Master Index Object Definition Components (Repository)
The object definition includes three primary components that together define the structure of the data in the master index application, the database structure, and the method OTD. Most configuration files in the master index application rely on the objects and fields defined in the Object Definition. For example, the fields you specify for the match string, queries, standardization, and the survivor calculator must all be defined in the Object Definition.
The following topics describe each component of the object definition:
Master Index Object Definition Objects
In a master index application, information is stored in objects. Each object in the data structure represents a different type of information. For example, if you are indexing businesses, you might have one object type to store general information about the business (such as the business name and type), one to store address information, and one to store contact information. When indexing personal information, you might have one object type to store general information about the person (such as their name, date of birth, and gender), one to store address information, and one to store telephone information. The object structure can have several objects, but only one primary object (called the parent object). This object is the parent to all other objects defined in the Object Definition. The object structure can have multiple child objects or no child objects at all.
Generally, a record in the master index application has information in one parent object and multiple child objects. A record can also have multiple instances of each child object. For example, in the person index example above, a record for a single person would have one name, one date of birth, and one gender, all three stored in the parent object. However, the same record might have several different addresses, each of which is stored in a separate Address object.
Master Index Object Definition Fields
Each object in the object structure contains fields that store the data elements of the object. You can specify properties for each field in the object structure, such as a length, name, data type, formatting rules, and so on. The fields you define in the object structure also determine the structure of the method OTD and the database tables. You can also specify certain properties for each field that determine how the database columns are defined, including the length, name, and required data type.
Master Index Object Definition Relationships
In the Object Definition, you must specify the parent and child objects. The object structure must contain one parent object. All remaining objects defined in the structure must be specified as child objects to that parent object.
- © 2010, Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates