JP2017072959A - Information processing device, information processing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique for extracting difference when target information represented by formula expression is preserved over two or more generations related to transition.SOLUTION: An information processing device includes: a storage section for storing object information related to at least part of nodes before change and object information related to after change regarding object information described by using a product operator for combining an identifier representing the node of an order tree with a set of an identifier corresponding to one parent node and an identifier corresponding to one or more child nodes and a sum operator for combining a plurality of brother nodes; and a processing section for reading object information of the storage section to perform processing. The processing section compares identifiers to which corresponding location information is attached to determine presence of change and outputs an identifier determined to have change.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program.

  Conventionally, as a data structure handled by a computer, for example, a tabular structure of a relational database, an object of an object-oriented database, a frame or rule of a knowledge database, and the like are known.

  However, the conventionally proposed database has a problem in terms of flexibility to change that a new structure cannot be added to a predefined data structure. For example, when a new attribute is added to a table after the operation of a relational database is started, the existing data structure and modification of the application program for processing the data structure are accompanied. It was a burden on users, administrators or application program developers. Further, in the conventional relational database, it is impossible to describe information hierarchically, for example, to further define a table in one attribute of one table. On the other hand, in an object-oriented database or frame, a so-called parent-child relationship can be defined for the relationship between objects or the relationship between frames, but conversely, there is a request for simply processing the relationship between attributes and attribute values. In some cases, it was unsuitable.

  Therefore, the present applicant uses a new data structure that describes information and the data structure in order for the information processing device to handle information on things, organizations, people, etc. handled by the user, or concepts handled by the user. A procedure for processing stored information was proposed (see Patent Documents 1 to 4). In this proposal, information is expressed by a formula expression, for example, a sum of identifier and identifier, a product of identifier and identifier, a sum of product of identifier and identifier, and the like.

Japanese Patent No. 5113799 Japanese Patent No. 5357286 Japanese Patent No. 5357313 Japanese Patent No. 576226

  By the way, there are situations where it is convenient to be able to extract the history related to data changes. An object of this invention is to provide the technique which extracts the difference which concerns before and behind a change, when it hold | maintains over 2 generations or more concerning the transition of the object information represented by the formula expression mentioned above.

An information processing apparatus according to the present invention includes: a first operator that combines an identifier representing a node of an order tree, an identifier corresponding to one parent node, and a set of identifiers corresponding to one or more child nodes; A storage unit for storing target information before change and target information after change for target information described using a second operator that joins the sibling nodes; A processing unit that reads out and processes the target information of the unit. Then, the processing unit reads the target information before the change and the target information after the change from the storage unit, and the identifier included in the target information includes the depth of the hierarchy from the root node in the tree structure and the sibling node. The position information expressed using the ranking is attached, and the target information before the change and the target information after the change are compared with the identifiers to which the corresponding position information is attached to determine whether there is a change. Outputs an identifier determined to exist.

  If it does in this way, the object information concerning before and after change will be compared on the basis of position information, and it will become possible to extract a difference.

  Further, the target information further includes a numerical value associated with the identifier, and the processing unit determines whether or not the numerical value is changed for the target information before the change and the target information after the change, and there is a change. The numerical value determined as may be output. In this way, for example, a change in numerical values can be extracted from a bill of materials or a quote written in a tree structure.

  The target information may include a plurality of numerical values associated with the identifier, and the processing unit may further perform an arithmetic operation using the plurality of numerical values. In this way, for example, numerical values can be tabulated for a bill of materials or an estimate. In addition, for example, the difference in total amount before and after the numerical value change can be obtained.

  The order tree may be added to the end of the sibling node when a node is added, and may be replaced with a symbol indicating empty when the node is deleted. In this way, since the position information described above does not change before and after the change, it can be determined whether or not the identifier has been changed.

  Further, the target information may be stored in a key-value format in the storage unit using an identifier as a key and information indicating a partial tree from a root node including a node related to the identifier to a leaf node as a value. . In this way, when the processing unit accesses the storage unit, it is possible to reduce the time required for reading by selecting an appropriate key.

The contents of the means for solving the above problems can be combined as much as possible without departing from the problems and technical ideas of the present invention. Further, a method for executing the above means by an information processing apparatus or a program for causing a computer to execute the above means may be provided. The program may be provided by being recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. A computer-readable recording medium refers to a recording medium that stores information by electrical, magnetic, optical, mechanical, or chemical action and can be read by a computer. Among such recording media, those removable from the computer include, for example, optical disks, magneto-optical disks, flexible disks, magnetic tapes, memory cards, and the like. Also, HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SS as recording media fixed to the computer
D (Solid State Drive), ROM (Read Only Memory), and the like.

  When the target information represented by the expression is held for two or more generations before and after the change, the difference before and after the change can be extracted.

It is a figure for demonstrating formula expression. It is a figure which shows the 1st data structure example of cell space information. It is a figure which shows the 2nd data structure example of cell space information. It is a figure which shows the 3rd data structure example. It is a figure which illustrates the table | surface which stored typical position expression. It is a figure which shows an example of typical BOM of the passenger car expressed by the tree structure. It is a figure which shows the example which detailed one component of typical BOM. It is a figure which shows the example which changed, deleted, and added the component of typical BOM. It is the figure which attached | subjected absolute position information to each of the factor represented as a node of a tree structure. It is the figure which attached | subjected absolute position information to each of the factor represented as a node of a tree structure. It is the figure which attached | subjected absolute position information to each of the factor represented as a node of a tree structure. It is a block diagram which shows the composition of an information processor. It is a processing flow figure showing an example of change history output processing.

  Hereinafter, an information processing apparatus according to a mode for carrying out the present invention (also referred to as “embodiment”) will be described with reference to the drawings. The configuration of the following embodiment is an exemplification, and the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, the information processing apparatus handles information on things, organizations, people, and the like. The information expressed in a format that can be processed by the information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment is referred to as “target information”. Hereinafter, a data structure for describing the target information and a procedure for processing the target information described in the data structure will be described.

(data structure)
The data structure is a structure for describing target information. The target information is generated, stored, read, updated (also referred to as “calculation”), deleted, and the like by an information processing device including a processor and a storage device.

(1) Components of target information The information processing apparatus holds target information in the form of an expression. The expression method using the expression according to the present embodiment extends the definition of the expression expression proposed by the applicant in the past, and the expression method is also referred to as “extended expression expression”. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an expression. The expression includes one or more identifiers (also referred to as basic elements) that are the minimum units of the constituent elements. The identifier according to the present embodiment is not necessarily information that can uniquely identify data. Furthermore, the formula is described using predetermined symbols. An operator and a separator are used as the predetermined symbol. Specifically, the sum operator “+”, the product operator “× (may be omitted as in FIG. 1)”, the first parenthesis (round brackets) “(” and “)”, the second Brackets (curly brackets) “{” and “}” and third brackets (square brackets, brackets) “[” and “]” are used. For convenience, operators and punctuation (for example, parentheses) are used, but other symbols may be used. For example, “,” (comma) may be used instead of the sum operator “+”, and “_” (underscore) may be used instead of the product operator “x”. The operators and punctuation items described above may be predetermined symbols that can be distinguished from other identifiers, and may be, for example, an escape sequence, a tag in a markup language, or the like. The product operator corresponds to the “first operator” according to the present invention, and the sum operator corresponds to the “second operator” according to the present invention.

  The identifier is the smallest unit constituting the target information and is expressed by a symbol. Symbols are character strings such as alphanumeric characters and special characters (however, a sum operator “+”, a product operator “×”, a first parenthesis “(” and “)”, a second parenthesis “{” and "}" And the third bracket "[" and "]").

In this embodiment, “Φ (φ)” and “ε” are used as special characters. Φ is an identifier indicating a value of zero, a value that does not change the operation result in the sum operator, or an empty set. In the present embodiment, Φ is also called “zero element”. Further, ε is a value 1 or a value that does not change the operation result in the product operator. In the present embodiment, ε is referred to as a “unit element”. Note that Φ may be referred to as a unit element for the sum operation, but in the present embodiment, Φ is referred to as a zero element.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a part (or the whole) described by an identifier and a predetermined symbol is called a “factor”. The part described by the product of the factors is called “term”. Furthermore, the part described by the sum of terms is an expression. In other words, the expression includes one or more terms connected by a sum operator. A term also includes one or more factors connected by a product operator. In addition, factors may be written as nested formulas. Note that “a”, “b ₁ ”, “c ₁ ”, and the like in FIG. 1 are identifiers, which correspond to the minimum units constituting the target information.

In the present embodiment, an expression expressing the target information is generated based on the following rules (a) to (d).
(A) The identifier, unit element, and zero element are all expressions (expression expressions).
(B) When both r and s are formulas, r + s is also a formula.
(C) When r and s are both equations, r × s is also an equation. At this time, as in the case of a general algebra, r × s is stronger than r + s in the strength of connection of operations.
(D) When r is an equation, (r), {r}, and [r] are also equations.
The contents enclosed in the third brackets “[” and “]” are handled as one identifier without being interpreted as an expression. That is, even if there is an identifier or the like connected by a sum operator or product operator in the third parenthesis, it is treated as an integral symbol. The third bracket "[" and "]" shall also be said to unstructure the formula. In the present embodiment, the expression method in which the definition related to the third parenthesis is added to the conventional expression is called “extended expression” for convenience.

(2) Algebraic Structure of Extended Expression Representation In the present embodiment, expressions r, s, and t have the following algebraic properties (a) to (f).
(A) Bond rule r + (s + t) = (r + s) + t;
r * (s * t) = (r * s) * t;
(B) Commutative law r + s = s + r;
Note that the commutation rule of the product operator does not hold in the extended expression. Therefore, when a plurality of factors are combined by the product operator, each factor position has information (or meaning). That is, the factor has a function as a position parameter designated by so-called position. “The commutation rule of the product operator is not established” corresponds to the product operator of the present invention “combining a plurality of identifiers as a sequence of factors having an order”.
(C) Unit element of product operation r × ε = ε × r = r;
(D) Zero element r × Φ = Φ × r = Φ of product operation and sum operation;
r + Φ = r;
(E) Distribution ratio r × (s + t) = r × s + r × t;
(R + s) * t = r * t + s * t;
(F) {r + s} × {t + u} = {r × t + s × u};

Moreover, the target information expressed by the expression can be expressed at a plurality of levels having different levels of abstraction. For example, when the processor executes a predetermined program according to the present invention, the expression level of the target information can be changed. The plurality of levels are, for example, a set level where the abstraction level of the target information is most highly expressed, a topology space level where the abstraction level of the target information is lower than the set level, and the target information is expressed as a subset element, The level of abstraction of the target information is lower than that of the topology space level, and the level of abstraction of the target information is lower than that of the adhesive space level. Cell space level expressed with attributes.

(3) Set information Set information is defined as a combination of terms or a sum of terms. Here, each term is defined as a product of an identifier serving as a set ID and an identifier serving as a value, that is, a set ID × value. However, the value may be a product of a plurality of identifiers. The set information formula is typically:
(Example)
Set ID × value 1 + set ID × value 2+...

  As described above, in the data structure of this embodiment, since the commutative rule is established for the sum operator, the set information can be said to be a combination of unordered terms. On the other hand, the positional relationship between the factors constituting the term is maintained. In the example shown in FIG. 1, for example, the factor 1 included in the terms 1 and 2 corresponds to the set ID.

  Such a function of maintaining the positional relationship between factors is extremely effective when expressing things or concepts on a computer. In general, a commutative law does not hold for a modification relationship that describes a thing or a concept. For example, “kodama desk” has a different meaning from “desk kodama”. According to the factor and product operator of this embodiment, such a modification relationship can be simplified and described. Furthermore, by combining terms described in such a modification relationship with a sum operator, a set of things or a set of concepts can be described, and a simple database can be constructed. Further, when managing a managed object or concept as a set of terms, it is possible to give meaning to the positional relationship of factors in the terms.

It can also be said that the factors constituting the terms have significance as so-called positional parameters. For example, consider the following collective information.
(Example)
Fruit x Arbitrary shape x Arbitrary color x Banana + Fruit x Arbitrary shape x Arbitrary color x Apple + Fruit x Long x Yellow x Banana + Fruit x Circle x Red x Apple In this case, the first factor of each term is the set ID It is a fruit, a 2nd factor shows a shape, a 3rd factor shows a color, and a 4th factor shows a name. In this way, the relationship between the attribute and the attribute value can be processed at the set level by using the position of each factor with a semantic restriction. In the collective information, attributes of things can be freely defined by factors in which such order is maintained.

Also, by combining the terms including such factors, all kinds of information, such as things and groups of people, can be expressed on the computer.
(Example)
A × a1 + A × a2 + A × a3, b1 × B + b2 × B × B, fruit × apple + fruit × banana + fruit × mandarin, vegetable × cabbage + vegetable × cucumber + vegetable × burdock, employee × A + employee × B + employee × C
That is, the set information describes a combination of terms belonging to the set identified by the set ID. In the above example, when employee C retires, “employee × C” is deleted together with the sum operator. Furthermore, when employee D and employee E join the company, “employee × D + employee × E” is further connected by a sum operator.

(4) Topology space information The topology space information is described by the product of the identifier that is the topology ID and the sum of the subsets. That is, topology ID × (subset sum). Here, the subset is expressed by a product of a subset ID for identifying the subset and the sum of terms included in the subset. That is, subset ID × (sum of terms). However, the term may further include a sum of terms combined with the first parenthesis “()” or the second parenthesis “{}”, or a product of these. In the example of FIG. 1, for example, the factor 2 of the term 2 corresponds to the topology ID. Further, the factor “1” and the factor “2” included in the factor 3 of the term 2 correspond to the subset ID.

An example of topology space information is shown below (in the example below, the punctuation mark “,” is not a constituent element of the formula, but an example break).
(Example)
T × (ABC × (ab1 + ac2 + bc3) + A × (ab1 + ac2) + B × (ab1 + bc3) + C (ac2 + bc3)),
Fruit x (all species x (apple + banana + tangerine) + red x apple + yellow x (banana + tangerine)), fruit x (all species x (apple + banana + tangerine) + round x (apple + tangerine) + elongate X Banana),
Vegetable x (all species x (radish + cucumber + burdock) + thick x radish + fine x (cucumber + burdock)), company x (employee x (employee 1 + employee 2 + employee 3 + employee 4) + sales x (employee 1 + employee 2 ) + Accounting x (Employee 3 + Employee 4)),
In this case, for the last (fifth) example, for example, when the general affairs is newly established, the employee 5 is employed, and is assigned to the general affairs, the following is updated.
(Example)
Company x (employee x (employee 1 + employee 2 + employee 3 + employee 4 + employee 5) + sales x (employee 1 + employee 2) + accounting x (employee 3 + employee 4) + general affairs x employee 5)

(5) Bonding space information The bonding space information is configured by associating two subsets X and Y included in the topology space information with the subsets included in the respective portions. In this embodiment, the relationship generated by this association is called an equivalence relationship.

  Here, topology space information T (topology ID is Tid) and topology space information U (topology ID is Uid) is topology space information Tid × (sum of subsets belonging to T) + topology space information Uid × (U As the sum of the subsets belonging to. Further, it is assumed that the sum of the subsets belonging to T = subset T0 + subset T−T0 and two subsets.

  In this case, the factor p of the topology space information T that associates the topology space information T and the topology space information U and the factor q of the topology space information U are specified. Then, the topology space information T is separated into a subset T0 including the factor p and a subset T-T0 not including the factor p. Here, T−T0 is a difference set obtained by deleting the set T0 from the set T. Further, the topology space information U is separated into a subset U0 including the factor q and a subset U-U0 not including the factor q. Here, U−U0 is a difference set obtained by deleting the set U0 from the set U.

The sum of the two pieces of topology space information T and U is expressed as follows.
(Example)
Topology space information Tid × (subset T0) + topology space information Tid × (subset T−T0) + topology space information Uid × (subset U0) + topology space information Uid × (subset U−U0)
Thus, when a subset including a specific factor p is extracted from the set, this is called a quotient. A subset excluding the quotient is called a remainder.

Further, it is assumed that a subset T0 = T0id × (sum of terms of T0) and a subset U0 = U0id × (sum of terms of U0) are described. In this case, the following bonding space information can be configured by associating the subset T0 and the subset U0. That is, the adhesion space information in this case is {the left factor of p in the subset T0 + the left factor of q in the subset U0} {p + q} {the right factor of p in the subset T0 + the q factor in the subset U0. Right factor} + topology space information Tid × (subset T−T0) + topology space information Uid × (subset U−U0).

  Here, a case has been described in which the information on the topology space level is bonded, but the information on the cell space level configured by defining attributes and attribute values in the information on the topology space level, and a combination of terms. Adhesive space information can also be defined for set information at the set level. Also, the bonding space information can be defined for one level of information and other levels of the topology space, cell space, and collective space.

Here, it is assumed that the sum of the following topology space information of fruits and the topology space information of vegetables is stored.
(Example)
Fruit x (all species x (apple + banana + tangerine) + circle x (apple + tangerine) + elongate x banana) + vegetable x (all species x (radish + cucumber + burdock) + thick x radish + fine x (cucumber + Burdock))

  Here, it is assumed that an association between a slenderness that is a factor of the topology space information of fruit and a factor that is a subset of the topology space information of the vegetable is designated and is in an equivalence relation. In this case, the two pieces of topology space information are separated into a quotient and a remainder as follows. That is, the topology space information in which each set information is separated into a quotient and a remainder is fruit × elong × banana + fruit × (all species × (apple + banana + mandarin) + round × (apple + mandarin)) + vegetable × Fine x (cucumber + burdock) + vegetable x (all species x (radish + cucumber + burdock) + thick x radish).

  Then, by using the elongated shape for which the equivalence relation is specified and the elongated shape that is a subset of the topology space information of the vegetable, the adhesion space information is {fruit + vegetable} × {longer + thin} {banana + (cucumber + burdock)} + Fruit x (all species x (apple + banana + tangerine) + circle x (apple + tangerine)) + vegetable x (all species x (radish + cucumber + burdock) + thick x radish).

  In this manner, the bonding space information is combined based on the factors having the equivalence relation designated for the association while maintaining the structure of the two topology space information. If an equivalence relationship is recognized between “thin” and “thin” from the bonding space information, the right factors “banana” and “(cucumber + burdock)” can be related and output as {banana + (cucumber + burdock)}.

Also, the first slip ID (A {ε + B + C {C1 + C2} + D + E {E1 + E2}} (
a {ε + b + c {c1 + c2} + d + e {e1 + e2}} + position (upper right + lower right))) + slip ID second sheet (A {ε + B + C {C1 + C2} + D + E {E1 + E2}} (a {ε + b + c {c1 + c2} + d + e {e1 + e2}) )) + MEMO (1 (that) + 2 (ABC)) +
Consider a case in which information describing a bundle of slips and a memo MEMO is stored. Here, an example is shown in which MEMO is pasted to the upper right of the first slip by specifying the position.

In this example, in order to attach MEMO 1 to the upper right of the first slip, first, a quotient space is created with the factor “1” of the MEMO information and the factor “upper right” of the first slip. . Slip ID first sheet (A {ε + B + C {C1 + C2} + D + E {E1 + E2}} (a {ε + b + c {c1 + c2} + d + e {e1 + e2}} + position (lower right))) + slip ID first sheet × position (upper right) + slip ID2 sheets Eyes (A {ε + B + C {C1 + C2} + D + E {E1 + E2}} (a {ε +
b + c {c1 + c2} + d + e {e1 + e2}})) + MEMO (2 (ABC)) + MEMO (1 (
Ah)) + ...
Here, when the relationship between “1” and “upper right” is designated and bonded, the bond information is information including a subset of {slip ID first sheet × position + MEMO} {upper right + 1} {ε + (some)} + remainder. , Configured as. As described above, the bonding information can be stored by combining the two pieces of object information with the structure before bonding for the two pieces of object information having no common structure.

(6) Cell space information Cell space information is information having attributes related to things, organizations, people, etc., or attributes of concepts handled by people, and attribute values corresponding to those attributes. Attributes are divided into key attributes and other attributes. A key attribute is an attribute whose information can be identified by an attribute value, and corresponds to a value that can be used as a key in a database search. In the cell space information, an attribute value (or a column obtained by combining a plurality of attribute values) is called an instance. An instance corresponds to a record stored in a conventional database table. Each instance has identification information called an instance ID. In addition, when there are a plurality of key attributes or other attributes, the key attributes or other attributes are in the form of factors whose order is maintained by the second brackets “{” and “}”. Described. That is, the attribute and its corresponding attribute value are described in a so-called vector format.

  The cell space information includes a cell space ID, a key attribute factor, a factor having an attribute other than the unit element and the key attribute, and a factor having a set of instances. The cell space information is composed of cell space ID × (key attribute × {ε + (sum of other attributes)} × (sum of instance ID × {ε + (sum of values)}))).

  The factor of the key attribute and the factor having attributes other than the unit element and the key attribute correspond to the attribute factor of the present invention. Further, when any attribute in {ε + (sum of other attributes)} is made up of a plurality of identifiers, the attribute made up of such identifiers corresponds to the attribute sequence of the present invention. To do. In addition, when such an attribute is a factor enclosed by the second parenthesis “{}”, the attribute enclosed by the second parenthesis corresponds to the attribute order factor of the present invention.

  Corresponding to such an attribute, when the value in {ε + (sum of values)} of the instance is a product of identifiers, the value corresponds to the value string of the present invention. In addition, when the value is a factor enclosed by the second parenthesis “{}”, the value enclosed by the second parenthesis corresponds to the order factor of the values of the present invention.

An example of cell space information can be shown as follows.
(Example)
Fruit id × (name {ε + shape + color} (apple {ε + circle + red} + mandarin {ε + circle + yellow} + banana {ε + elong + yellow})) + vegetable id × (name {ε + shape + color} ( Radish {ε + thick + white} + cucumber {ε + thin + green} + burdock {ε + thin + brown}))
In this example, information that is described as a fruit table and a vegetable table in the conventional relational model is described by an expression. In addition, since this example contains two cell space information (fruit and vegetable), it is also called integrated cell space information.

A processing example of this integrated cell space information is shown. First, a subset (referred to as a quotient) of instances having an attribute “shape” having a value of “elongated” and a subset (referred to as a remainder) of other instances among the instances of fruit are created. First, among the vegetable instances, the attribute “shape” is separated into an instance (referred to as a quotient) having a value of “fine” and another instance (referred to as a remainder). In this case, the combined cell space information is as follows.
Fruit id x Banana x Shape x Slender + Vegetable id x Shape x (Cucumber + Burdock) Fine + Fruit id x (Name {ε + Shape + Color) (Apple {ε + Circle + Red} + Tangerine {ε + Circle + Yellow} + Banana) {Ε + yellow})) + vegetable id × (name {ε + shape + color} (radish {ε + thick + white} + cucumber {ε + green} + burdock {ε + brown}))
Next, specify the relationship between the subset of the fruit attribute “shape” with the value “stripe” and the vegetable attribute “shape” with the value “stripe”, and set the equivalence relationship Set. Then, when the adhesion space information is created by this equivalence relation, it is as follows.
{Fruit id × shape × banana + vegetable id × shape × (cucumber + burdock)} {strip + thin} {ε + ε} + fruit id × (name {ε + shape + color} (apple {ε + round + red} + mandarin orange { ε + round + yellow} + banana {ε + yellow})) + vegetable id × (name {ε + shape + color} (radish {ε + thick + white} + cucumber {ε + green} + burdock {ε + brown}))

(Description Example) The table and tree structure, which are conventional data structures, will be described below with the data structure of this embodiment.

  FIG. 2 shows a first data structure example of the cell space information according to the first embodiment. As shown in the figure, in the first embodiment, the target information expressed in the table format as the conventional normalized table structure can be stored in the storage device in the state of the expression format 1. In the expression format 1, A is a key attribute (for example, employee number), B, C, D, E, etc. are other attributes (for example, name, gender, year of entry, department, etc.).

  FIG. 3 shows a second data structure example of the cell space information according to the first embodiment. As shown in the figure, in the first embodiment, the target information expressed as a conventional tree structure can be stored in the storage device in the expression format 2 or 3. As shown in the figure, the tree structure as a part of the directed graph can be handled. In expression form 2, a is, for example, an animal, b is a mammal, c is a fish, d is a human, e is a whale, f is a tuna, g is a salmon, and the like. In this case, b (mammals) and c (fishes) inherit the attributes of a (animal), such as eating and breathing. The common attribute of b (mammals) and c (fish) is defined as a (animal).

  Therefore, a knowledge base such as a frame or an object-oriented database can be described by an expression and stored in a storage device. The information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment can receive input of information relating to things corresponding thereto, generate corresponding information, store the information in a storage device, and read and output part or all of the information.

  Also, target information expressed in an inverted tree structure can be stored in the storage device as in the expression format 3. Inverse tree information can be applied when composing more complex information from basic information. In the expression format 3, for example, a is a CPU, b is an interface, c is a drive unit of an external storage device, d is a CPU board, e is an external storage device, and f is a personal computer. is there.

  In this way, the reverse tree structure can be managed by assembling more complex information from basic information such as product design documents and business process control charts. Therefore, product design information, business processes, and the like can be described by formulas.

  FIG. 4 shows a third data structure example according to the first embodiment. As shown in the figure, the non-normalized table structure and target information having no attribute can also be held in the state of the expression format 4. Here, the non-normalized table structure and the target information without attributes can be exemplified by target information indicating a slip and target information corresponding to a sticky note added to the target information as shown in FIG. By creating the adhesive space, processing equivalent to attaching the contents of a sticky note to a slip on a computer is realized.

  In the case where the slips having the same format are stored in a table, information can be managed in a conventional database by a relational model. However, when the number of types of slips fluctuates, the relational model cannot cope with changes in the configuration of existing slips.

  Here, the extended expression expression will be described in more detail based on the expression form 4. ID or id (identification) identifies the target information to be stored. The target information includes identifiers A to E2, a to e2, first parentheses () and second parentheses {} having different coupling strengths at the time of calculation, and factors {C1 + C2}, { E1 + E2} and the like, a term E × {E1 + E2} etc. expressed by the product of these factors, and an expression expressed by the sum of the terms. In the present embodiment, the term is also referred to as an element. As already described, the unit element ε is a symbol processed as 1 when a predetermined process is executed. As a special symbol other than the above, there is a zero element Φ that is processed as 0 when a predetermined process is executed. Under such a premise, the stored target information is generated according to the input slip data by executing a predetermined program, stored in the storage device, separated into subsets, and other subsets. Will be glued or searched.

  In the example of FIG. 4, the first slip indicated by the slip ID1, the second slip indicated by the slip ID2, and the memo indicated by MEMO are illustrated as instances. In this case, the configuration of items may be different between the first slip and the second and subsequent slips. Since the information processing apparatus 100 can individually assign attributes to the identifiers or terms constituting the target information, different identifiers or terms having different attribute sequences can be freely stored, searched, and changed. In addition, by adding a value in the form of + identifier in {} and adding a value corresponding to the attribute, the attribute and the attribute value can be freely added, changed, and deleted even during operation as a database. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the structure of data to be handled can be flexibly changed without performing strict and detailed file design.

(7) Numerical calculation processing In an expression that explicitly expresses a numerical value, the commutative law shown in the algebraic structure of the extended expression is applied between a factor based on an identifier other than a numerical value and a factor based on a numerical identifier. For example, a × 'n' = 'n' × a.
(7-1) Explicit Numerical Representation Let n be a numerical value and a be a symbol or symbol string other than a numerical value. For example, n is a symbol or symbol string indicating an integer. Further, a is a symbol or a string of symbols indicating characters or the like. In the expression, when a numerical value n and a symbol a other than a numerical value are described as na, na can be referred to as an identifier combining a symbol indicating a numerical value such as an integer and a symbol other than the numerical value.

  In this embodiment, the information processing apparatus handles an identifier “na” including such a symbol (column) indicating a numerical value and a symbol (column) other than the numerical value as having n identifiers a. However, instead of such description, the identifier “an” may be defined as being handled as having n identifiers a. Note that n includes a negative numerical value. Further, the symbol indicating a numerical value may indicate a real number such as a decimal. For example, for the identifier “an.m”, for example, a1.005 and b12345678.9, the information processing apparatus treats the amount of a as 1.005 and the amount of b as 12345678.9.

Further, a × 'n' is described as an expression that explicitly indicates that there are n a's. Furthermore, when n is a negative number, for example, when -m (m is a positive number), it is exemplified as a × '-m'. Note that x is a product operator. Here, “with n” is an operator that explicitly indicates the numerical value n, and is called a numerical operator. In addition, an identifier “n” that is specified as a numerical value by a numerical operator is referred to as a numerical identifier. If the product operator is applied to an identifier specified as a number by a numeric operator, the product operator indicates multiplication.

However, the numerical operator that explicitly indicates the numerical value is not limited to ''. Any symbol that can be used on the information processing apparatus and that does not overlap with other operators may be defined as a numerical operator. For example, the value n! It may be specified as follows. Also, the numerical value may be specified as $ n.

An expression including only an identifier a that does not include a symbol indicating a numerical value is described as a × '1' as an expression that explicitly indicates that there is one a. Similarly, the expression (a + a + a) is described as (a × ′ 1 ′ + a × ′ 1 ′ + a × ′ 1 ′) as an expression that explicitly indicates a numerical value.
Similarly, the expression {a + a + a} is described as {a × '1' + a × '1' + a × '1'} as an expression explicitly indicating a numerical value.

Further, for example, the expression 2a (3b + c (2d + 3e + 4f + e)) is expressed as an expression explicitly indicating a numerical value as a × '2' × (b × '3' + c × '1' × (d × '2' + e × '). 3 '+ f ×' 4 '+ e ×' 1 ')). However, x'1 'may be omitted. In other words, the identifier a can be handled as 0 with an explicit a.

  In an expression that explicitly indicates a numerical value, the commutative law indicated by the algebraic structure of the extended expression is applied between a factor based on an identifier other than a numerical value and a factor based on a numerical identifier. For example, a × ‘n’ = ’n’ × a.

  In expressions that explicitly indicate numerical values, arithmetic operations such as four arithmetic operations and exponentiation are processed as follows. Hereinafter, an expression that explicitly indicates a numerical value is called an algebraic operation expression.

(7-2) Multiplication Consider an expression in which two or more factors among a plurality of factors combined by a product operator are explicitly expressed as numerical values by a numerical operator. For such an expression, the information processing apparatus performs multiplication between factors that are specified as numerical values by numerical operators. For example, a × '1' × b × 'm' = a × b × '1 × m'. Here, “1 × m” is a product obtained by multiplying the number 1 and the number m. Specifically, a × '2' × b × '4' = a × b × '8'. For example, a × '0' = φ.

(7-3) Power and division Examples of power and division are given below. The power is an operation of multiplying the same number a plurality of times, or an operation result thereof. In the information processing apparatus, the power is described in the format of “an identifier M indicating the base × an identifier n indicating the exponent”. For example, a * a * a = a * ^ '3'. The nth power of the identifier a is represented by a × ^ 'n'. That is, in this case, “× ^” is a reserved word indicating a power. However, the power is not limited to such a description format. In this example, “× ^” corresponds to the exponent operator. One or both of the power base (the identifier M) and the exponent part (the identifier n) may be real numbers such as decimal numbers.

For example, the nth power of the identifier a may be expressed as a ** 'n'. In this case, “**” is a reserved word indicating a power. In addition, the nth power of the identifier a may be expressed as a × E′n ′. In this case, “× E” is a reserved word indicating a power. Hereinafter, a description example of a power and a division including a power will be exemplified.
a × ^ '0' = '1'
(A × b) × ^ '0' = '1'
/ (A * a * a) = a * ^ '-3'
Similarly, a to the power of minus n is represented by a × ^ ′ − n ′. On the other hand, / '0' is an error. Furthermore, a factor (identifier) common to each other in the two expressions related as a denominator by the division symbol can be deleted. For the common factor (identifier) in this case, so-called reduction is performed. The deletion of the identifier is indicated as a × c / a = c, for example.

(7-4) Addition For a plurality of terms that share factors other than factors explicitly specified as numerical values by numerical operators in a combination of terms composed of sum operators, the information processing apparatus performs numerical operations. Add the factors specified as numbers in the child. In the following, calculation results are exemplified.
(A × '1' + a × 'm') = a × '(1 + m)'
(A × '2' + a × '4') = a × '6'
(A × '1' + b × 'm') cannot be added any further.
(A + a + c) = (a × '1' + a × '1' + c × '1') = (a × '2' + c × '1')
A plurality of expressions in the second parenthesis “{}” cannot be added. For example, a and a in {} of {a + a + c} cannot be added. However, in the expression in which the second parentheses “{}” are combined by the sum operator, expressions having the same position in {} can be added. For example, {a + a + c} + {a + b + c} = {(a + a) + (a + b) + (c + c)} = {(a × '1' + a × '1') + (a × '1' + b × '1') + (C × '1' + c × '1')} = {a × '2' + (a × '1' + b × '1') + c × '2'}
Furthermore, subtraction can be realized using addition by using a negative number for the numerical value. The following is an example of adding a negative numerical value.
(A × '1' + a × '-m') = a × '(1-m)'
(A × '2' + a × '-4') = a × '-2'
(A + a * -1 + c) = (a * '1' + a * '-1' + c * '1') = c * '1'

(8) Position Expression The position expression is an expression format including position information indicating the position of the identifier in the expression. The position information is also called absolute position information. An expression consists of an identifier, a product operator that combines multiple identifiers as an ordered sequence of factors, and a sum that forms a combination of terms from either or both of the identifiers and multiple identifiers combined as a sequence of factors and factors. Information described by the operator can be exemplified. Accordingly, the position of the identifier, that is, the position expression can be described by the position of the term including each identifier in the expression and the position of the factor including each identifier in the term. In addition, a position expression can also be called object information in the meaning of the object of processing according to the present embodiment. In this example, an expression format in which position information indicating the position of the identifier is added to the left side of the identifier is illustrated. However, the position information may be added to the right side of the identifier.

  The position information in the position expression is defined as <term position × factor position>. Therefore, in this embodiment, the position expression takes the form of <term position × factor position> identifier.

(Example)
For example, the expression A + B + C including the identifiers A, B, and C is <1 × 1> A + <2 × 1> B + <3 × 1> C in the position expression. That is, <1 × 1> A indicates that the identifier corresponding to the first factor of the first term is A. <2 × 1> B indicates that the identifier corresponding to the first factor of the second term is B.

Further, for example, an expression A + A × B + A × B × C including identifiers A, B, and C is expressed as <1 × 1> A + <2 × 1> A + <2 × 2> B + <3 × 1> A + in the position expression. <3 × 2> B + <3 × 3> C. As described above, in the expression that does not include the first parentheses “(” and “)”, the identifier Z that is the j-th factor in the i-th term in the expression is <i × j > Z. In addition, the position expression of the entire expression including a plurality of terms is plus (+
) And so on.

  Note that “<” and “>” are delimiters for explanation, and need not be enclosed in “<” and “>” on the computer. For example, a character & indicating a position expression may be introduced and described as & term position × factor position. Similarly, the symbol between “position × factor” need not be “x”. For example, an underbar “_” may be used. Furthermore, instead of arranging <i × j> Z separated by plus (+) in a position expression corresponding to a plurality of terms, other delimiters such as a symbol indicating another point, a comma (,), a colon (:), semicolon (;), space, tab, etc.

  In an expression including the first parentheses “(” and “)”, information is described hierarchically using identifiers. For this reason, for the position expression corresponding to the expression including the first parentheses “(” and “)”, the depth of the hierarchy and the position at which the hierarchy is deepened (entered in the first bracket) Information) is introduced.

When the expression A × (B + C × (D + E)) + F × (G + H) is converted into a position expression, the following is obtained.
(Example)
<1 × 1> A + (1 × 2) <1 × 1> B + (1 × 2) <2 × 1> C + (1 × 2) (2 × 2) <1 × 1> D + (1 × 2) ( 2 × 2) <2 × 1> E + <2 × 1> F + (2 × 2) <1 × 1> G + (2 × 2) <2 × 1> H

  In the above example formula, the identifier B is in the second factor in the first term. The second factor is surrounded by the first parentheses “(” and “)”. Therefore, the position expression of the identifier B first includes (1 × 2). The identifier B is the first factor of the first term in parentheses in the second factor. Therefore, the position representation of the identifier B is (1 × 2) <1 × 1> B.

  Similarly, in the formula of the above example, the identifier C is the first factor of the second term in the second factor of the first term. Therefore, the position expression of the identifier C is (1 × 2) <2 × 1> C. Further, in the above example formula, the identifier D is in the second factor of the second term in the second factor of the first term. Therefore, first, (1 × 2) (2 × 2) is specified as the position information of the identifier D. Further, the identifier D is the first factor of the first term in parentheses in the second factor of the second term in the second factor in the first term. Therefore, the position expression of the identifier D is finally (1 × 2) (2 × 2) <1 × 1> D.

  As in the above example, when the identifier Z is in a factor surrounded by (), information indicating the position of the term including the identifier Z and information indicating the position of the factor in the term are ( i * j) is used. (I × j) indicates that it is in the j-th factor in the i-th term and the j-th factor is a factor (set factor) surrounded by the first parentheses. ing. The position representation of the expression as in the above example includes the information indicating the presence of the first parenthesis (i × j), the position of a term that does not include a () type factor such as <k × l>, and the position of the factor It is described by a combination of information indicating. Therefore, when the factor is deeper than two layers with a plurality of (), information indicating the presence of the first parenthesis is listed as (i1 × j1) (i2 × j2). The depth of the hierarchy by the first parenthesis is clearly indicated by the number of information indicating the presence of the first parenthesis.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which the relationship between the position expression obtained from the expression and the identifier is stored in a database table. However, in FIG. 5, the position expression is indicated by absolute position information. FIG. 5 describes the relationship between the position expression obtained from the expression of the above example and the identifier in a table. As in this example, according to Embodiment 1, the first factor of the first term is A, the first term in the second factor of the first term is B, and the second factor of the first term. The first factor of the second term in the factor of C is a C, the second term in the second factor of the second factor of the first term is D, and so on. The relationship with identifiers can be stored in tabular form.

  Further, for example, when C is found as a value, <2 × 1> is excluded from the position expression (1 × 2) <2 × 1>, and the position expression (1 × 2) is searched. Thus, an identifier related to the identifier C can be acquired. For example, the term including the factor C can be acquired by acquiring a value corresponding to the attribute including the position expression (1 × 2) (i × j). Here, i and j are arbitrary integers. Such a position expression (1 × 2) (i × j) is described as (1 × 2) * in this example.

  That is, an expression can be converted into data in an existing relational database by converting the expression into a position expression and generating an association between the position expression and the identifier for each identifier as shown in FIG. Therefore, the expression can be processed by using a function such as an existing relational management system.

In the case of an expression including the second parentheses “{” and “}”, the corresponding position representation can be generated in the same manner as the expression including the first parentheses “(” and “)”. For example, when the formula A × (B + C × {D + E}) + F × {G + H} is converted into a position expression, the result is as follows.
<1 × 1> A + (1 × 2) <1 × 1> B + (1 × 2) <2 × 1> C + (1 × 2) {2 × 2} <1 × 1> D + (1 × 2) { 2 × 2} <2 × 1> E + <2 × 1> F + {2 × 2} <1 × 1> G + {2 × 2} <2 × 1> H

  In this way, by creating position information by combining the first parenthesis and the second parenthesis, the factor of the term may include a hierarchical expression by a combination of the first parenthesis and the second parenthesis. Uniquely, the position of the identifier in the expression can be described.

  Here, each of the absolute position information enclosed in parentheses is multiplied by the infix notation of the appearance rank in the expression including the identifier and the occurrence rank in the term including the identifier of the factor including the identifier. It can be said that they are connected by operators. For example, in the second row of FIG. 5, the absolute position information <1 × 1> associated with the value “A” is the first of the expressions A × (B + C × {D + E}) + F × {G + H}. The first factor A in the term A × (B + C × {D + E}) is shown.

  The product of a plurality of parentheses in the absolute position information represents a nested hierarchical structure in the formula. For example, in the third line of FIG. 5, the first parenthesis (1 × 2) of the absolute position information associated with the value “B” is expressed by the formula A × (B + C × {D + E}) + F × {G + H }, The second factor (B + C × {D + E}) in the first term A × (B + C × {D + E}) is shown. The second parenthesis <1 × 1> indicates the first factor B in the first term B in the formula (B + C × {D + E}). In the present embodiment, it is expressed that the lower the hierarchy or the hierarchy is, the more parentheses are used.

  Further, among the parentheses of the absolute position information, the first parentheses “(” and “)” indicate a hierarchy partitioned by the first parentheses in the formula. On the other hand, the second parentheses “{” and “}” indicate a hierarchy partitioned by the second parentheses in the equation.

  As described above, according to the position expression, the information described by the expression can be expressed in a format to which information that can uniquely specify the position of each identifier is added. In addition, the expression in the expression and the position expression can be converted into each other.

Note that position information may be added to an expression included in the expression. For example, position information is added to at least one of the factors included in each term for all terms included in the equation (a subset of the equation). The expression A × (B + C × (D + E)) + F × (G + H) includes two terms A × (B + C × (D + E)) and F × (G + H). At this time, if position information is added to the leading factors A and F of each term, the initial formula is <1 × 1> A × (B + C × (D + E)) + <2 × 1> F × (G + H) It can be expressed by a position expression. The position expression is divided into two parts <1 × 1> A × (B + C × (D + E)) and <2 × 1> F × (G + H), or a part after division based on position information Can be restored to the original position expression.

  Moreover, as the above-mentioned combination rule shows, a part of the expression connected by the sum operator can be divided into a subset (part of the expression partitioned by parentheses) at an arbitrary position. For example, the expression A + B + C can be expressed as A + (B + C) or (A + B) + C. In this way, by dividing an expression into a subset of terms and adding position information to each term, the terms can be combined based on the position information and returned to the original expression. Therefore, in addition to the positional expression of <1 × 1> A + <2 × 1> B + <3 × 1> C, the above formula is <1 × 1> A + <2 × 1> (B + C), or <1 It can also be expressed by a position expression of x1> (A + B) + <2x1> C.

FIG. 5 illustrates a general table, but the table design and format are not particularly limited. For example, the table design can be properly normalized in consideration of software performance and the like. As the database format, an RDBMS (Relational Database Management System) may be employed, or a key-value management system such as so-called NoSQL may be employed.

(Remember revision history and extract changes)
When at least a part of the target information is changed, the target information before and after the change may be stored in association with each other. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that target information expressed in a tree structure is handled. Below, it demonstrates based on the example which uses BOM (Bill of Materials: Parts table), a parts price estimate sheet, etc. as object information. Each version of the target information whose contents are changed is also called a generation.

FIG. 6A is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic BOM of a passenger car expressed in a tree structure. In FIG. 6A, the name “BOM1” is used as a root, and the factors having a parent-child relationship are connected by a solid line. Specifically, in the BOM 1, the “engine 1”, “vehicle body”, “steering”, “brake”, and “lamp” are connected with the “passenger car A” as a parent. Although more detailed parts are connected to the child nodes of “body”, “steering”, “brake”, and “lamp”, they are not shown. Note that, unlike the representation format 2 shown in FIG. 3, in this tree structure, the order between child nodes (sibling nodes) is maintained and stored. That is, the tree according to the present embodiment is an ordered tree. The tree structure of BOM1 can be expressed by the following equation.
(Example)
BOM1 (passenger car A {engine 1 + car body {...} + steering wheel {...} + brake {...} + lamp {...}}

FIG. 6B is a diagram showing an example in which one part of a schematic BOM is detailed. In BOM2 of FIG. 6B, “engine 1” is a parent to the tree structure shown in BOM1, and its components “piston 1”, “crankshaft”, “carburetor”, and “connecting rod” are added. The tree structure of BOM2 can be expressed by the following formula.
(Example)
BOM2 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 1 + crankshaft + carburetor + connecting rod} + vehicle body {...} + steering wheel {...} + brake {...} +
lamp{···}}

FIG. 6C is a diagram illustrating an example of changing, deleting, and adding schematic BOM components. In BOM3 of FIG. 6C, the part “piston 1” connected to the child node of “engine 1” is changed to “piston 2” in the tree structure shown in BOM2. Also, the “carburetor” of BOM2 has been deleted and changed to an empty set “φ”. Further, “cylinder” is added to the child node of “engine 1”. The tree structure in FIG. 6C can be expressed by the following equation.
(Example)
BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 2 + crankshaft + φ + connecting rod + cylinder} + vehicle body {...} + steering wheel {...} + brake {...} + ramp {...}}

  As shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C, in the change of the target information represented by the tree structure in the present embodiment, the order between the child nodes (sibling nodes) is maintained and stored. When adding a factor, add it to the end of the sibling node. And when deleting a factor, it replaces with (phi). According to such a rule, the tree structure according to the present embodiment does not change the absolute position information of existing nodes (factors). Although it is assumed that an operation to add a new factor between parent and child nodes does not basically occur, this operation deletes all existing child nodes and lower, and new factors and original child nodes and lower. It can be executed as an operation to add (replace) a subtree. Further, additional information may be added to an arbitrary node while maintaining the position information by wrapping with the above-mentioned third parenthesis “[]”. For example, in the BOM 3 in FIG. 6C, when information “made in Japan” is added to “passenger car A”, the expression “passenger car A × made in Japan” enclosed in the third bracket is used. In this way, information can be added in a pseudo manner between the parent node and the child node, and [passenger car A × made in Japan] is treated as one identifier. Absolute position information is maintained.

  7A to 7C are diagrams in which absolute position information is attached to each of the factors represented as nodes in the tree structure. As described above, since the absolute position information of the existing node (factor) is not changed in the tree structure according to the present embodiment, the factors having the same absolute position information are compared in the expressions before and after the change. By doing so, it is possible to determine whether or not there is a change to each factor. The absolute position information is the number of the second numerical value connected by the product operator in parentheses, and the number of numerical values connected by the product operator enclosed in parentheses is the hierarchy from the root node in the tree structure. Shows the depth. The first numerical value connected by the product operator indicates the rank in the sibling node.

  In FIG. 7A to FIG. 7C, when the factors having the same absolute position information are compared, BOM2 does not exist in BOM1 (1 × 3) (1 × 2) <1 × 1> from piston 1 (1 × 3) It can be seen that up to (1 × 2) <4 × 1> connecting rods are added. In BOM3, (1 × 3) (1 × 2) <1 × 1> piston 1 of BOM2 is changed to (1 × 3) (1 × 2) <1 × 1> piston 2. Recognize. Similarly, in BOM3, the COM1 (1x3) (1x2) <3x1> carburetor was changed to (1x3) (1x2) <1x1> φ and deleted. I understand. In addition, (1 × 3) (1 × 2) <5 × 1> cylinders that are not present in BOM2 are added to BOM3. Such position information is uniquely determined from the formula. Therefore, for example, when the tree structure according to this embodiment is processed by a computer, an expression that does not include position information is stored in an auxiliary storage device (external storage device), and the position is read when it is read out to a main storage device (so-called memory). Information may be attached.

Further, when storing the tree structures before and after the change shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C, in this embodiment, for example, it is assumed that expressions are connected by a sum operator. That is, each term represents a tree structure in each process of change, and the entire expression can be said to be a tree structure storing the process of change. The tree structure storing the process of change can be expressed by the following equation. It should be noted that in order to maintain and store the order of change, the whole may be enclosed in second brackets “{}”.
(Example)
BOM1 (passenger car A {engine 1 + car body {...} + steering {...} + brake {...} + lamp {...}} + BOM2 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 1 + crankshaft + carburetor + Connecting rod} + car body {...} + steering {...} + brake {...} + lamp {...}} + BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 2 + crankshaft + φ + connecting rod + cylinder}) + Body {...} + Steering {...} + Brake {...} + Ramp {...}}

(Device configuration of information processing device)
FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in the figure, an information processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment includes an input unit 11 such as a keyboard and a pointing device for inputting target information, and a memory 12 for storing the input target information (in the present invention). The CPU 13 that processes the target information based on a predetermined program, the output unit 14 such as a display that outputs the input target information and the processed target information, and the CPU 13 and the input unit 11. And an interface 16 for connecting the CPU 13 and the output means 14 to each other.

  The interface 15 is a serial interface such as USB (Universal Serial Bus). The interface 16 is, for example, an output interface for RGB (red, green, blue) image signals and a synchronous clock.

However, as illustrated by a dotted line in FIG. 8, the information processing apparatus 100 may be connected to an external storage device, a removable storage medium drive device, a communication unit, and the like via an interface. . Here, the external storage device is, for example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive),
SSD (Solid State Drive). The removable storage medium is, for example, an optical disk, a flash memory card, or the like. The communication unit is a device that accesses a network and communicates with other information processing devices, such as a NIC (Network Interface Card).

  The information processing apparatus 100 is typically a computer such as a personal computer or a server. However, the information processing apparatus 100 is not limited to such a computer. For example, a portable information terminal, a mobile phone, a personal handyphone system (PHS), a wearable device such as a smart watch or a smart glass, a digital TV, a digital It can be realized as a TV tuner or set-top box, a TV recording device including a hard disk, an in-vehicle terminal, or the like. The memory 12 includes volatile DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), nonvolatile EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electronically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), flash memory, and the like.

  The functions of the information processing apparatus 100 are realized by the CPU 13 executing a program. This program is installed in the memory 12 or an external storage device (not shown). The program is installed from a network or a removable storage medium through a communication interface. Therefore, this program is distributed through a network or a removable storage medium.

Further, the target information stored in the memory 12 or an external storage device (not shown) is stored in the CPU 13.
Each level is shifted by executing a predetermined program. Each level is expressed as a set level 122 where the level of abstraction of the target information is the highest, and a level of abstraction of the target information lower than that of the set level 122, and the target information includes a subset as an element. The topology space level 123 to be expressed, the level of abstraction of the target information expressed lower than the topology space level, the bonding space level 124 to which the target information is bonded at the topology space level, and the topology space level 123 This is exemplified by the cell space level 125 in which the target information is expressed with a predetermined attribute. Moreover, the target information expressed at each level can also be expressed as a position expression formula with position information added. As described above, a formula that does not include position information may be stored in the auxiliary storage device, and the position information may be attached when reading out to the main storage device.

Example 1 (change history output process 1)
FIG. 9 is a process flowchart illustrating an example of the change history output process according to the first embodiment. The information processing apparatus 100 executes the process of FIG. 9 based on the computer program that is executed in the memory 12 so as to be executable. First, the CPU 13 of the information processing apparatus 100 reads target information from the external storage device to the memory 12 (FIG. 9: H1). It is assumed that a BOM having a tree structure is stored in the external rule device using the following formula.
(Example)
BOM1 (passenger car A {engine 1 + car body {...} + steering {...} + brake {...} + lamp {...}} + BOM2 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 1 + crankshaft + carburetor + Connecting rod} + car body {...} + steering {...} + brake {...} + lamp {...}} + BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 2 + crankshaft + φ + connecting rod + cylinder}) + Body {...} + Steering {...} + Brake {...} + Ramp {...}}
The CPU 13 sequentially reads out the BOM as described above as a character string, and a factor associated with the position information is held on the memory 12 as shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C, for example. Since BOM1, BOM2, and BOM3 are connected by a sum operator and combined into one expression, the position information of BOM2 in FIG. 7B is <2 × 1>, and the first position information of the child node is The parentheses are (2 ×...). Similarly, the position information of the BOM 3 in FIG. 7C is <3 × 1>, and the first parenthesis in the position information of the child node is (3 ×...). Each term is treated as a process (stage) of changing the tree structure and is a comparison target.

  Next, the CPU 13 compares whether there is a change in the corresponding position information factor in the process of changing the tree structure (H2). That is, except for the first parenthesis in the position information, it is determined whether there is a difference for each of the factors having the same position information thereafter. The comparison is performed based on, for example, the latest tree structure BOM3. Note that this step may receive an input of a factor of interest from the user and determine whether there is a change in the factor.

  When comparing each factor of BOM3 with BOM2 and BOM1 in the order in which they appear in the formula, first, (3 × 3) (1 × 2) <1 × 1> piston 2 of BOM3 is (2 × 3) (1 X2) <1x1> Piston 1 and it can be seen that there was no corresponding position information factor in BOM1. Next, it can be seen that the (3 × 3) (1 × 2) <2 × 1> crankshaft of BOM3 is not changed from BOM2, but was not present in BOM1. Further, (1 × 3) (1 × 2) <3 × 1> φ already deleted in BOM3 is a (2 × 3) (1 × 2) <3 × 1> carburetor in BOM2, and in BOM1 It can be seen that did not exist. It can also be seen that the (3 × 3) (1 × 2) <4 × 1> connecting rod of BOM3 is not changed from BOM2 but was not present in BOM1. It can be seen that the (3 × 3) (1 × 2) <5 × 1> cylinders of BOM3 did not exist in BOM2 and BOM1. There is no difference for other parts. In this way, it is determined whether there is a change in the factor in H2.

And CPU13 produces | generates a change log | history about a factor with a difference (H3). In this step, for the factor determined to have a change in H2, for example, data to be output to another device connected via the output unit 14 or the communication unit is generated. Here, for example, in the target information in the change process (stage), the position information of the changed factor and information indicating the factor in each stage are generated. For example, the following history information is generated for the piston 2 of the BOM 3.
(Example)
(BOM1, BOM2, BOM3) Passenger car A {Engine 1 (φ, piston 1, piston 2)}
In this example, for the extracted factors, for each hierarchy depth in the tree structure, the different factors are connected by a comma in the order of change, and the non-difference factors are combined into one factor. They are connected in order of hierarchy. The format of the data representing the change history is not limited to such an example. The history information may be obtained for each factor that has changed.

  Further, the CPU 13 outputs the generated change history to, for example, another device connected via the output unit 14 or the communication unit (H4). For example, the history information as illustrated is output to the output unit 14, and the user first becomes the piston 1 in BOM 1, BOM 2, and BOM 3, and the part that was initially undetermined used for the engine 1 of the passenger car A becomes the piston 2. You can see that it has changed.

  As described above, according to the change history output process according to the first embodiment, for example, a part whose design has been changed in the manufacturing process of a product can be extracted and output. Even when different persons in charge change the design stage BOM and the production stage BOM, a list of change histories can be generated.

Example 2 (change history output process 2)
Next, a change history output process according to the second embodiment will be described. The target information of the second embodiment includes numerical values such as unit price and quantity for BOM parts, for example. The target information is, for example, as in the following example.
(Example)
BOM1 (passenger car A {engine 1 + car body ... + steering ... + brake ... + lamp ...} + BOM2 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 1 + crankshaft + carburetor + connecting rod} {10 + 20 + 30 + 40} {1 + 2 + 3 + 4 } 10 + body ... + steering ... + brake ... + lamp ...} + BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 2 + crankshaft + φ + connecting rod + cylinder} {10 + 22 + φ + 40 + 50} {1 + 2 + φ + 4 + 5} 10 + vehicle・ + Steering ... + brake ... + lamp ...}
In the expression, as shown in (2) (f) {r + s} × {t + u} = {r × t + s × u} in the algebraic structure of the extended expression, the value in a second parenthesis and another The value in the second parenthesis indicates that the corresponding description rank values are in a correspondence relationship. In this example, for example, in BOM3, the parts such as the piston 2, the crankshaft, the connecting rod, and the cylinder are represented by a plurality of numerical values enclosed in second brackets (that is, a plurality of numerical values that maintain the order). The unit price column of each part is combined with the product operator. Specifically, the unit price of each component is 10, 20, 40, and 50, respectively. Similarly, the quantity of each part column represented by a plurality of numerical values enclosed in second parentheses is connected by a product operator. Specifically, the quantity of each part is 1, 2, 4, and 5, respectively. Further, the quantity of the upper part is further combined with the part, unit price, and quantity by a product operator. Specifically, in the above example, the quantity of the engine 1 is 10.

  Since the parent-child relationship related to the tree structure is also connected by a product operator, it is necessary to distinguish it from a product operator that combines unit prices and quantities. For this reason, the identifier representing the unit price or quantity may be registered in advance as an expression (factor) explicitly indicating a numerical value by enclosing it with the numerical operator ‘’ ’described above. In the second embodiment, for example, it may be known in advance that a unit price and a quantity are combined with a hierarchy having a predetermined depth, and a plurality of factors connected to one parent node by a product operator may be used. If a set of multiple identifiers joined by a sum operator and the same number of identifiers joined by a sum operator are connected by a product operator, the parent and child are treated as child nodes. You may make it handle as what shows the number (for example, unit price or quantity) of a corresponding identifier instead of a relationship.

  For such an example, in the second embodiment, a change history is generated and output in the same manner as the processing flow of FIG. That is, each unit price and quantity is associated with position information, and it is determined whether or not there is a change among a plurality of pieces of target information in the changing process.

In H3 of FIG. 9, for example, a change history as in the following example is generated.
(Example)
(BOM1, BOM2, BOM3) Passenger car A {Engine 1 (φ, crankshaft {20} {2} 10, crankshaft {22} {2} 10)}
In this example, it can be seen that the unit price of the crankshaft has been changed from 20 to 22 in BOM3.

Further, in H3 of FIG. 9, the change in the amount of money as a whole may be obtained based on the unit price or quantity of the changed part or the quantity of the upper part. The processing for obtaining the total amount is the same as the case where the numerical values combined by the product operator are combined by the arithmetic operator as in the case of the integration of the numerical values in (7) numerical calculation processing described above. . Therefore, the cost of the crankshaft is 400 (20 × 2 × 10) as a whole in BOM2, but it is 440 (22 × 2 × 10) in BOM3. Such a result may be represented by, for example, the following change history.
(Example)
(BOM1, BOM2, BOM3) Passenger car A {Engine 1 (φ, crankshaft × 400, crankshaft × 440)}

  According to the second embodiment, not only the part whose design has been changed but also the part whose unit price has been changed can be extracted as the change history. It is also possible to calculate the monetary effect on the entire part.

Example 3 (Data storage format)
Also in the third embodiment, the target information is data represented by a tree structure as in the first and second embodiments. In the third embodiment, the target information represented by the expression is stored in the KVS (Key Value Store) format including the key (Key) and the value (Value) associated therewith in the external storage device. Shall be. And the key has the above-mentioned BOM
Nodes in the tree structure are registered like the part names in the example. For example, a partial tree from a root node (root node) to a leaf node (leaf node) including the node is registered in the value associated therewith. That is, a partial tree from a node that does not have the highest parent node including the node to a node that does not have a child node at the lower end is registered.

For example, in the case of the BOM 3 shown in FIG. 6C, a part name such as “engine 1” or “cylinder” is registered in the key. In the case of “engine 1”, a partial tree from the root node including the engine 1 to a leaf node as shown in the following example is registered in the value.
(Example)
BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {piston 2 + crankshaft + φ + connecting rod + cylinder}})
When the key is “cylinder”, a sub-tree from the root node to “cylinder” that is a leaf node as shown in the following example is registered in the value.
(Example)
BOM3 (passenger car A {engine 1 {cylinder}})
It is assumed that the part names are unique.

  In this way, it is possible to generally perform a high-speed search based on the part name as compared with the case of using a relational database, for example. Moreover, if data including unit prices and quantities not shown are registered in the value, for example, fluctuations in the unit price of a certain part or estimation of subsystem units represented as a certain upper part can be obtained at high speed. It becomes like this.

(Other)
The functions of the information processing apparatus 100 shown in the embodiment exemplify a new database data structure and a data processing procedure that have not been proposed so far. Therefore, the technology of the embodiment can be applied to processing on a computer such as information on things, organizations, people, etc. handled by the user, or concepts handled by the user. As such processing on the computer, for example, information on things, organizations, people, etc., or concepts are described as information on the computer, stored in a main storage device such as a memory, an external storage device such as a hard disk drive, It can be applied to general technologies for constructing databases, extracting, updating, and managing stored information. That is, the information processing apparatus 100 according to the embodiment exemplifies new information expression technology on a computer.

11 Input unit 12 Memory 13 CPU
14 Output unit 15, 16 Interface 100 Information processing device

Claims (7)

A first operator that combines an identifier representing a node of the ordered tree, an identifier corresponding to one parent node and a set of identifiers corresponding to one or more child nodes, and a second operator that combines a plurality of sibling nodes For the target information described using an operator, a storage unit that stores the target information related to at least some of the nodes before the change and the target information related to the change,
A processing unit that reads and processes the target information in the storage unit;
With
The processor is
The target information before the change and the target information after the change are read from the storage unit, and the identifier included in the target information includes the depth of the hierarchy from the root node in the tree structure and the rank in the sibling node. With the location information represented by
For the target information before the change and the target information after the change, determine the presence or absence of the change by comparing the identifier with the corresponding position information,
An information processing apparatus that outputs an identifier determined to have changed. The target information further includes a numerical value associated with the identifier,
The processing unit determines whether or not there is a change in the numerical values for the target information before the change and the target information after the change,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a numerical value determined to be changed is output. The target information includes a plurality of numerical values associated with the identifier,
The processor is
Perform further arithmetic operations using the numbers,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the result of arithmetic operation is output. The ordered tree is
When adding a node, it is added at the end of the sibling node,
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when deleting a node, the node is replaced with a symbol indicating empty. The target information is stored in a key-value format in the storage unit using the identifier as a key and information indicating a subtree from a root node including a node related to the identifier to a leaf node as a value. 5. The information processing apparatus according to any one of 4. A first operator that combines an identifier representing a node of the ordered tree, an identifier corresponding to one parent node and a set of identifiers corresponding to one or more child nodes, and a second operator that combines a plurality of sibling nodes For the target information described using an operator, a storage unit that stores the target information related to at least some of the nodes before the change and the target information related to the change,
A processing unit that reads and processes the target information in the storage unit;
An information processing method executed by an information processing apparatus comprising:
The processing unit is
The target information before the change and the target information after the change are read from the storage unit, and the identifier included in the target information includes the depth of the hierarchy from the root node in the tree structure and the rank in the sibling node. With the location information represented by
For the target information before the change and the target information after the change, determine the presence or absence of the change by comparing the identifier with the corresponding position information,
An information processing method that outputs an identifier determined to have changed. A first operator that combines an identifier representing a node of the ordered tree, an identifier corresponding to one parent node and a set of identifiers corresponding to one or more child nodes, and a second operator that combines a plurality of sibling nodes For the target information described using an operator, a storage unit that stores the target information related to at least some of the nodes before the change and the target information related to the change,
A processing unit that reads and processes the target information in the storage unit;
A program to be executed by a computer comprising:
In the processing unit,
The target information before the change and the target information after the change are read from the storage unit, and the identifier included in the target information includes the depth of the hierarchy from the root node in the tree structure and the rank in the sibling node. Using the location information represented by:
Comparing the target information before the change and the target information after the change by comparing the identifiers with the corresponding position information,
Outputting an identifier determined to have a change;
A program that executes

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