SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AUTOMATICALLY GENERATING USER INTERFACE ELEMENTS FOR COMPLEX DATABASES

摘要

In one embodiment, a software system automatically generates a fully functional user interface (UI) based upon any underlying schema within a relational database management system (RDBMS). The UI derives from an automated interrogation of the schema, and comprises all mode displays (e.g., browse, search, edit, add) for all tables, along with integrated mechanisms for representing, navigating and managing relationships across tables. It utilizes a hierarchical “context stack” for suspending the working state of a particular table while “drilling down” to work with related-table information and (potentially) return relevant changes to the base table. The UI presentation resolves cross-table relationships so as to supplant internal key fields from the primary table with corresponding descriptive fields derived from the related tables. Techniques are also provided to enhance and extend the internal representation of table structures, constraints, relationships and special requirements (“business rules”) for improved discovery of the schema structure via automated interrogation.

主权项

1. A method for enhancing the display, within a user interface operating under control of a processor, of data from a relational database, the relational database comprising machine-readable data representing a plurality of tables, constraints, and relationships and also operating under control of a processor, said method comprising:
using a processor to generate a display within the user interface of data from a primary table within the relational database; using a processor to resolve a foreign key (FK) relationship from the primary table to a foreign table within the relational database; using a processor to apply formal data-structure rules and/or naming conventions in analyzing the foreign table to automatically determine a default construction for a descriptive value, derived from the contents of one or more foreign-table fields, to augment or supplant the actual FK field value within the display representation of primary-table data.