Learn more about what an Entity is in Innoslate.
What is an Entity?
A shortened definition of an entity, as described in the Lifecycle Modeling Language (LML) Specifications:
An entity is something can exist by itself and is uniquely identifiable. …
Every entity shall have a name or number or description attribute (or combination of the three) to identify it uniquely. The name is a word or small collection of words providing an overview of information about the entity. The number provides a numerical way to identify the entity. The description provides more detail about that entity. …
In terms of the English language, an entity is like a noun.
We applied this LML definition of an entity to the database objects that store information and files in an Innoslate project. In Innoslate, every entity is equipped with a name, number, description, and the option to add additional attributes and establish relationships with other entities. By default, Innoslate's database schema encompasses 22 distinct and unique classes of entities. Each class defines the specific information, such as attributes and relationships, that can be stored within that particular type of entity. These classes mirror the LML Specification 1.4 and makes Innoslate an LML-compliant application.
Innoslate‘s database schema includes 14 parent classes (Action, Artifact, Asset, Characteristic, Connection, Cost, Decision, Equation, Input/Output, Location, Port, Risk, Statement, and Time) and 13 child classes 13 child classes: Conduit (child of Connection), Dependency (child of Connection), Logical (child of Connection), Measure (child of Characteristic), Orbital (child of Location), Physical (child of Location), Port (child of Asset), Requirement (child of Statement), Resource (child of Asset), Task (child of Action), Test Case (child of Action), Transition (child of Action) and Virtual (child of Location).
For example, when you import a requirements document which contains five statements and 15 requirements into Innoslate, the resulting database would consist of one Artifact entity containing an uploaded copy of the original document, five Statement entities and 15 Requirement entities.
Please Note: LML does not claim to solve all of your data capture needs. That is why we have included the ability to extend the default database schema in Innoslate through the Schema Editor feature.
Functions Available for Existing Entities
Below is a list of available functions and a short description for existing entities. Check out the page on Entity View for more information.
| Function | Description |
|---|---|
| Adding an Image | Innoslate allows you to add an image to an entity. |
| Creating Entities | Innoslate allows you to create new entities. |
| Deleting Entities | Innoslate allows you to permanently remove existing entities. |
| Filtering Entities | Innoslate allows you to filter similar entities by labels. |
| Labeling Entities | Innoslate allows you to add a label to an entity. |
| Commenting on Entities | Adding a comment on an entity allows a team member to capture their thoughts and additional details about an entity in order to better collaborate with other team members. |
| Searching for Entities | Innoslate provides the ability to perform searches for specific entities within your project’s database via ‘Search View.’ |
To continue learning about Innoslate Concepts, Click Here.
(Next Article: Entity Data Elements)