Data mining in a business intelligence document

• US 9,110,957 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2010
• Issued: 08/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Mital, Vijay, Katzenberger, Gary Shon, Rubin, Darryl, Green, David George
• Primary Examiner(s): Uddin, Md. I
• Application Number:
  US12/971,638
• Publication Number:
  US 20120158643A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,705 Days
• Field of Search: 707/600, 707/602, 707/603, 707/722, 707/776, 705/7.11, 705/7.29, 705/28, 705/301, 705/328, 705/342
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2465 Query processing support for facilitating data mining operations in structured databases

Abstract

A business intelligence document provides functionality for testing a hypothesis on aggregated data in a business intelligence document (e.g., a spreadsheet-like document), wherein one or more of the input data values and transformation properties are designated as constrained (e.g., invariant or constrained within a range, set, enumeration, or domain). The hypothesis, which is articulated as a data mining assertion, is input through the user interface of the business intelligence document (e.g., via an expression interface or properties of a row, column, or cell) and solved over the aggregated data. The solution is then presented through the user interface of the spreadsheet-like document, such as in a table, graph, histogram, etc.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

offloading data computation to a remote system in a business intelligence environment;

receiving, from a user interface displaying data of a business intelligence document, a data mining assertion associated with the business intelligence document to identify relationships within the data, wherein the user interface displays the data of the business document in a tabular form comprising a plurality of cells displaying one or more data values and expressions disposed in a plurality of rows and columns, and wherein the data mining assertion is received in one or more cells of a row displaying at least one data value or at least one expression of the business intelligence document, wherein each cell of the row is capable of specifying a different component of the data mining assertion and each cell of a column is capable of specifying only a same component of the data mining assertion, the business intelligence document specifying a directed acyclic graph connected of entities in a pipeline to produce a complex and arbitrary sequence of expressions designated for the computation;

varying, in the same user interface, the at least one data value and the at least one expression of the one or more cells of the row subject to the data mining assertion;

solving the data mining assertion within a specified constraint based on the varying to identify individual data values that cause the data mining assertion received from the user interface to evaluate the data value and expressions variations available within the scope of the business intelligence document to iterate through the variations to determine the data and transformations that make the assertion true;

presenting a solution of the solving in the same user interface by replacing the plurality of cells with the solution, the solution comprising a second plurality of cells displaying one or more data values or expressions disposed in the plurality of rows and columns; and

receiving the data mining assertion by invoking an assertion mode on the row using a toolbar button or a menu item of the user interface associated with the business intelligence document, wherein the assertion mode provides a control on each cell of the row.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of the at least one data value or the at least one expression within a range.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of the at least one data value or the at least one expression within a predetermined set of possible data values or possible expressions, respectively.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of the at least one data value or the at least one expression within a predetermined domain.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the user interface annotates a set of the displayed one or more data values or expressions, disposed in the plurality of rows and columns, that can be varied for the data mining assertion.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the data mining assertion specifies a constraint preventing varying of another data value or another expression specified by the business intelligence document.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein a constraint defines the at least one data value as invariant when the at least one data value is not visible.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising annotating invariant data values to indicate associated invariant status.

9. One or more computer storage memories, the memories being articles of manufacture, storing computer-executable instructions for executing, on a computer system, a computer process comprising:

offloading data computation to a remote system in a business intelligence environment;

receiving, via a user interface displaying data of a business intelligence document, a data mining assertion associated with the business intelligence document to identify relationships within the data, wherein the user interface displays the data of the business document in a tabular form comprising a plurality of cells displaying one or more data values and expressions disposed in a plurality of rows and columns, and wherein the data mining assertion is received in one or more cells of the plurality of cells, wherein the plurality of cells displayed in the user interface are capable of receiving the data mining assertion based on one or more user inputs, the business intelligence document specifying a directed acyclic graph connected of entities in a pipeline to produce a complex and arbitrary sequence of expressions designated for the computation;

varying, via the user interface, the one or more data values and expressions of the one or more cells subject to the data mining assertion associated;

solving the data mining assertion within a specified constraint based on the varying to identify individual data values that cause the data mining assertion received via the user interface to evaluate the data value and expressions variations available within the scope of the business intelligence document to iterate through the variations to determine the data and transformations that make the assertion true;

presenting a solution of the solving in the user interface, the solution comprising a second plurality of cells displaying one or more data values or expressions disposed in the plurality of rows and columns; and

receiving the data mining assertion by invoking an assertion mode on the row using a toolbar button or a menu item of the user interface associated with the business intelligence document, wherein the assertion mode provides a control on each cell of the row.

10. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein the constraint defines a range on a coefficient in the expression and the varying comprises varying the coefficient within the range to evaluate the data mining assertion.

11. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein the constraint restricts the varying of at least one data value or at least one expression specified by the business intelligence document within a range.

12. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of at least one data value or at least one expression within a predetermined set of possible data values or possible expressions, respectively.

13. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of at least one data value or at least one expression within a predetermined domain.

14. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein a constraint restricts the varying of at least one data value or a property of the at least one expression.

15. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 9 wherein a same data mining assertion is received by varying, in the one or more cells, the displayed one or more data values or expressions and by invoking a second user interface for specifying the same data mining assertion.

16. A computing system comprising:

a user interface displaying data of the business document in a tabular form comprising a plurality of cells displaying a plurality of data values or expressions disposed in a plurality of rows and columns, and further receiving a data mining assertion associated with a business intelligence document in at least two cells of the plurality of cells to identify relationships within the data, wherein each cell of the at least two cells displays at least one data value or expression specified by the business intelligence document, the business intelligence document specifying a directed acyclic graph connected of entities in a pipeline to produce a complex and arbitrary sequence of expressions designated for computation;

a data mining engine varying the at least one data value or expression in each cell of the at least two cells subject to the data mining assertion associated with the business intelligence document, wherein the data mining assertion specifies a constraint on the at least one data value or the at least one expression specified by the business intelligence document;

an expression engine varying the at least one data value or expression to identify individual data values that cause the data mining assertion to evaluate the data value and expressions variations available within the scope of the business intelligence document to iterate through the variations to determine the data and transformations that make the assertion true;

a presentation tool presenting a solution reflecting the individual data values that cause the data mining assertion to evaluate to true, the solution being presented in association with the business intelligence document via the user interface;

wherein the computing system offloads data computation to a remote system in a business intelligence environment, and receives a data mining assertion by invoking an assertion mode on a row using a toolbar button or a menu item of the user interface, wherein the assertion mode provides a control on each cell of the row; and

one or more processors configured to execute at least the data mining engine.

17. The computing system of claim 16 wherein the data mining assertion associated with the business intelligence document includes both data variations and expression variations.

18. The computing system of claim 16 wherein the expression engine restricts an extent to which the at least one data value or at least one expression is varied based on the constraint.

19. The computing system of claim 16 wherein the data mining assertion specifies another constraint to prevent varying of another data value or another expression specified by the business intelligence document, and the expression engine identifies the individual data values without varying the another data value or the another expression.