Two-Level Concept-Oriented Data Model

TL;DR

This paper introduces the concept-oriented model (CoM), a hierarchical and multi-dimensional data modeling approach based on nested ordered sets, enabling flexible data semantics and operations for various applications.

Contribution

It presents a novel formalism of nested ordered sets for data modeling, combining hierarchy and multi-dimensionality in a unified framework.

Findings

Applicable to diverse problems like grouping and aggregation

Supports multi-dimensional analysis

Defines data semantics through ordering relations

Abstract

In this paper we describe a new approach to data modelling called the concept-oriented model (CoM). This model is based on the formalism of nested ordered sets which uses inclusion relation to produce hierarchical structure of sets and ordering relation to produce multi-dimensional structure among its elements. Nested ordered set is defined as an ordered set where an each element can be itself an ordered set. Ordering relation in CoM is used to define data semantics and operations with data such as projection and de-projection. This data model can be applied to very different problems and the paper describes some its uses such grouping with aggregation and multi-dimensional analysis.