Online Data Management System for Disparate Tool Integration

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current project management systems face challenges in integrating and managing data from disparate software tools, leading to complexity and inefficiency in data retrieval, analysis, and workflow navigation.

Innovation Solution

An Online Data Management (ODM) system that parses tool data from various software tools, forms a unified hierarchical data structure, and generates web data with hyperlinks, allowing users to navigate and analyze project data across multiple tools without altering the tools' workflows.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If data from multiple disparate software tools is integrated into a unified system, then data retrieval efficiency and analysis capability are improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata retrieval efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediary layer (the online data management system with unified data structure) that mediates between disparate software tools and users. This intermediary parses, standardizes, and interconnects data from multiple tools using a common schema, enabling efficient data retrieval without requiring direct integration between all tools. The intermediary handles the complexity internally while presenting a simplified interface to users.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system segments the complex integration task into manageable components: data parsing from individual tools, conversion to unified data structures, hierarchical interconnection of objects, and relationship determination. Each software tool's data is processed independently through standardized parsing routines, then integrated at the unified data structure level, reducing overall system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Ease of operation

If a unified data structure is created from multiple tools, then workflow navigation and task monitoring are improved, but the complexity of data parsing and integration increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveworkflow navigationVSAvoiddata parsing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a universal data structure schema that can accommodate data from multiple different software tools with diverse formats and conventions. The unified data structure uses standardized object types (projects, tasks, resources, etc.) and relationship definitions that work across all input tools, enabling consistent workflow navigation regardless of source tool variability.

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

Solution Approach 2:

The system transforms data from various tool-specific formats into a standardized unified data structure by changing parameters such as data organization hierarchy, object attribute schemas, and relationship definitions. This parameter transformation enables consistent navigation while the parsing complexity is managed through automated conversion routines.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

3Loss of information

If hierarchical interconnection of data objects is implemented, then data analysis capability is improved, but computational resources required increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata analysis capabilityVSAvoidcomputational resources
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-parsing tool data, pre-establishing the unified data structure, and pre-determining relationships between objects during data ingestion. This preliminary processing creates an optimized hierarchical structure that enables efficient analysis without requiring intensive computational resources during actual data analysis operations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent organizes data in a hierarchical multi-dimensional structure with levels such as projects containing tasks containing resources, and relationships spanning across these levels. This dimensional organization enables efficient analysis by allowing queries to traverse only relevant portions of the data hierarchy rather than processing all data linearly, reducing computational overhead.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentEP3289454B1Online data management system
Publication Date: 2021.10.06 NORTHROP GRUMMAN SYSTEMS CORP
  • EP3289454B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3289454B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3289454B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

An online data management (ODM) system can be configured to parse tool data for a particular project provided from a plurality of disparate software tools employed for project management. The ODM system can also be configured to generate a data structure based on the tool data, wherein the data structure comprises a hierarchy of interconnected objects. The ODM system can further be configured to identify relationships between objects of the data structure.