US 2008/0306983 A1Published application

Mapping hierarchical data from a query result into a tabular format with jagged rows

AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation

InventorHardeep Singh

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Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide techniques for mapping hierarchical data from a query result into a tabular display, such as a spreadsheet. The tabular display allows some (or all) of the elements included in the hierarchical display to be mapped to positions on the report. In one embodiment, a field of the result that stores hierarchical data with repeating elements (e.g., an XML document) is mapped into the tabular report using jagged rows. This approach allows a user to map both the hierarchical and relational data in the result set to cells in the spreadsheet, and in the process, handle any embedded collection (repeated element) in the hierarchical data.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A computer-implemented method of representing hierarchical data from a database query result in a tabular display, comprising:

obtaining the database query result of an executed database query, wherein the query result includes one or more result fields, and wherein at least one of the result fields contains a hierarchal data object;
encapsulating the query result in a tree hierarchy;
retrieving mapping information defining mappings from one or more nodes of the tree hierarchy to specified cells of the tabular display, wherein at least one of the one or more nodes is flagged as a repeating node;
parsing the tree hierarchy to identify the one or more nodes mapped to the specified cells of the tabular display;
copying data values from the identified nodes of the tree hierarchy to the specified cells of the tabular display;
upon determining, based on the mapping information, that a current node being copied from the tree hierarchy to a cell of the tabular display is flagged as the repeating node, determining whether multiple instances of the repeating node are present in a given record of the query result;
and
for each of the multiple instances of the repeating node present in the given record of the query result, incrementing a row position of the tabular display to which the current node is copied, while maintaining a column position of the tabular display to create a jagged row in the tabular display for the result fields that contain the hierarchal data object.

5 more elements

A computer program product comprising a computer useable storage medium having a computer readable program, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a computer causes the computer to perform an operation to generate a tabular display of hierarchical data included in a database query result, the operation comprising:

obtaining the database query result of an executed database query, wherein the query result includes one or more result fields, and wherein at least one of the result fields contains a hierarchal data object;
encapsulating the query result in a tree hierarchy;
retrieving mapping information defining mappings from one or more nodes of the tree hierarchy to specified cells of the tabular display, wherein at least one of the one or more nodes is flagged as a repeating node;
parsing the tree hierarchy to identify the one or more nodes mapped to the specified cells of the tabular display;
copying data values from the identified nodes of the tree hierarchy to the specified cells of the tabular display;
upon determining, based on the mapping information, that a current node being copied from the tree hierarchy to a cell of the tabular display is flagged as the repeating node, determining whether multiple instances of the repeating node are present in a given record of the query result;
and
for each of the multiple instances of the repeating node present in the given record of the query result, incrementing a row position of the tabular display to which the current node is copied, while maintaining a column position of the tabular display to create a jagged row in the tabular display for the result fields that contain the hierarchal data object.

5 more elements

A system, comprising:

a processor;
and
a memory containing a program which, when executed by the processor, is configured to:
obtain the database query result of an executed database query, wherein the query result includes one or more result fields, and wherein at least one of the result fields contains a hierarchal data object;
encapsulate the query result in a tree hierarchy;
retrieve mapping information defining mappings from one or more nodes of the tree hierarchy to specified cells of the tabular display, wherein at least one of the one or more nodes is flagged as a repeating node;
parse the tree hierarchy to identify the one or more nodes mapped to the specified cells of the tabular display;
copy data values from the identified nodes of the tree hierarchy to the specified cells of the tabular display;
upon determining, based on the mapping information, that a current node being copied from the tree hierarchy to a cell of the tabular display is flagged as the repeating node, determine whether multiple instances of the repeating node are present in a given record of the query result;
and
for each of the multiple instances of the repeating node present in the given record of the query result, increment a row position of the tabular display to which the current node is copied and maintain a column position of the tabular display to create a jagged row in the tabular display for the result fields that contain the hierarchal data object.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.