Combining data descriptions
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorPatrick Goldsack
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method embodied in a computer program product for combining first and second attribute sets each comprising at least one attribute and value pair by which a named attribute is assigned a value that comprises one of a end value and a further attribute set involves carrying out a merge operation that combines the attribute and value pairs of the first and second attribute sets according to their levels in respective attribute trees with conflicts arising between attributes having the same path in each tree being resolved, on a top-down basis, according to predetermined rules.
Claims12
A computer program product within a computer readable medium for combining first and second attribute sets, each comprising at least one attribute and value pair comprising a named attribute assigned a value that comprises one of a first value and another attribute set in addition to the first and second attribute sets;
- the computer program product comprising:
- instructions arranged to control the operation of a computing apparatus running the program product to cause the apparatus to carry out a merge operation to generate a merged attribute set by applying to the first and second attribute sets, as items-to-be-merged, a merge operator by which:
- where at least one of the items-to-be-merged is a said first value, the value of the merged items is the value of one of the items-to-be-merged;
- and
- where both first and second attribute sets, as items-to-be-merged, are attribute sets, the value of the merged items comprises:
- the attribute and value pairs of attributes that occur in only one of the items-to-be-merged, and
- attribute and value pairs for attributes occurring in both items-to-be-merged with the value of each such pair being the value resulting from the application of the merge operator to the values of the attribute appearing in each item-to-be-merged, the merge operator being recursively applied as required to merge the attribute values.
Computer apparatus for combining first and second attribute sets each comprising at least one attribute and value pair by which a named attribute is assigned a value that comprises one of a first value and another attribute set in addition to the first and second attribute sets;
- the apparatus comprising a set merging arrangement for carrying out a merge operation to generate a merged attribute set, the set merging arrangement comprising:
- merge operator means for applying a merge operator to items to be merged, and control means for controlling the carrying out of said merge operation, the control means being arranged to apply said first and second attribute sets, as items to be merged, to the merge operator means;
- the merge operator means comprising:
- first means operative, where at least one of the items to be merged is a said first value, to cause the value of the merged items to be the value of one of the said items to be merged;
- and second means, operative where both first and second attribute sets, as items to be merged, are attribute sets, to cause the value of the merged items to comprise:
- the attribute and value pairs of attributes that occur in only one of the items-to-be-merged, and attribute and value pairs for attributes occurring in both items to be merged with the value of each such pair being the value resulting from the application of the merge operator to the values of the attribute appearing in each item to be merged, the control means causing the merge operator to be recursively applied by merge operator means as required to merge the attribute values.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.