System, method and software for creating, maintaining, navigating or manipulating complex data objects and their data relationships

• US 7,043,481 B2
• Filed: 05/30/2002
• Issued: 05/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Thought, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Thought, Inc.
• Inventors: Mullins, Ward, Martins, Alexandre
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Shahid Al
• Application Number:
  US10/158,672
• Publication Number:
  US 20040015829A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,440 Days
• Field of Search: 707 1- 10, 707/100, 707/102, 707/103.R, 707/104.1, 707/200, 709/218, 709/213, 709/214, 103/2, 717 1- 5, 717/107, 717/104, 719/328
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/34 Graphical or visual programming
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4493 Object persistence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

The invention provides systems, methods and software for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects and associated data stores. In one aspect, the invention also provides an application programming interface (“API”) useful for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects and associated data stores as a CDOG model.

Claims

1. A local or distributed computer system for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects as a CDOG model, wherein the system comprises a user interface, a working memory storage area and at least one device for permanently storing information, and said system is loaded with at least one portion of a computer software program that comprises at least one user access interface and a set of programming routines designed for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects as a CDOG model and the said software program has at least one feature selected from the group consisting of:

a) a feature providing a method for displaying or printing a representation of a CDOG model, a definition representation or other representation thereof, as a graph or as a set of tables of complex data objects and relationships, and

b) a feature providing an interface for editing a CDOG model or for editing a definition or other representation thereof, or providing an interface for an editable input or source, such as a file, that can be modified to implement changes to a CDO or its relationships of a CDOG model.

2. A system according to claim 1, providing an interface for displaying or editing the CDOG model, or for displaying or editing a definition or other representation of the CDOG model, as a graph or set of tables representing complex data objects and their relationships.

3. A method of using a local or distributed computer system for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects as a CDOG model, comprising the steps of:

a) loading at least one software program module on the local or distributed system for creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting objects as a CDOG model,

b) creating a CDOG representation definition,

c) monitoring and recording any changes to the CDOG on a local or distributed computer system, and

d) persisting any changes to the CDOG on a local or distributed computer system by updating the CDOG or CDOG representation definition to reflect and changes to any copies of the CDOG or CDOG representation definition, and saving a copy of the updated CDOG representation definition to a data source or to another type of information repository.

4. A method according to claim 3, comprising the additional step of displaying or printing a representation of the CDOG model as a graph or as set of tables representing at least one complex object and a relationship to a data object, or a definition representation of at least one of either a complex data object and a relationship, or a definition representation of the complex data object and a relationship.

5. A computer software program for using a local or distributed computer system to create, maintain, access, navigate and persist complex data objects as a CDOG model, said software program comprises:

at least one user interface and at least one executable feature providing at least one action on a computer system selected from creating, maintaining, accessing, navigating and persisting complex data objects as a CDOG model,

wherein executing said program can create a new CDOG model, access a CDOG model stored from a tangible medium maintain a CDOG model, or persist a new or updated CDOG model to a storage medium.

6. A computer software program according to claim 5, having at least one additional executable feature selected from the group consisting of:

a) a feature providing a method for displaying or printing a representation of a CDOG model, a definition representation or other representation thereof, as a graph or as a set of tables of complex data objects and relationships, and

b) a feature providing an interface for editing a CDOG model or for editing a definition or other representation thereof, or providing an interface for an editable input or source, such as a file, that can be modified to implement changes to a CDO or its relationships of a CDOG model.

7. An API that can be accessed to create, maintain, access, navigate and persisting complex data objects as a CDOG model, wherein the said API comprises at least one user access interface, at least one data source access interface and at least three main programming modules consisting of the following programming modules or routines:

I. A programming module or routine constructed to operate on a computer system and to provide the following features to a user or to a software program module of the computer system;

a) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for obtaining from a member selected from the group consisting of a data source, an information repository, and an input device, sufficient information to construct a CDOG model containing one or more CDOGs,

b) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for constructing and loading into the memory registers of the computer system a CDOG or a CDOG model representation definition from a data source or other repository, and

c) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for sending a copy of some portion or all of the CDOG representation definition to a user or to a software program module on a local computer system or on a distributed network;

II. A programming module or routine constructed to operate on a computer system and to provide the following features to a user or to a software program module of the computer system;

a) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for monitoring a user or a software program module on a computer system that has accessed or changed a portion of a CDOG or CDOG model, which is included in the CDOG, or CDOG model, representation definition of (I), above, and obtaining any changes to the CDOG or CDOG model,

d) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for monitoring a user or a software program module on a computer system who has obtained a copy of any portion of the CDOG, or CDOG model, representation definition, and for obtaining a copy of any changes that the user might have made to any portion of the CDOG, or CDOG model, representation definition, and

e) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for comparing a copy of a CDOG, CDOG model, or a representation definition of either the CDOG or CDOG model, to an original stored version of the CDOG, CDOG model, or an original stored representation definition for the CDOG or CDOG model, and for updating the original to incorporate any changes to a CDOG or a representation definition that are made by the user or by a software program module; and

III. A programming module or routine constructed to operate on a computer system and to provide the following features to a user or software program module of the computer system;

a) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for storing a new CDOG or CDOG model, or storing a definition of either the CDOG or CDOG model, in a data source or in another information repository, and

b) a computer programming sub-routine or sub-module for persisting (saving to permanent storage) either a changed portion of an updated CDOG, an updated CDOG model, or an updated definition representation for either a CDOG or a CDOG model, to a data source or to another type of information repository.

8. An API according to claim 7, further having an interface that accesses and uses functionalities of an data source to data source mapping tool, associated programming routines, or associated class libraries.

9. An API according to claim 7, further having an interface that accesses and uses functionalities of an object to relational or relational to object database mapping tool, associated programming routines, or associated class libraries.

10. An API according to claim 7, having a feature for, or being associated with a computer program or module having a feature that provides a method for, displaying or printing a representation of a complex data object CDOG model, or for printing a definition or other defining representation thereof, as a graph or set of tables representing CDOs and their relationships.

11. A software tool comprising the API according to claim 7, adapted for a local network or a distributed network environment, wherein said software tool provides persistence in an object oriented language environment transparently by implementing a configurable network component capable of acquiring and persisting CDOGs throught network APIs.

12. A software tool according to claim 7, adapted for performing the following steps:

a) reading a source programming object logic model or a database definition file in a format selected from the group consisting of a UML data file, a XMI data file, and a XML file; and

b) converting the information of (a) into a target member selected from the group consisting of a database definition XML file, a database mapping definition file, and a CDOG definition file.

13. A software tool according to claim 12, adapted for performing at least one of the following additional steps:

a) displaying a representation of a source programming object logic model or a database definition file in a format selected from the group consisting of a UML data file, a XMI data file, and a XML file;

b) storing a representation of a source programming object logic model or a database definition file in a format selected from the group consisting of a UML data file, a XMI data file, and a XML file;

c) printing a representation of a source programming object logic model or a database definition file in a format selected from the group consisting of a UML data file, a XMI data file, and a XML file;

d) displaying the target information of (b);

e) storing the target information of (b); and

f) printing the target information of (b).

14. A software tool according to claim 13, wherein the target information is at least one member selected from the group consisting a CocoBase database definition repository file, a CocoBase map, a CocoNavigate CDOG definition, a CoCoNavigate object link descriptor, and a CDOG object graph definition data file.

15. A software tool according to claim 13, wherein the source is a UML/XMI document containing sufficient DTD information to exchange modeling information with a UML modeling tool.

16. A software tool according to claim 15, wherein the software tool automatically generates a persistence layer that corresponds to the source UML class diagrams provided by an exported source file from a case tool capable of exporting UML/XMI such as Rational Rose, Together and ArgoUML.