JPH1040050A - Table generation instructing device and table generating system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To more easily generate a multidimensional table through intuitive operation when generating the multidimensional table based on large volume data stored in a data base, for example. SOLUTION: A user instructs the arrangement of objects stored in a data base 4 into the n-dimensional area, column index area, row index area and data area of an instruction table 2 to an input part 1. The input part 1 generates the instruction data of table generation the instruction table 2, where the objects are arranged, and sends these data to a multidimensional table generating part 3. The multidimensional table generating part 3 retrieves the data base 4 according to the instruction data of table generation applied from the input part 1, processes the retrieved result based on the instruction data of table generation and generates out the multidimensional table.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generates a multidimensional table which is used, for example, in displaying and analyzing a large amount of data stored in a database, or inserted into a document as a result of analysis. And a table creation system that includes the table creation instruction device and creates a multidimensional table in accordance with the instructions given by the table creation instruction device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a demand for a user to directly give an instruction and refer to a large amount of data managed in a database in various forms. One means for meeting such a demand is a multidimensional table. However, when the structure of the multi-dimensional table becomes complicated, it cannot be created by the conventional table creation apparatus, or the operation is complicated and the table cannot be easily created. Therefore, there is a demand for a simpler and more intuitive operation to create a multidimensional table.

[0003] As a method of giving an instruction for creating a multidimensional table structure, for example, "Relation" is used.
Data Search Tool Operation Manual ", 1994.1 (Re
is a trademark of Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.) and a method described in JP-A-5-346940. FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram of an example of an instruction to create a multidimensional table by a relation in a conventional table creation system.
Is an explanatory diagram of an example of a table created by a conventional table creating system, and FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of an example of data used for creating a table. The user gives an instruction to create a multidimensional table through an interface as shown in FIG. Here, “sales area” is specified as a column heading, and “product name” and “monthly” are specified as row headings. The data to be displayed include “Sales”, “Units”
Is specified.

The contents of an instruction shown in FIG. 18 generate the following three instructions. First, data related to “sales area” is searched, and the result is arranged as a column heading. For example, the following SQL (Structured Qu)
erry Language) command and search may be performed. SELECT area name FROM table 1 WHERE search condition; As a result, "Tokyo" and "Kanagawa" are obtained as area names of the sales area from table 1 shown in FIG.

Next, data relating to "product name" and "monthly degree" is searched, and the results are arranged as row headings. For example, the following SQL command may be generated and the search may be performed. SELECT Product name, monthly FROM table 2, table 3 WHERE search conditions; thereby, table 2 shown in FIG.
From Table 3 shown in (C), as a set of the product name and the monthly degree, (“RS”, “January”), (“RS”. “February”), (“RS”, “March”), ("GTR",
"January"), ("GTR", "February"), ("GT
R "," March ").

Further, "sales area", "product name",
Search for data on "monthly", "sales", and "number", and arrange the results in a multidimensional table format. For example, the following SQL command may be generated and the search may be performed. SELECT Area name, product name, monthly, sales, number FROM table 1, table 2, table 3 WHERE search condition; thereby, table 1 shown in FIG.
From table 2 shown in (B) and table 3 shown in FIG. 20 (C), data of a set of area name, product name, monthly, sales, and number of units, for example, (“Tokyo”, “RS”, “January”, "1
1 "," 132 "). This data is data arranged in each cell of the multidimensional table.

In this way, when an instruction is given as shown in FIG. 18, data is obtained from the database storing data as shown in FIG.
A table as shown in FIG. 19 is generated. Since the actual table depends on the data in the database, the table shown in FIG. 19 cannot always be obtained by the instruction in FIG.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a table to be created. Now, consider the case where a remarks column is provided at the bottom of the table shown in FIG. 19 and the table shown in FIG. 21 is created. However, the above-described conventional table creation system cannot instruct creation of a table as shown in FIG. This is because an instruction for an area in which data is to be arranged is performed in the same manner as an instruction for a heading.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram of another example of an instruction to create a multidimensional table by a relation in a conventional table creating system, and FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram of another example of a table created by a conventional table creating system. It is. When trying to create a table close to FIG. 21 based on a conventional table creation system, FIG.
, "Remarks" should be replaced with "Product Name"
Instructions to be added under "monthly" will be given. However, the table generated by the instruction shown in FIG.
It is just a table as shown in Figure 3. Eventually, the user searches the data relating to the remarks separately from the table of FIG. 23, and merges the result into the table of FIG. 23 by some means, or creates the table shown in FIG. 19 and adds a “Remarks” column. There is a need to.

As described above, when a table in which the data area of the table is deformed is to be created, the table cannot be automatically created, and very complicated work is required. If the amount of data is large, creating such a table is virtually impossible.

The interface for instructing table creation described in the above-mentioned document does not have a data structure as a complete table. This is because the instruction for the data area of the generated table is performed in conjunction with the instruction for the heading. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 23, the column of the row heading “Remarks” is linked with the column headings “Sales” and “Units”, and the above-described problem occurs.

As a system for creating a multidimensional table as shown in FIG. 21, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-25100
No. 7 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-266742. In these systems, for example, only the column heading "sales area", the row heading "product name",
A multidimensional table having a format as shown in FIG. 21 can be easily obtained by designating “monthly” and “remarks”, and then specifying a subdivision in each of the cells except for the row of “remarks” in the horizontal direction. Obtainable. However, these documents include:
No mention is made of the interface for filling headings or individual cells based on data in the database.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances. For example, when creating a multidimensional table based on a large amount of data stored in a database,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a table creation system capable of creating a multidimensional table more easily and intuitively by an intuitive operation, and a table creation instruction device therefor.

[0014]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a table creation instructing apparatus for issuing an instruction to create a multidimensional table, which holds an instruction of an object corresponding to a column heading, a row heading, and data. An instruction table, and input means for receiving an instruction from a user, the input means arranges an object instructing generation of a column heading of a table from the user at a position of a column heading in the instruction table,
An object instructing generation of a row heading of a table from a user is arranged at a position of a row heading in the instruction table, and an object instructing the contents of a data cell of the table from the user is data corresponding to each heading in the instruction table. It is characterized by being arranged at the position of a cell.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instructing apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means is arranged such that, when an object for generating a column heading is instructed by a user to be vertically overlapped, One of the superimposed objects is arranged as a fine expansion of the other object, and when instructed side by side, the objects are arranged as parallel items.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means is arranged to arrange the objects for generating the row headings side by side when the user instructs the objects to be arranged side by side. One of the objects is arranged as a sub-development of the other object, and is arranged as a parallel item when instructed to overlap one another.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means includes an object capable of instructing generation of a heading and an object capable of instructing generation of data cell contents. Is presented in a predetermined data structure, and an object arbitrarily designated by the user is selected.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the instruction table is capable of arranging an n-dimensional heading, and the input means is configured to input a table i from a user. An object instructing generation of a dimensional heading is arranged at the position of the i-dimensional heading in the instruction table.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the fifth aspect, the input means can designate a part of objects for instructing generation of a heading of each dimension. There is provided an object for designating the contents of the data cell of the table from the user corresponding to a part of the heading of the specified dimension at the position of the data cell corresponding to each heading of the instruction table. It is assumed that.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means presents the object in a predetermined data structure, and when the user arranges the object, The method is characterized in that an instruction is received as to how to expand each object that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means presents the object in a predetermined data structure, and when the user arranges the object, An instruction to expand to all objects except the object that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs is received.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to the first aspect, the input means presents the object in a predetermined data structure, and when the user arranges the object, It is characterized in that it receives an instruction to expand to an object corresponding to a leaf that cannot be traced any more among objects traceable from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instructing device according to the first aspect, the input means presents the object in a predetermined data structure, and when the user designates the object, Receiving an instruction to expand the object except for an object which can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs and which corresponds to a leaf which cannot be traced further starting from the object. is there.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to any one of the seventh to tenth aspects, the input means expands the object to the same level from the user when expanding the object. It is characterized in that it is configured to be able to receive an instruction on how to arrange the order relation between elements to be arranged.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction apparatus according to any one of the seventh to tenth aspects, the input means expands the object to the same level from the user when expanding the object. The present invention is characterized in that an instruction to arrange the order relation between elements to be arranged in the order in the data structure can be received.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the table creation instruction device according to any one of the seventh to tenth aspects, the input means expands the object to the same level from the user when expanding the object. The apparatus is characterized in that an instruction to sort and arrange elements to be received can be received.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein the table creation instruction device according to any one of the first to thirteenth aspects is provided with an instruction included in the table creation instruction device. The present invention is characterized in that it has a multidimensional table creating means for generating a table in accordance with an instruction of an object corresponding to a column heading, a row heading, and data in the table.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein the table creation instruction device according to any one of the seventh to tenth aspects and an instruction included in the table creation instruction device are provided. It is characterized by having a multidimensional table creating means for generating a table in accordance with column headings and row headings in a table, instructions for objects corresponding to data, and instructions for expansion.

The invention according to claim 16 is a table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein
A table creation instruction device according to any one of the above, and a column heading, a row heading in an instruction table of the table creation instruction device,
It is characterized by having a multidimensional table creating means for generating a table in accordance with an instruction of an object corresponding to data, an instruction of development, and an instruction of rearrangement.

[0030]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a table creation system according to the present invention. In the figure, 1 is an input unit, 2 is an instruction table, 3 is a multidimensional table creation unit, and 4 is a database. The input unit 1 and the instruction table 2 constitute an example of a table creation instruction apparatus according to the present invention.

The input unit 1 receives an input from a user,
The instruction table 2 holds an instruction on what table to generate. The instructions are selected from objects generated from the data to be tabulated held in the database 4. The input unit 1 presents these objects to the user. The user selects necessary objects from the presented objects and inputs an instruction to arrange them on the instruction table. Further, the input unit 1 generates table creation instruction data from the instruction table 2 in which objects are arranged, and sends the data to the multidimensional table creation unit 3.

The instruction table 2 holds instructions for creating a table in association with the structure of the table. At this time, the instruction of the object to be allocated to the data area is held together with the row headings and the column headings.

The multidimensional table creation unit 3 searches the database according to the table creation instruction data given from the input unit 1, processes the search result based on the table creation instruction data, and generates a multidimensional table. Output.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in the first operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2A, the instruction table 2 is provided with a column heading area, a row heading area, and a data area. Objects generated from data stored in the database 4 are arranged in the respective areas. Even when the user actually designates an object corresponding to a column heading, a row heading, or data, the same display as in the instruction table shown in FIG. 2A is performed, and the arrangement of the object can be instructed. .

The procedure for arranging objects in the instruction table 2 will be described below. First, the objects are arranged in the column headings by selecting a column heading area on the instruction table 2, selecting an object to be arranged, and designating a position on the column heading area. The placement of the object in the line heading is performed by selecting a line heading area on the instruction table 2, selecting an object to be arranged, and specifying a position in the line heading area. Further, the placement of objects in the data area is performed by selecting a data area on the instruction table 2, selecting an object to be placed, and specifying a position on the data area.
Such an arrangement of the objects in the column heading area, the row heading area, and the data area is repeated in an arbitrary order and an arbitrary number of times until an instruction necessary for generating a table is completed.

When selecting an object, the user may directly input a character string specifying the object from a keyboard or the like, or search a selectable object group from a database and display it to the user. In advance, an object may be arranged by selecting from among them with a mouse or the like and further using an operation called drag and drop with the mouse.

The procedure for arranging the above-described objects will be described with reference to the specific example shown in FIG. In the specific example shown in FIG. 2, a broken line represents a window for user input. This window has a column heading area, a row heading area, and a data area, and corresponds to the instruction table 2 as described above. The hatched portions indicate objects input by the user.

First, an object is arranged at a column heading. In the example shown in FIG. 2A, the user selects a column heading area, selects "sales area" as an object to be arranged, and arranges the object "sales area" in the column heading area. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2A, the object "sales area" is displayed in the column heading area.
Was placed.

Next, the object is arranged at the line heading. First, the user selects a line heading area. Then, for example, “product name” is selected as an object to be arranged, and the object is arranged in the row heading area. Further, the object "monthly" is selected and arranged in the row heading area. At this time, it is instructed to place the object “product name” to the right of the previously placed object “product name”. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2B, the row headings are displayed side by side, and the object “monthly” can be designated as a fine expansion of the object “product name”. Of course, the same instruction is given even if the object "monthly" is arranged first, and then the object "product name" is arranged to the left of the object "monthly".

Further, an object is arranged in the data area. First, the user selects a data area. Then, for example, “sales” is selected as an object to be arranged and arranged in the data area. Thereby, FIG. 2 (C)
As shown in the figure, the object "sales" is arranged in the data area.

As described above, each object is specified by:
A character string may be input, or drag and drop may be used from among candidates extracted from the database. Also,
The order in which the objects are arranged is not particularly specified. Although not shown in the above example, for the column headings, for example, by overlaying the objects vertically, it is possible to indicate the lower object as a fine expansion of the upper object.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an example of table creation instruction data created by the input unit in the first operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, when an instruction to arrange an object is given to each of the column heading, row heading, and data areas, the instruction to arrange each object is stored in the instruction table 2.
When the instruction to arrange the objects is completed, the input unit 1 creates table creation instruction data as shown in FIG. 3, for example. The example shown in FIG. 3 shows an example of table creation instruction data created when an instruction to arrange an object is issued as shown in FIG. Such table creation instruction data is sent to the multidimensional table creation unit 3.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a multidimensional table generated in the first operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. The multidimensional table creation unit 3 searches the database 4 and, based on the obtained data, for example, JP-A-6-251007 or JP-A-6-266.
A table as shown in FIG. 4 is generated using the method described in Japanese Patent No. 742. At this time, the data in the database 4 referred to by the multidimensional table creation unit 3 is assumed to be the data shown in FIG.

Thus, by arranging objects in the column heading area, the row heading area, and the data area, data can be automatically obtained from the database and a desired multidimensional table can be created.

As shown in FIG. 4, the data arranged in each cell is sales data, but "sales" is not displayed in the column heading. As described above, in the present invention, data is explicitly indicated together with column headings and row headings without linking headings and data as in the related art. Therefore, a multidimensional table can be created by an intuitive operation of arranging data in the data area. Also,
Instructions for column headings, row headings, and data can be performed only by a simple operation of arranging objects. Further, by performing an operation of arranging data objects together with such column headings and row headings, it is possible to deal with a complicated table as described later.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a second operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. The second operation example illustrated in FIG. 5 illustrates an example in which, when arranging objects in column headings, the objects are vertically overlapped and arranged side by side. Specifically, FIG.
As shown in (A), the objects “sales” and “number” are arranged below the object “sales area”. Also,
The object “number” is arranged to the right of the object “sales”. By arranging in this way, FIG.
The object “sales” and the object “number” are expanded as the details of the object “sales area”, as shown in the column heading area of FIG.

In the data area, the object "sales" and the object "number" are arranged side by side. In this example, the same object is arranged in the column heading. However, in the present invention, it is necessary to arrange the object “sales” and the object “number” again in the data area. This is because the present invention distinguishes between headings and data. In this example, the user must place the object "sales" and the object "number" in the column heading area and the data area.
However, conversely, since the heading and the data are not linked, the data can be freely specified without being bound by the heading. For example, it is also possible to arrange other data other than the data associated with “sales” in the database 4 in the column of sales.

When the objects are arranged as shown in FIG. 5A, the input unit 1 generates instruction data as shown in FIG. In the multidimensional table creation unit 3, the objects “sales area”, “product name”, and “monthly” are expanded, and the objects “sales”
The data of the “number” is acquired, and a table as shown in FIG. 5C is created and output.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a third operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. The third operation example illustrated in FIG. 6 illustrates an example in which the object “remark” is added to the row heading in addition to the example illustrated in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6A, the object “remarks” is arranged so as to overlap the objects “product name” and “monthly” vertically. As a result, the objects “product name” and “monthly” and the object “remarks” are arranged in parallel as row headings.

When arranging objects in the data area, the object "remarks" is arranged below the objects "sales" and "objects" arranged side by side. As a result, for cells whose row headings correspond to the objects "product name" and "monthly",
The data of the objects "Sales" and "Units" are arranged according to the object "Sales" and "Number" of the column headings, and the cell whose row heading corresponds to the object "Remarks" is set to the object "Sales area" of the column heading. The data of the object "remarks" is arranged accordingly. in this way,
Also in the data area, objects can be arranged according to the structure of the table.

When the arrangement of the objects as shown in FIG. 6A is completed in this way, the input unit 1 changes the state shown in FIG.
Is generated and passed to the multidimensional table creation unit 3. The multidimensional table creation unit 3 expands the objects “sales area”, “product name”, and “monthly”, and acquires data of the objects “sales”, “number”, and “remarks”, and obtains the data shown in FIG. Create and output the table as shown in. This figure 6
The table shown in (C) is the table that was to be created in FIG. According to the present invention, a table having a structure that cannot be created by the conventional system can be created according to the data of the database by only such simple instructions.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of a data structure used in the fourth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects similarly performed by the input unit 1. FIG. In this example, FIG.
A case where a multidimensional table is created based on a data structure having a hierarchical structure as shown in FIG. The data shown in FIG. 7 is basically the same as the data shown in FIG. 20, and has a hierarchical hierarchical relationship.

In FIG. 8, the portion surrounded by a broken line on the left side is the window for user input shown in FIG. The portion surrounded by a broken line on the right side in the figure is the part shown in FIG.
3 is a window for displaying the data structure shown in FIG. The user selects a required object from the objects displayed in the window displaying the data structure.
Here, the position of the area to be arranged is specified by drag and drop.

In FIG. 8A, first, the display range of the window for displaying the data structure is moved to display the data structure of the object “sales area” in the window. Then, the object "sales area" is selected, and the object "sales area" is arranged in the column heading area of the window for user input by drag and drop.

Similarly, the object "monthly" is displayed, and is arranged in the row heading area by drag and drop. Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, the object "product name" is displayed, dragged and dropped to the left of the object "monthly" in the row heading area. This allows
It can be indicated that the detailed development of the object “product name” is the object “monthly”.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8C, the object "sales" is displayed and arranged in the data area by drag and drop. Thus, the same object arrangement as in FIG. 2 can be performed using a data structure having a hierarchical relationship. In this example, since the data structure can be visually grasped, the objects can be arranged while confirming the elements to be developed. In addition,
In this example, the layer immediately below the designated object is the leaf, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a multi-layered structure may be used. In this case, it is possible to specify not only the uppermost layer but also a node of an intermediate layer to be expanded below.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in the fifth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. In the table creation system of the present invention, many dimensional items are assigned to the table on the two-dimensional plane. However, it is also possible to create a multidimensional table composed of a plurality of tables, for example. In each of the above examples, the object “product name” and the object “monthly” are hierarchically arranged as row headings.
An example in which “monthly degree” is designated as a heading of a three-dimensional portion is shown. For example, as compared with the example shown in FIG. 2, the arrangement of the objects in the column heading area and the data area is the same, but the object "product name" is displayed in the row heading area.
Only the object "monthly" is arranged in the three-dimensional area. Thus, a three-dimensional table including a plurality of tables can be created.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the multidimensional table generated in the fifth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. According to the element of the object "monthly" arranged in the three-dimensional area, a plurality of tables are generated in which the column heading is the object "sales area", the row heading is the object "product name", and the data is the object "sales". Is done. Note that the element of the object “monthly” arranged in the three-dimensional area is entered in the meta header of each generated table. The metaheader is a part indicating the classification of a heading item, and is often placed in the upper left part of the table.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in the sixth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. This example shows an example in which a four-dimensional table composed of a plurality of tables is created. In FIG. 11A,
The object “January” is arranged in the four-dimensional area,
In the dimensional area, the object “sales” and the object “number” are arranged side by side. When such an instruction is performed, it is expected that two tables, one showing the sales in January and the other showing the number in January, are generated. Then, in the two tables, the data portions will be different, one will be sales and the other will be units. In order to realize such a table, an object arranged in the data area may be changed for each object arranged in the three-dimensional area.

The arrangement of objects in the data area is as follows.
First, one of the objects arranged in the three-dimensional area is selected as shown in FIG. Here, the object “sales” is selected. Then, as shown in FIG. 11C, the object “sales” is designated in the data area. Then, the selection of the object in the three-dimensional area is changed to the other object “number”, and FIG.
The object “number” is arranged in the data area as shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the multidimensional table generated in the sixth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. By arranging objects according to the procedure shown in FIG. 11, a table as shown in FIG. 12 is created. In the meta headers of these tables, January / sales and January / number are entered, and the data cells indicate the sales and the number, respectively.

When the object shown in FIG. 11 is designated, the object “monthly” can be arranged in the four-dimensional area.
In this case, two tables of sales and number are created for each month. Also, the objects “sales” and “number” can be arranged in the four-dimensional area, and the object “monthly” can be arranged in the three-dimensional area. In this case, the objects arranged in the four-dimensional area may be selected and arranged in the data area. The fifth operation example described above shows an example using up to a three-dimensional area, and the sixth operation example shows an example using up to a four-dimensional area. However, it is also possible to create an image using an area having five or more dimensions. is there.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a data structure used in the seventh operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. In this example, a case will be described in which an object is expanded based on a tree-structured data structure as shown in FIG. In the data shown in FIG.
The sales area is shown in multiple levels, with "Kanto" as the upper node of "Tokyo" and "Kanagawa"
Furthermore, "nationwide" is provided as a higher node of "Kanto" and "Kansai".

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in the seventh operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. In this example, the objects placed in each area
It is possible to specify whether or not to perform expansion, and how much to perform expansion. The example shown in FIG. 14 shows a screen on which an instruction for development when the object “sales area” is arranged in the column heading area is given. By selecting the object "sales area" in the column heading area, a property sheet shown in the lower part of the figure is displayed.

The property sheet includes, for example, “expand only the root of the tree structure”, “expand from the root of the tree structure, do not expand the leaf”, “expand from the root of the tree structure to the leaf”, “expand the tree”. The root of the structure is not expanded, and it expands from directly below to the leaf. ", The root of the tree structure, the leaf does not expand, and it expands from directly below to directly above."
Six options of “deploy only tree-structured leaves” are prepared, and any one of them can be selected with the left button. Of course, a configuration other than these may be selectable. At the right end of each option, a triangular icon corresponding to each option is shown, and an icon corresponding to the selected option is displayed to the right of the object arranged on the instruction table.

In the example shown in FIG. 14, for the object "sales area", "expand from the root of the tree structure and do not expand the leaf" is selected. This is shown in FIG.
In the data structure shown in (1), it is instructed to expand to "sales area", "nationwide", and "Kanto" as the head of the sales area. In addition, "Kansai", "Tokyo",
"Kanagawa" is not expanded because it is a leaf. Also, for the objects "Product Name" and "Monthly" placed in the row heading area that has already been selected, the root is not expanded, but the expansion from the immediate bottom to the leaf is instructed, and the objects are placed in the column heading area. It is instructed that the object “number” is expanded only in the route, and the object “number” arranged in the data area is expanded only in the leaf.

The method of instructing expansion shown in FIG. 14 is an example, and another instruction method may be used, such as sequentially instructing nodes in a tree structure.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of an example of table creation instruction data created by the input section in the seventh operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. When the instruction as shown in FIG. 14 is issued, the input unit 1 creates table creation instruction data as shown in FIG. In this example, an instruction related to development is added to the table creation instruction data as attribute information.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the multidimensional table generated in the seventh operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention. The multidimensional table creation unit 3 is shown in FIG.
The table creation instruction data as shown in FIG. At this time, the object is expanded according to the expansion attribute. For example, since it is specified that the object “sales area” is expanded from the root and is not expanded to the leaf, “sales area” is provided as the top column heading from the data structure shown in FIG. "Nationwide" is set up, and "Kanto" is set up further below. In the data shown in FIG. 13, since there is data of “number” for “nationwide” and “Kanto”, column headings are created, for example, as shown in FIG.

Further, as for the line heading, the root is not expanded, but the area from immediately below to the leaf is expanded. For example, in the object “product name”, “product name” does not become a line heading, and “RS”, “RS”, “ Only "GTR" is a row header. In this way, a table as shown in FIG. 16 is created. In this way, by giving an instruction regarding the development together with the arrangement of the objects, the development within the designated range is automatically performed, and the table can be easily created.

FIG. 17 shows a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 and an example of a table created by the multidimensional table creating unit in the eighth operation example of the embodiment of the table creating system according to the present invention. FIG. This example shows a case where the instruction to expand is changed in the above-described seventh operation example. In FIG. 17A, the instruction to expand the object “sales area” has been changed to “the root is not expanded, but is expanded from immediately below to the leaf”. Then, the route “sales area” is not expanded, but “nationwide” is expanded to “Kanto”, “Kansai”, leaves “Tokyo” and “Kanagawa”, as shown in FIG. 17 (B). A table with column headings will be created.

When such an object is expanded, it is possible to specify how the elements to be expanded are arranged. As an example, a property sheet may be displayed and selected in the same manner as in the method of development. As the arrangement method, for example, various arrangement methods can be adopted, such as keeping the arrangement order in the data structure as shown in FIG. 13 or sorting the elements at the same level. Also, the order is alphabetical and numerical,
They can be arranged in various orders such as ascending order and descending order.

In each of the above examples, the case where the data is given as a numerical value is used as a specific example. However, other data may be referred to in the database, or calculation may be performed by referring to the other data. Instructions may be stored.
In such a case, when creating the table in the multidimensional table creation unit 3, it is sufficient to refer to other data and perform calculation as needed to create the table.

[0074]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, for example, when creating a table based on a large amount of data stored in the database, the object is set to the heading area on the instruction table. The table can be created by a simple and intuitive operation of arranging in the data area. At this time, since the objects are arranged in the data area, a table in which the data area is not linked to the heading can be created, and it is possible to cope with the creation of various tables. In addition, for an n-dimensional table, a multi-dimensional table can be easily created by merely arranging objects in an area up to the n-dimensional table. Furthermore, since the object can be automatically expanded and the method of expansion can be instructed, the data in the database can be effectively used to easily create a table. Furthermore, according to the present invention, various effects can be obtained, for example, by enabling an instruction to rearrange the elements of the heading to improve the visibility of the created table.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating an embodiment of a table creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of an arrangement of objects performed by an input unit 1 in a first operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an example of table creation instruction data created by an input unit in a first operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a multidimensional table generated in a first operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a second operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a third operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a data structure used in a fourth operation example according to the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in a fourth operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in a fifth operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a multidimensional table generated in a fifth operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of an arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in a sixth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a multidimensional table generated in a sixth operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a data structure used in a seventh operation example according to the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of the arrangement of objects performed by the input unit 1 in a seventh operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of an example of table creation instruction data created by an input unit in a seventh operation example according to an embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a multidimensional table generated in a seventh operation example in the embodiment of the table creation system of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of an object arrangement performed by the input unit 1 and an example of a table created by the multidimensional table creating unit in an eighth operation example according to an embodiment of the table creating system of the present invention; It is.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram of an example of an instruction to create a multidimensional table by a relation in a conventional table creation system.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a table created by a conventional table creation system.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of an example of data used for creating a table.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a table to be created.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram of another example of a multidimensional table creation instruction by a relation in a conventional table creation system.

FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram of another example of a table created by a conventional table creation system.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 input unit 2 instruction table 3 multi-dimensional table creation unit
4 ... Database.

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A table creation instruction device for issuing an instruction to create a multidimensional table, an instruction table for holding an instruction of an object corresponding to a column heading, a row heading, and data, and an input means for receiving an instruction from a user. The input unit arranges an object instructing generation of a column heading of a table from a user at a position of a column heading in the instruction table, and sets the object instructing generation of a row heading of a table from the user to the object. A table creation instruction device, wherein the object is arranged at a position of a row heading of an instruction table, and an object indicating the contents of a data cell of a table from a user is arranged at a data cell position corresponding to each heading of the instruction table. . 2. When the user instructs an object for generating a column heading to be overlapped vertically, the input means arranges one of the overlapped objects as a fine expansion of the other object, and 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the instructions are arranged side by side, the items are arranged as parallel items. 3. When the user instructs an object for generating a line heading to be arranged side by side, the input means arranges one of the arranged objects as a fine expansion of the other object, and overlaps the object vertically. 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the instruction is given, the items are arranged as parallel items. 4. The input means presents, in a predetermined data structure, an object capable of instructing generation of a heading and an object capable of instructing generation of the contents of a data cell. The table creation instructing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the table creation instruction apparatus is selected. 5. The instruction table is capable of arranging an n-dimensional heading, and the input means includes:
The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an object instructing generation of a dimensional heading is arranged at a position of an i-dimensional heading in the instruction table. 6. The input means is capable of designating a part of an object instructing generation of a heading of each dimension, and receiving an instruction from a user in response to the specified heading of the dimension. 6. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 5, wherein an object indicating the contents of the data cell of the table is arranged at the position of the data cell in correspondence with each heading of the instruction table. 7. The input means presents an object in a predetermined data structure, and when a user arranges an object, assigns an object to each object that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs. 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an instruction is received as to whether the data is to be developed. 8. The input means presents an object in a predetermined data structure, and excludes an object that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs when the user arranges the object. 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an instruction to expand the object to all objects is received. 9. The input means presents an object in a predetermined data structure, and when a user arranges the object, selects one of objects that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs. 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an instruction to expand the object to a leaf which cannot be traced is received. 10. The input means presents an object in a predetermined data structure. When a user designates an object, the input means selects one of the objects that can be traced from the object in the data structure to which the object belongs. 2. The table creation instruction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an instruction to develop the object is removed except for an object corresponding to a leaf that cannot be traced further from the object. 11. The input means is configured to be capable of receiving an instruction from a user on how to arrange an order relationship between elements to be expanded to the same level when expanding an object. The table creation instruction device according to any one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that: 12. The input means is configured to be able to receive an instruction from a user to arrange the order relation between elements to be expanded to the same level in an order in a data structure when expanding an object. The table creation instruction device according to any one of claims 7 to 10, wherein: 13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said input means is adapted to receive an instruction from a user to sort and arrange elements to be expanded to the same level when expanding the object. Any one of 7 to 10
Table creation instruction device according to the section. 14. A table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein the table creation instruction device according to any one of claims 1 to 13, and column headings and rows in an instruction table of the table creation instruction device. A table creation system, comprising: a multidimensional table creation means for creating a table according to an instruction of an object corresponding to a heading and data. 15. A table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein the table creation instruction device according to any one of claims 7 to 10, and column headings and rows in the instruction table of the table creation instruction device. A table creation system, comprising: a multidimensional table creation means for creating a table in accordance with an instruction of an object corresponding to a heading and data and an instruction of expansion. 16. A table creation system for creating a multidimensional table, wherein the table creation instruction device according to any one of claims 11 to 13, and column headings and rows in the instruction table of the table creation instruction device. A table creation system, comprising: a multidimensional table creation means for creating a table in accordance with a heading, an instruction of an object corresponding to data, an instruction of expansion, and an instruction of rearrangement.