"Querying Semistructured Data Based on Schema Matching"

Andre Bergholz, Johann Christoph Freytag

Abstract: 
Traditional database management requires design and ensures
declarativity. In the context of semistructured data a more flexible
approach is appropriate due to missing schema information. In this
paper we present a query language based on schema matching.
Intuitively, a query is a pair consisting of what we want and how we
want it. We propose that the former can be achieved by matching a
(partial) schema and the latter by specifying additional
operations. We describe in some detail our notion of schema covering
various concepts typically found in query languages, such as
predicates, variables and paths. We outline the optimization potential
that this modular approach offers and discuss how we use constraints
for query processing.