Creating entity types

Entity types are the templates that describe how entities - the real-world objects that your data represents - are stored, analyzed, and visualized in i2 applications. When you create entity types, provide as much information as you can for the developers and analysts who will use them.

About this task

The process of creating an entity 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.

Procedure

To create an entity type in Schema Designer:

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

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

  2. Provide a name and a description for the new entity type, and select the icon that entities with this type have by default in visualizations.

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

  4. Create the property types that define the data values that entities with this type can contain.

Results

The entity type is successfully created, complete with your semantic and property type specifications.