Rules Editor

This topic is for AquilaCRS

Introduction

AquilaCRS contains a sophisticated rules-based validation engine. The rules are authored by the dataset designers for each clinical speciality and are stored in the database. Rules can be remotely updated from data files provided via the Internet. The Rules Editor software can be used to create & edit these files.

Basic operations

Namely: File New, Open, Save, Save As, Close & Exit

• Allows the user to open rules files in the editor.
• Each file opens in a new tab.
• New files will prompt for a filename on first saving
• File > Save As will ask for confirmation before saving to a file that already exists. If you agree, then the existing file will be overwritten. There is no undo
• To make a copy of a file open it in the Rules Editor, and then immediate choose File > Save As & give the file a new name/location.

Merging Two Rules Files

It can be useful to isolate your rules in two or more files for the purpose of clarity. Ultimately you will need to supply the rules as a single file, and this is where merge comes in. The process is:

• Select File > New to create a blank rules file.
• Select File > Save As to give this file a new name
• Select Tools > Merge rules file and select an existing Rules file
• Repeat the above step for each file you wish to merge.
• Once you have merged all your required files, choose File > Save.

Importing from F_Importance files

• F_Importance files are a tab delimited file defining Importance Rules.
• F_Importance files consist of 3 columns, in order:
  • [Table Name]
  • [Field Name]
  • [Importance]
• Importance is an integer value betwee 1 & 3.

Select Tools > Import F_IMPT file from the menu and select the file you wish to convert. It will appear as a normal rules file in the editor. You will be asked to choose a file name when you first save the file.

Editing Rules

Rules Display

• The rules are displayed in a tree format.
• The first level node is the name of the set of rules.
• The second level nodes are the tables.
• Grouped beneath the table nodes are the fields for that table
• Beneath the fields nodes, are the rules for that field.

Nodes can be expanded or collapsed by clicking on the triangle icon next to the node, or by double clicking on the node. There are also Collapse all and Expand all options

Rules Header

• Click on the top-level node and the Rules Header information will be shown.
• The rules header consists of various tags.
• The Version tag is mandatory. This is checked by the AquilaCRS clinical application when checking online for new rule versions.
• The ImportanceVersion tag is mandatory for files that are imported from F_Importance files. This is the version from the F_Importance file.
• The Title tag is optional, and is just for display purposes in the rules editor.