Compound Lexical Identifier Generation for Alphanumeric Sorting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for sorting and searching multiple-part alphanumeric information are inefficient, requiring custom index formulas, padding, and recomputing data for each comparison, which can lead to errors and waste database space.
Innovation Solution
The method creates unique compound lexical identifiers from regular identifiers with multiple parts, allowing for natural sorting and searching without unnecessary padding, and enabling custom ordering for specific identifiers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If padding is added to match the length of the longest section, then sorting comparison becomes simpler, but database space is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The identifier is segmented into multiple sections with different data types (numeric, alphanumeric, alphabetic). Each section is processed differently during comparison - numeric sections are zero-padded only to their actual length, while alphanumeric and alphabetic sections are space-padded. This segmentation allows efficient comparison without uniform padding across all sections, reducing database space waste.
2Ease of operation
If arbitrary padding sizes are used, then sorting becomes easier, but database space efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
Different padding strategies are applied to different sections based on their data type characteristics. Numeric sections receive zero-padding only to their actual length, while alphanumeric and alphabetic sections receive space-padding. This local quality approach optimizes each section individually, achieving sorting efficiency without arbitrary uniform padding that would waste database space.
3Manufacturing precision
If custom index formulas are used, then sorting accuracy improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the identifier itself as its own index key by creating a compound lexical identifier from the segmented parts. This self-service approach eliminates the need for complex external index formulas while maintaining sorting accuracy. The identifier structure inherently supports accurate sorting through its segmented design and comparison logic.
4Manufacturing precision
If sections are analyzed and padded for each comparison, then sorting precision improves, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The identifier is pre-processed into a compound lexical form during creation, with each section already formatted with appropriate padding (zeros for numeric, spaces for alphanumeric/alphabetic). This preliminary action stores the padding information within the identifier structure itself, eliminating the need to analyze and pad sections during each comparison operation, thus reducing processing time while maintaining sorting precision.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to creating unique identifiers for indexing, sorting, and searching on multiple-part alpha numeric information. The information can be in a database, spreadsheet, or printed on materials that need to be manually placed in order.