Artifact Information Fragment Comparison and Merging

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current product lifecycle management (PLM) and application lifecycle management (ALM) systems face challenges in efficiently managing and merging large, comprehensive artifact information across multiple documents, which can be time-consuming and resource-intensive, often requiring significant computation and memory resources.

Innovation Solution

A computer-implemented method and system for managing artifact information by determining similarity values between fragments, identifying best-match pairs, and allowing users to select merge actions through a user interface, thereby facilitating efficient merging of artifact information without full comparison of large documents.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If full comparison of large artifact documents is performed, then merging accuracy is improved, but computation time and memory resources increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemerging accuracyVSAvoidcomputation time
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides large artifact documents into smaller fragments or chunks, comparing only relevant segments rather than performing full document comparison. This segmentation approach maintains merging accuracy for relevant portions while dramatically reducing computation time and memory requirements by avoiding unnecessary comparisons of entire large documents.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements partial comparison by identifying and comparing only the necessary portions of artifact documents that are relevant to the merging operation. Instead of performing excessive full-document comparisons, the system selectively processes specific fragments, achieving sufficient merging accuracy with reduced computational effort.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

2Measurement precision

If full comparison of large artifact documents is performed, then merging accuracy is improved, but memory resources increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemerging accuracyVSAvoidmemory resources
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments large artifact documents into smaller manageable fragments that can be processed and stored in memory efficiently. By working with divided segments rather than loading entire large documents into memory, the system maintains the ability to perform accurate comparisons on relevant portions while keeping memory resource consumption within acceptable limits.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts and compares only the relevant fragments or portions of artifact documents that are necessary for the merging operation. This extraction approach eliminates the need to load and process irrelevant portions of large documents, thereby reducing memory resource requirements while preserving merging accuracy for the essential content.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Loss of information

If comprehensive artifact information is managed across multiple documents, then information completeness is improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinformation completenessVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges artifact information from multiple documents into a unified structure, maintaining information completeness by integrating content across sources. The merging process consolidates fragmented information while preserving the comprehensive nature of the artifact data, reducing the complexity of managing multiple separate documents.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements a universal artifact information management system that can handle multiple document types and formats through a single integrated interface. This multi-functional approach allows comprehensive information management across diverse artifact sources without requiring separate complex systems for each document type, thereby reducing overall system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS11853969B2Managing artifact information, especially comparing and merging artifact information, method and system
Publication Date: 2023.12.26 SIEMENS INDUSTRY SOFTWARE GMBH
  • US11853969B2 patent drawing
  • US11853969B2 patent drawing
  • US11853969B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Systems and methods for improved management of artifact information of at least one first artifact document comprising a plurality of first fragments of artifact information and of at least one second artifact document comprising a plurality of second fragments of artifact information, especially comprising comparing and merging artifact information.