Creating link types

Link types are the templates that describe how links - which represent associations between entities - are stored and analyzed in i2 applications. When you create link types, take care to ensure that your end type selections match your schema design.

About this task

The process of creating a link type involves not only naming and describing the type itself, but also choosing the semantic type that categorizes it and creating the property types that it contains.

In addition, creating a link type means specifying which types of entities can appear at the ends of links of that type. For example, a link of type Owner might represent associations between entities of type Person, Organization, Property, and Vehicle.

Procedure

To create a link type in Schema Designer:

  1. In the application window, click Insert > New Link Type.

    A New Link Type is added to the list of Link Types in the navigation tree. The Link Type tab displays Name and Description fields that you can edit, as well as an indicator that a semantic type is yet to be assigned.

  2. Provide a name and a description for the new link type.

  3. Next to the Semantic Type field, click Select to choose a semantic type for this link type.

  4. Specify the types of entities that can appear at the "to" and "from" ends of links with this type:

    1. Switch to the Link Ends tab. The From End Types and To End Types lists present all the entity types in the schema as potentially valid link ends.

      Note: This behavior is why it's helpful to create all the entity types before you create the link types.

    2. Select the types of entity that are valid ends for links of this type. If it's valid for an entity type to appear at both ends, you must select it in both lists.

  5. Create the property types that define the data values that links with this type can contain.

Results

The link type is successfully created, complete with your semantic and property type definitions and its link end constraints.