Spreadsheet cell dependency management

• US 9,703,767 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2012
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Business Objects Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: Business Objects Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Bedard, Jason, Kumar, Viren
• Primary Examiner(s): Baderman, Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): McVicker, Matthew G
• Application Number:
  US13/689,705
• Publication Number:
  US 20140149837A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,685 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/18 of spreadsheets form-filling G06F40/174

Abstract

A spreadsheet file and a dashboard structure file characterizing a dashboard are received. These files are then analyzed to determine dependencies. Subsequently, for each determined dependency, an event listener is registered for a dependent component that corresponds to the determined dependency. These event listeners are notified of an event from an event source when a corresponding dependee is changed. Dependent components are then updated using data from a corresponding dependee in response to event notifications so that each updated dependent component can be rendered within the dashboard. Related apparatus, systems, techniques and articles are also described.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a spreadsheet file and a separate dashboard structure file comprising metadata characterizing a dashboard;

rendering, using the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file, the dashboard, wherein the rendered dashboard includes a plurality of visual components, and wherein one or more of the plurality of visual components are adapted to provide visual representations of at least a portion of data from the spreadsheet file;

analyzing the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file to determine at least one dependency between one or more cells in the spreadsheet file and a first visual component comprising the rendered dashboard;

registering, for the at least one dependency, an event listener, wherein the event listener is paired with an event source comprising the one or more cells in the spreadsheet file, wherein the first visual component comprises a dependent component and the one or more cells comprise a dependee of the at least one dependency, and wherein the event listener is notified of an event from the event source when the dependee is changed;

notifying the event source that data is required for updating the dependent component in response to an event notification received at the event listener, wherein the first visual component is configured to continue a flow of execution independently of the event listener such that a second visual component is rendered while the event source schedules fetching of the data used to update the dependent component; and

rendering, within the dashboard, the first visual component comprising the dependent component upon the event listener receiving notification that the event source has finished fetching the data required to update the dependent component.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein the rendering of the updated dependent components having corresponding registered event listeners occurs asynchronously.

3. A method as in claim 1, wherein the spreadsheet file is in a text-based, language-independent data interchange format.

4. A method as in claim 3, wherein the text-based, language-independent data interchange format comprises an object notation format derived from a programming language that implements the ECMAScript Programming Language Standard.

5. A method as in claim 1, wherein the analyzing comprises:

constructing a document object model (DOM) using the spreadsheet file.

6. A method as in claim 5, wherein the analyzing further comprises:

recursively creating the components using the DOM.

7. A method as in claim 1, wherein the spreadsheet file is received by a client from a remote server.

8. A method as in claim 7, wherein the analyzing, registering, updating, and rendering are performed at the client.

9. A method as in claim 1, wherein data from at least two data sources is fetched in a single batch.

10. A method as in claim 1, further comprising:

determining that a first cell has a formula including a reference to a second cell; and

registering an event listener on the second cell that propagates events to listeners registered to the first cell.

11. A method as in claim 1, further comprising:

constructing an adjacency matrix using the spreadsheet file, the adjacency matrix having

labels of rows and columns correspond to nodes of a graph in which entries of 1 indicate that corresponding nodes are adjacent in the graph and entries of zero mean there is no edge between the nodes.

12. A method as in claim 11, wherein the analyzing further comprises:

recursively creating the components using the adjacency matrix.

13. A non-transitory computer program product storing instructions, which when executed by at least one data processor of at least one computer system, result in operations comprising:

receiving a spreadsheet file and a separate dashboard structure file comprising metadata characterizing a dashboard;

rendering, using the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file, the dashboard, wherein the rendered dashboard includes a plurality of visual components, and wherein one or more of the plurality of visual components are adapted to provide visual representations of at least a portion of data from the spreadsheet file;

analyzing the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file to determine at least one dependency between one or more cells in the spreadsheet file and a first visual component comprising the rendered dashboard;

registering, for the at least one dependency, an event listener, wherein the event listener is paired with an event source comprising the one or more cells in the spreadsheet file, wherein the first visual component comprises a dependent component and the one or more cells comprise a dependee of the at least one dependency, and wherein the event listener is notified of an event from the event source when the dependee is changed;

notifying the event source that data is required for updating the dependent component in response to an event notification received at the event listener, wherein the first visual component is configured to continue a flow of execution independently of the event listener such that a second visual component is rendered while the event source schedules fetching of the data used to update the dependent component; and

rendering, within the dashboard, the first visual component comprising the dependent component upon the event listener receiving notification that the event source has finished fetching the data required to update the dependent component.

14. A computer program product as in claim 13, wherein the rendering of the updated dependent components having corresponding registered event listeners occurs asynchronously.

15. A computer program product as in claim 13, further comprising:

constructing a document object model (DOM) using the spreadsheet file; and

recursively creating the components using the DOM.

16. A computer program product as in claim 13, further comprising:

constructing an adjacency matrix using the spreadsheet file, the adjacency matrix having

labels of rows and columns correspond to nodes of a graph in which entries of 1 indicate that corresponding nodes are adjacent in the graph and entries of zero mean there is no edge between the nodes; and

recursively creating the components using the adjacency matrix.

17. A system comprising:

a client computing system comprising memory and at least one data processor; and

a server computing system remote from the client computing system comprising memory and at least one data processor;

wherein;

the client computing system receives a spreadsheet file and a separate dashboard structure file comprising metadata characterizing a dashboard from the server computing system;

the client computing system renders, using the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file, the dashboard, wherein the rendered dashboard includes a plurality of visual components, and wherein one or more of the plurality of visual components are adapted to provide visual representations of at least a portion of data from the spreadsheet file;

the client computing system analyzes the spreadsheet file and the dashboard structure file to determine at least one dependency between one or more cells in the spreadsheet file and a first visual component comprising the rendered dashboard;

the client computing system registers, for the at least one dependency, an event listener, wherein the event listener is paired with an event source comprising the one or more cells in the spreadsheet file, wherein the first visual component comprises a dependent component and the one or more cells comprise a dependee of the at least one dependency, and wherein the event listener is notified of an event from the event source when the dependee is changed;

the client computing system notifies the event source that data required for updating the dependent component in response to an event notification received at the event listener, wherein the first visual component is configured to continue a flow of execution independently of the event listener such that a second visual component is rendered while the event source schedules fetching of the data used to update the dependent component; and

the client computing system renders, within the dashboard, the first visual component comprising the dependent component upon the event listener receiving notification that the event source has finished fetching the data required to update the dependent component.