or more restrictions to be applied by the analytics solver mechanism to one or more of the one or more output model variables;

a view composition mechanism that is configured to receive analytical results from the analytics solver mechanism and to use a plurality of parameterized view components that each map to one or more of the plurality of model parameters to generate a view composition that graphically displays results from the analytics-driven model using one or more visual display items, at least some of the visual display items being generated based, at least in part, on a value of the solved one or more output model variables; and

a model importation mechanism that is configured to import at least a portion of a pre-existing analytics-driven model into the analytics-driven model, wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model;

extends the analytics-driven pipeline by providing each of;

(i) additional input data that supplements the input data, the additional input data being processed by the data access component and at least one of the data canonicalization components to convert the additional input data into additional model input data having the predefined model format,

(ii) one or more additional model parameters that supplement the model parameters,

(iii) additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model input data and the supplemented model parameters,

(iv) one more additional analytical relationships that supplement the analytical relationships,

(v) additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters, and

(vi) one or more additional parameterized view components that supplement the parameterized view components, and

triggers the analytics solver mechanism to re-solve for model parameters within the supplemented model input data, the supplemented model parameters, the additional or modified bindings, the supplemented analytical relationships, and the supplemented parameterized view components.

2. A computer program product in accordance with claim 1, wherein the one or more computer storage devices are system memory.

3. A computer program product in accordance with claim 2, wherein the model importation component is configured to allow a user to import at least the portion of the analytics-driven model in a manner that the user does not explicitly specify the one or more additional model parameters and the one or more additional analytical relationships.

4. A computer program product in accordance with claim 1, wherein the analytics-driven pipeline is configured to perform the following:

an act of binding the model parameters as input parameters to the plurality of parameterized view components, each corresponding to one or more of the visual display items; and

an act of generating a view of the one or more visual display items corresponding to the view components using the parameter value(s) bound to at least some of a plurality of view components in the act of binding the model parameters.

5. A computer program product in accordance with claim 4, wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model causes additional bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters of the supplemented plurality of view components.

6. A computer program product in accordance with claim 2,

wherein the view composition component is configured to perform 1) an act of binding the model parameters as input parameters to the plurality of parameterized view components;

and

     2) an act of generating a view of the visual display items corresponding to the view components using the parameter value(s) bound to at least some of a plurality of view components in the act of binding the model parameters; and

wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model causes additional bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters of the supplemented plurality of view components.

7. A computer-assisted method for formulating an extendable analytics-driven analytics model that is used in connection with a model view composition to display one or more results of an analytical analysis, the method comprising:

at a computer system that includes at least one processor, an act of a data access component evaluating different input data having a plurality of different formats from a plurality of different sources;

at the computer system, an act of the data access component assigning the input data to different correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components based on evaluated data characteristics associated with both of the input data and the correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components;

at the computer system, an act of each of the different canonicalization components converting the corresponding input data having the correlated data characteristics into model input data having a predefined model input format;

an act of the computer system binding the model input data to a plurality of model parameters as one or more input model variables of an analytics-driven model;

an act of the computer system using an analytics solver mechanism to solve for one or more output model variables of the analytics-driven model using the one or more input model variables as input and using a plurality of analytical relationships between the plurality of model parameters to compute one or more values for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of analytical relationships being defined by a plurality of analytical expressions that use the one or more input model variables as input and that solve for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of analytical expressions comprising;

one or more equations that define mathematical relationships among the one or more input model variables and the one or more output model variables, the one or more equations being used to solve for the one or more output model variables based on values of the one or more input model variables,

one or more rules that define one or more actions to be taken when one or more conditions are satisfied on one or more of the one or more input model variables or the one or more output model variables, and

one or more constraints that define one or more restrictions to be applied to one or more of the one or more output model variables;

an act of the computer system using a plurality of parameterized view components that each map to one or more of the plurality of model parameters to generate a view composition based, at least in part, one the solved-for one or more output model variables, the view composition graphically displaying values of the solved-for one or more output model variables using one or more visual items, at least one of the one or more visual items generated based on a value of the solved-for one or more output model variables; and

an act of the computer system importing at least a portion of a pre-existing analytics-driven model into the analytics-driven model to extend the analytics-driven model, wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model;

(i) provides additional input data that supplements the input data, the additional input data being processed by the data access component and at least one of the data canonicalization components to convert the additional input data into additional model input data having the predefined model format,

(ii) provides one or more additional model parameters that supplement the model parameters,

(iii) provides additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model input data and the supplemented model parameters,

(iv) provides one more additional analytical relationships that supplement the analytical relationships,

(v) provides additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters,

(vi) provides one or more additional parameterized view components that supplement the parameterized view components, and

(vii) triggers the analytics solver mechanism to re-solve for model parameters within the supplemented model input data, the supplemented model parameters, the additional or modified bindings, the supplemented analytical relationships, and the supplemented parameterized view components.

8. The method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the act of generating the view composition comprises:

an act of binding the model parameters as input parameters to the plurality of parameterized view components; and

an act of generating a view of visual items corresponding to the view components using the parameter value(s) bound to at least some of a plurality of view components in the act of binding the model parameters.

9. The method in accordance with claim 8, wherein the binding of the model parameters to the plurality of parameterized view components is accomplished by providing additional bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters of the supplemented view components.

10. The method recited in claim 7, wherein the different input data is of a different file format than a file format of the model input data.

11. The method recited in claim 7, wherein the different input data is of a different file type than a file type of the model input data file.

12. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model provides one or more user-supplied analytical expressions into the analytics-driven model to extend the analytics-driven model, the one or more user-supplied analytical expressions supplementing or changing the analytical relationships between the plurality of model parameters.

13. A computer system, comprising:

one or more processors, and

one or more computer storage media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors cause the computer system to execute a plurality of components of an extendable analytics-driven pipeline, including the following;

a data access component and a plurality of data canonicalization components,

the data access component being configured to;

evaluate input data having a plurality of different formats, the input data being received from a plurality of different sources, and

assign the input data to one or more correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components based on an identification of correlated data characteristics associated with both of the input data and the correspondingly appropriate data canonicalization components,

each canonicalization component being preconfigured to convert corresponding input data having the correlated data characteristics into model input data having a predefined model input format;

a data-model binding component that is configured to bind the model input data to one or more of a plurality of model parameters as one or more input model variables of an analytics-driven model;

an analytics solver component that is configured to solve for one or more of the plurality of model parameters as one or more output model variables of the analytics-driven model using the one or more input model variables as input and using a plurality of analytical relationships between the plurality of model parameters to compute one or more values for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of analytical relationships being defined by a plurality of expressions that use the one or more input model variables as input data and that solve for the one or more output model variables, the plurality of expressions comprising;

one or more equations that define mathematical relationships among the one or more input model variables and the one or more output model variables, the one or more equations being used by the analytics solver component to solve for the one or more output model variables based on values of the one or more input model variables,

one or more rules that define one or more actions to be taken by the analytics solver component when one or more conditions are satisfied on one or more of the one or more input model variables or the one or more output model variables, and

one or more constraints that define one or more restrictions to be applied by the analytics solver component to one or more of the one or more output model variables;

a view composition component that is configured to receive analytical results from the analytics solver component and to use a plurality of parameterized view components that each map to one or more of the plurality of model parameters to generate a view composition that graphically displays results from the analytics-driven model using one or more visual display items, at least some of the visual display items being generated based, at least in part, on a value of the solved one or more output model variables; and

a model importation component that is configured to import at least a portion of a pre-existing analytics-driven model into the analytics-driven model, wherein importing the portion of the pre-existing analytics-driven analytics model;

extends the analytics-driven pipeline by providing each of;

(i) additional input data that supplements the input data, the additional input data being processed by the data access component and at least one of the data canonicalization components to convert the additional input data into additional model input data having the predefined model format,

(ii) one or more additional model parameters that supplement the model parameters,

(iii) additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model input data and the supplemented model parameters,

(iv) one more additional analytical relationships that supplement the analytical relationships,

(v) additional or modified bindings between the supplemented model parameters and the input parameters, and

(vi) one or more additional parameterized view components that supplement the parameterized view components, and

triggers the analytics solver component to re-solve for model parameters within the supplemented model input data, the supplemented model parameters, the additional or modified bindings, the supplemented analytical relationships, and the supplemented parameterized view components.