Method and system for implementing software objects
US5822587A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 20, 1995 |
| Grant date | Oct 13, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 20, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/4488
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The present invention provides a new system for implementing software objects using an object-prototype model. Objects are defined as collections of properties, each having a unique property name. A collection of property names defines a "shape." The use of shapes frees the representation of an object in memory from the order in which the properties of the object are declared. Methods are defined independently of objects and are applicable to a specified shape, rather than to objects that are derived from a class in which the method is defined. Methods can be applied to any object that has the specified shape or that has a superset of the properties defining the specified shape, regardless of the place of the object in any inheritance hierarchy. The definition of a shape can also include additional selection criteria, such as restrictions on the values of properties, so that the application of a method can be restricted to objects satisfying the specified criteria. The properties of objects can be divided into subgroups representing different aspects of the object and different subgroups of an object can be inherited from different parent objects, based upon either a has-a or an is…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.