Relative classification of data objects

• US 9,280,574 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2011
• Issued: 03/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Lewis Jr. Jackson
• Original Assignee: Robert Lewis Jr. Jackson
• Inventors: Jackson, Robert Lewis Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Jennifer
• Assistant Examiner(s): Xia, Xuyang
• Application Number:
  US13/226,282
• Publication Number:
  US 20120060125A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,645 Days
• Field of Search: 715/853
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2246 Trees, e.g. B+trees
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/26 Visual data mining; Browsing structured data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/282 Hierarchical databases, e.g. IMS, LDAP data stores or Lotus Notes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

Systems and methods for use in presenting a plurality of data nodes that include one or more data sets and one or more data objects, wherein each data set includes zero or more data objects and zero or more other data sets. The method includes determining, by a computing device, a data node of interest from the plurality of data nodes, wherein the data node of interest is included in one or more data sets. The computing device depicts the data node of interest as a primary node and depicts at least one of the data sets that includes the data node of interest as a secondary node that is subordinate to the primary node. The computing device also depicts an edge between the primary node and the secondary node.

Claims

1. A method comprising a computing device performing the steps of:

visually depicting a simplified rendition of a complex graph, said complex graph comprising a plurality of data nodes representing one or more data sets and one or more data objects, wherein each data set includes zero or more data objects and zero or more other data sets;

determining, from the plurality of data nodes in the complex graph, at least one data node of interest to a user, wherein each data node of interest is included in and thus defined as being hierarchically subordinate to one or more data sets;

visually depicting in the simplified rendition each data node of interest as a primary node in a specific area of a user display designated to depict primary nodes;

visually depicting in the simplified rendition at least one secondary node that is visually depicted in the simplified rendition as being hierarchically subordinate to a primary node, but is a data set that in the complex graph includes and is thus defined as being hierarchically superior to the corresponding data node of interest; and

visually depicting in the simplified rendition at least one edge between a primary node and a secondary node;

wherein;

visually depicted secondary nodes are not contained within the specific area designated to depict primary nodes;

whereby;

the simplified rendition comprises a new and inverted node hierarchy compared with the node hierarchy of the complex graph.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein determining a data node of interest comprises the computing device receiving, via an input interface, a selection of the data node of interest.

3. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein determining a data node of interest comprises the computing device determining a default data node of interest associated with one or more of the following:

the plurality of data nodes, a user, and an operation being performed by a user.

4. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the computing device:

identifying data objects related to a secondary node; and

visually depicting in the simplified rendition the identified data objects as nodes contained within said secondary node.

5. A method in accordance with claim 4, wherein identifying data objects related to a secondary node comprises identifying data objects included in subsets of the data set that constitutes the secondary node.

6. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the computing device visually depicting in the simplified rendition data sets related to a secondary node as nodes subordinate to said secondary node.

7. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein determining a data node of interest comprises determining a plurality of data nodes of interest, and the method further comprises the computing device visually depicting in the simplified rendition any data sets that include a data node of interest as secondary nodes subordinate to the primary node.

8. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the computing device:

positioning the specific area in a first stratum of the simplified rendition; and

positioning at least some secondary nodes in a second stratum of the simplified rendition, said second stratum being distinct from the first stratum and situated below the first stratum.

21. The method of claim 1 wherein each secondary node represents a subset of the complex graph.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein the entire complex graph is readily accessible to a user via the nodes that are visually depicted in the simplified rendition.

9. A device comprising:

a memory device for storing a simplified rendition of a complex graph, said complex graph comprising a plurality of data nodes representing one or more data sets and one or more data objects, wherein each data set includes zero or more data objects and zero or more other data sets; and

a processor coupled to the memory device and programmed to simplify the complex graph by creating a new and inverted node hierarchy, compared with the node hierarchy of the complex graph, by performing the following steps;

determining from the plurality of data nodes in the complex graph at least one data node of interest to a user, wherein each data node of interest is included in and thus deemed hierarchically subordinate to one or more data sets of the complex graph;

visually depicting in the simplified rendition each data node of interest as a primary node in a specific area of a user display designated to depict primary nodes;

visually depicting in the simplified rendition at least one secondary node that is visually depicted in the simplified rendition as being hierarchically subordinate to a primary node, but is a data set that in the complex graph includes and therefore is deemed hierarchically superior to the corresponding data node of interest; and

visually depicting in the simplified rendition at least one edge between a primary node and a secondary node;

wherein;

visually depicted secondary nodes are not contained within the specific area designated to depict primary nodes.

10. A device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the processor is programmed to determine a data node of interest by receiving, via an input interface, a selection of the data node of interest.

11. A device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the processor is programmed to determine a data node of interest by determining a default data node of interest associated with one or more of the following:

the plurality of data nodes, a user, and an operation being performed by a user.

12. A device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

identify data objects related to a secondary node; and

visually depict in the simplified rendition the identified data objects as nodes contained within said secondary node.

13. A device in accordance with claim 12, wherein the processor is programmed to identify data objects related to a secondary node by identifying data objects included in subsets of the data set that constitutes said secondary node.

14. A device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the processor is further programmed to depict data sets related to a secondary node as nodes subordinate to said secondary node.

15. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon, wherein when executed by at least one processor, the computer-executable instructions cause the processor to:

determine at least one data node of interest to a user from among a plurality of nodes in a complex graph, said complex graph comprising a plurality of data nodes that represent one or more data sets and one or more data objects, wherein each data set includes zero or more data objects and zero or more other data sets, and wherein each data node of interest is included in and thus deemed hierarchically subordinate to one or more data sets;

visually depict, in a simplified rendition of the complex graph, each data node of interest as a primary node in a specific area of a user display designed to depict primary nodes;

visually depict, in said simplified rendition, at least one secondary node that is visually depicted in the simplified rendition as being hierarchically subordinate to a primary node, but is a data set that in the complex graph includes and is thus deemed hierarchically superior to the corresponding data node of interest; and

visually depict in said simplified rendition at least one edge between a primary node and a secondary node;

wherein;

visually depicted secondary nodes are not contained within the specific area designated to depict primary nodes;

whereby;

the simplified rendition comprises a new and inverted node hierarchy, compared to the node hierarchy of the complex graph, and the simplified rendition is visually presented to the user.

16. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media in accordance with claim 15, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to:

determine a plurality of data nodes of interest; and

visually depict in the simplified rendition any data sets that include a data node of interest as secondary nodes subordinate to the primary node.

17. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media in accordance with claim 15, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to:

identify data objects related to a secondary node; and

visually depict in the simplified rendition the identified data objects as nodes contained within said secondary node.

18. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media in accordance with claim 15, wherein the computer-executable instructions cause the processor to identify data objects related to a secondary node by identifying data objects included in subsets of said secondary node.

19. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media in accordance with claim 15, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to visually depict in the simplified rendition a plurality of data sets related to a secondary node as nodes subordinate to said secondary node.

20. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media in accordance with claim 15, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to:

position the specific area in a first stratum of the simplified rendition; and

position at least some secondary nodes in a second stratum of the simplified rendition, said second stratum being distinct from the first stratum and located below the first stratum.