Method and apparatus for improved information storage and retrieval system
DC CAFCFirst Claim
1. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
- means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including;
a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row having an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information;
a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column having an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows has an OID equal to the OID of a corresponding one of said logical columns, and at least one of said logical rows includes logical column information defining each of said logical columns.
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Litigations
4 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The information management and database system of the present invention comprises a flexible, self-referential table that stores data. The table of the present invention may store any type of data, both structured and unstructured, and provides an interface to other application programs. The table of the present invention comprises a plurality of rows and columns. Each row has an object identification number (OID) and each column also has an OID. A row corresponds to a record and a column corresponds to a field such that the intersection of a row and a column comprises a cell that may contain data for a particular record related to a particular field, a cell may also point to another record. To enhance searching and to provide for synchronization between columns, columns are entered as rows in the table and the record corresponding to a column contains various information about the column. The table includes an index structure for extended queries.
111 Citations
60 Claims
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1. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row having an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column having an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows has an OID equal to the OID of a corresponding one of said logical columns, and at least one of said logical rows includes logical column information defining each of said logical columns. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
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means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said plurality of logical rows contains a logical cell that contains a pointer to a different logical row and at least one of said plurality of logical rows includes information defining the type of a different logical row; and means for searching said table for said pointer.
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12. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
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means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows contains a logical cell that contains a pointer to a different logical row and at least one of said logical rows includes logical column information defining each of said logical columns; and means for searching said table for said pointer. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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16. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; and a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column, wherein said OID'"'"'s are variable length.
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17. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
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means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and means for indexing data stored in said table. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A data storage and retrieval system for a computer memory, comprising:
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means for configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical cells includes a pointer to an index record; and means for indexing data stored in said table. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows has an OID equal to the OID to a corresponding one of said logical columns, and at least one of said logical rows includes logical column information defining each of said logical columns. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
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configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows contains a logical cell that contains a pointer to a different logical row and at least one of said plurality of logical rows includes information defining the type of a different logical row; and means for searching said table for said pointer.
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42. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
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configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical rows contains a logical cell that contains a pointer to a different logical row and at least one of said logical rows includes logical column information defining each of said logical column; and searching said table for said pointer. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45)
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46. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; and a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column, wherein said OID'"'"'s are variable length.
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47. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
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configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and indexing data stored in said table. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53)
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54. A method for storing and retrieving data in a computer memory, comprising the steps of:
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configuring said memory according to a logical table, said logical table including; a plurality of logical rows, each said logical row including an object identification number (OID) to identify each said logical row, each said logical row corresponding to a record of information; a plurality of logical columns intersecting said plurality of logical rows to define a plurality of logical cells, each said logical column including an OID to identify each said logical column; and
whereinat least one of said logical cells includes a pointer to an index record; and indexing data stored in said table. - View Dependent Claims (55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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Specification