Database and Related Research at IIT Kharagpur

1. Database and Related Research at IIT Kharagpur presented by P P Chakrabarti & Subrato Das

2. Areas of Research • Earlier Work • Fuzzy Relational Databases • ODS: Object Oriented Database System • Logic and Databases • Search Algorithms • Current Work • Active Database Management Systems • Image and Multimedia Databases • Data Mining for Temporal Properties • Textual Databases

3. ODS • Supports Primitive and Complex Classes; Instance; Class Constructors; Specialization (ISA Hierarchy); Aggregation; Association (Array, Sets); Message and Method; Rules • Language NODAL combines procedural and declarative paradigm; ensures encapsulation; allows recursive rules; sequential and parallel construct; iteration

4. ODS Features • Uses 3 valued logic for handling incomplete information • Fixed Point Semantics Established • Storage Organization Optimized • Used in Creating a VLSI Database

5. Logic and Databases • LogiC: A language which allows calls to C functions in such a manner that we can have backtracking across the C functions • Logi_DB: A logic language which allows calls to both logic as well as database predicates with backtracking • Constrained Systems: Other than predicates and functions, constraints can also be specified and automatic constraint satisfaction can be performed like in CLP

6. Agent Search in limited memory • An important problem in search in AI - how to search for a solution in a large implicit state space. • Optimal and near optimal algorithms have been developed for trees with and without heuristics. • Possible applications in large databases to be performed by a limited memory agent. • Solving optimization problems in large databases using search methods.

7. Active Databases • Not only support passive DBMS functions but also carry out actions in response to events. • Event-Condition-Action (ECA) rules are used to provide modularity and timely response. • Object Oriented ADBMS. • Transaction Modelling and Consurrency Control in ADBMS.

8. Image and Multimedia Databases • Model for Image Description: • For individual objects: attributes and properties (O-ODDL). • Between Objects: Topological and spatial relationships • Similarity Measure for Images. • Query based on object attributes, spatial and topological relationships and similarity. • Relational Engine at Backend. • Extended to model video using temporal operators.

9. Mining for Temporal Property Identification • Identification of state and state change. • System Abstraction. • Temporal Property Checking from Data with partial information of inherent transition system. • Bounded as well as unbounded temporal property checking.

10. Other Related Areas • Constraint Satisfaction using Multi-dimensional relational tables. • Knowledge Based Systems • Solving Constrained Optimization Problems using Search and Deduction. • Knowledge based Design of Embedded Systems using the concept of knowledge intensive methods • Textual Databases: information retrieval, summarization, etc