System and method for automatic analysis of data bases and for user-controlled dynamic querying

• US 6,014,661 A
• Filed: 05/02/1997
• Issued: 01/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cloud Software Group
• Original Assignee: IVEE Development AB
• Inventors: Ahlberg, Christopher, Truve, Staffan, Wistrand, Erik
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, UYEN T
• Application Number:
  US08/850,828
• Time in Patent Office: 984 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3-5, 707/1, 395/12, 395/705, 705/7, 705/10, 705/36, 706/61, 345/326
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/26 Visual data mining; Browsing structured data
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A main processing system accesses a data base, which contains data records, each of which is divided into data fields. The system preferably automatically determine the type of data in each field, as well as its range of values. It then preferably determines one or more relational structures of the field data using a corresponding number of relevance measures. For each field, a preferably user-adjustable, software-generated query device is displayed, preferably in the order of the relevance measures of the respective fields. The plot of one or more fields'"'"' data relative to that of another field is initially generated using the fields in order of relevance. The relevance measure forming the basis of the field ordering, the order of fields, and the ranges of the plotted, displayed fields may be adjusted interactively by the user by moving and adjusting the various query devices.

Claims

1. A method for processing and visualizing data from a data base, in which the data base contains a plurality of records, each record includes a plurality of data fields, each field contains field data, has a field name and one of a plurality of data types, the method comprising the following steps:

accessing the data base and reading the records;

automatically determining a range of the field data in each of the data fields;

for each data field, selecting and calculating a relevance measure, the relevance measure being a predetermined, data type-dependent function indicating, for interdependent data fields, a predefined measure of relational closeness to at least one other of the data fields and, for non-interdependent data fields, a predefined measure of a data type-dependent characteristic solely of the field data in each non-interdependent data field;

automatically detecting a relational structure between the fields by calculating the respective relevance measure for each of the fields;

for each of the data fields, automatically selecting an initial, adjustable, graphical query device as a predetermined function of and adapted to the type and range of the corresponding field data;

and

displaying for viewing by a user graphical representations of the relational structures of selected ones of the fields and their corresponding initial query devices in an order determined as a predetermined function of their respective relevance measures;

sensing adjustment by the user of any of the displayed, adjustable, graphical query devices; and

updating the graphical representations of the relational structures corresponding to the sensed adjustments of any of the query devices, thereby enabling interactive visualization of the relational structures of the data fields.

2. A method as described in claim 1, further including the following steps:

automatically detecting the data type of each field;

automatically detecting a data range for each field by evaluating the corresponding field data over a plurality of the data records;

for each field, automatically selecting one of a predetermined set of display query devices as a predetermined function of the corresponding data type and data range;

for each field, displaying to the user the corresponding display query device with displayed range markings corresponding to the data range of the field, the displayed query device being user-adjustable over the displayed range markings;

sensing user adjustment of the displayed query device;

selecting a primary and at least one secondary field; and

displaying the secondary field'"'"'s field data as the function of the primary field'"'"'s field data only for the portion of the secondary field'"'"'s field data that falls within the data range of the secondary field corresponding to the user adjustment of the corresponding query device.

3. A method as defined in claim 1, further including the following steps:

designating one of the fields as a primary field and the remaining fields as secondary fields;

automatically calculating the relevance measure for each of the secondary fields relative to the primary field;

ordering the secondary fields according to their respective relevance measures;

displaying the secondary field names for the user in order of the relevance measures of their corresponding fields;

displaying initially at least the secondary field having the highest-order degree of relevance as the function of the field'"'"'s field data; and

sensing user selection of one of the displayed field names and displaying the secondary field'"'"'s field data corresponding to the selected field name as the function of the base data field'"'"'s field data.

4. A method as defined in claim 3, further including the following steps:

selecting a plurality of relevance measures;

automatically detecting a plurality of relational structures between the secondary fields and the primary field for each of the plurality of relevance measures by calculating each relevance measure for each of the secondary fields relative to the primary field;

automatically designating as a primary relevance measure the one of the plurality of relevance measures having a greatest validity value; and

displaying an indication of the primary relational structure for the user.

5. A method as defined in claim 4, further including the following steps:

ordering the relevance measures according to respective degrees of structural value;

displaying for the user indications of the plurality of relevance measures in order of the corresponding validity values; and

sensing user selection of one of the displayed indications and designating as the primary relevance measure the relevance measure corresponding to the selected indication;

ordering the secondary fields according to respective degrees of relevance for the primary relevance measure; and

displaying the field names for the user in order of the degrees of relevance of their corresponding fields using the primary relevance measure.

6. A method as described in claim 3, further including the following steps:

automatically detecting the data type of each field;

automatically detecting a data range for each field by evaluating the corresponding field data over a plurality of the data records;

for each field, automatically selecting one of a predetermined set of display query devices as a predetermined function of the corresponding data type and data range;

for each field, displaying to the user the corresponding display query device with displayed range markings corresponding to the data range of the field, the displayed query device being user-adjustable over the displayed range markings;

sensing user adjustment of the displayed query device; and

displaying the secondary field'"'"'s field data corresponding to the selected field name as the function of the base data field only for the portion of the secondary field'"'"'s field data that falls within the data range of the corresponding secondary field.

7. A method for processing and visualizing data from a data base, in which the data base contains a plurality of records, each record includes a plurality of a field, each field contains field data, has a field name and one of a plurality of data types, the method comprising the following steps:

accessing the data base and sequentially reading the records;

designating one of the fields as a primary field and the remaining fields as secondary fields;

selecting a plurality of relevance measures relating each secondary field, respectively, to the primary field;

automatically detecting a plurality of relational structures between the secondary fields and the primary field for each of the plurality of relevance measures by calculating each relevance measure for each of the secondary fields relative to the primary field;

automatically designating as a primary relevance measure the one of the plurality of relevance measures having a greatest validity value;

ordering the secondary fields according to respective degrees of relevance according to the primary relevance measure;

displaying the field names for viewing by the user in order of the degrees of relevance of their corresponding fields;

displaying initially a graphical representation of at least the secondary field having the highest-order degree of relevance as the function of the primary field'"'"'s field data; and

sensing user selection of one of the displayed field names and displaying for user viewing a graphical representation of the secondary field'"'"'s field data corresponding to the selected field name as the function of the primary data field'"'"'s field data.

8. A system for processing and visualizing data from a data base, the system comprising:

a relational data base storing a plurality of records, each record including a plurality of data fields, each field containing field data, having a field name and one of a plurality of data types;

a main processing system;

a user input device that is connected to the main processing system;

a display that is connected to the main processing system;

connection means for connecting the main processing system to the data base;

the main processing system comprising processing means;

for accessing the data base and reading the records;

for automatically determining a range of the field data in each of the data fields;

for each data field, for selecting and calculating a relevance measure, the relevance measure being a predetermined, data type-dependent function indicating, for interdependent data fields, a predefined measure of relational closeness to at least one other of the data fields and, for non-interdependent data fields, a predefined measure of a data type-dependent characteristic solely of the field data in each non-interdependent data field;

for automatically detecting a relational structure between the fields by calculating the respective relevance measure for each of the fields;

for each of the data fields, for automatically selecting an initial, adjustable, graphical query device as a predetermined function of and adapted to the type and range of the corresponding field data;

for displaying for viewing by a user graphical representations of the relational structures of selected ones of the fields and their corresponding initial query devices in an order determined as a predetermined function of their respective relevance measures;

for sensing adjustment by the user of any of the displayed, adjustable, graphical query devices; and

for updating the graphical representations of the relational structures corresponding to the sensed adjustments of any of the query devices, thereby enabling interactive visualization of the relational structures of the data fields.

9. A system as described in claim 8, in which the main processing system comprises:

data type sub-processing means for automatically detecting the data type of each field;

range detection sub-processing means for automatically detecting a data range for each field by evaluating the corresponding field data over a plurality of the data records;

query device selection sub-processing means for automatically selecting, for each field, one of a predetermined set of display query devices as a predetermined function of the corresponding data type and data range;

interface selection sub-processing means for displaying to the user, for each field, the corresponding display query device with displayed range markings corresponding to the data range of the field, the displayed query device being user-adjustable by means of the input device over the displayed range markings;

the main processing system being further provided;

for sensing user adjustment of the displayed query device by means of the input device;

for selecting a primary and at least one secondary field; and

for displaying the secondary field'"'"'s field data as the function of the primary field'"'"'s field data only for the portion of the secondary field'"'"'s field data that falls within the data range of the secondary field corresponding to the user adjustment of the corresponding query device.