2023.1:XML Schema Integration (Functionality)

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20252023.1

XML Schema Integration refers to Grooper's ability to use XML schemas to build Data Models, extract XML documents, and more.

You may download and import the file(s) below into your own Grooper environment (version 2023.1). There is a Batch with the example document(s) discussed in this tutorial, as well as a Project configured according to its instructions.

Given the proprietary nature of SharePoint and Database connections, the connection objects and their configurations cannot be shared.
Please upload the Project to your Grooper environment before uploading the Batch. This will allow the documents within the Batch to maintain their classification status.

**The XML Schemas and Files.zip file is not a Grooper ZIP file, therefore it is not meant to be uploaded into Grooper. Instead, unzip the contents of this file normally.**

About

The XML format has been around since 1996 and, from a business perspective, can play a large role in your ability to organize data. This article will focus chiefly on XML Schemas and how Grooper can leverage them to define Data Model structures and control how data is exported out of Grooper.

How To

XML Schemas

Grooper's XML schema integration was borne from our EDI schema integration. For more information, check out the #FYI: EDI Integration - The Precursor to XML Schema Integration section of this article. EDI schemas are incredibly useful if you are working with that specific style of template. However, each EDI schema is industry specific. They are useless outside of their specific use case.

XML schemas, on the other hand, are ubiquitous across businesses and industries and can be leveraged in a similar way. They are way of outlining a hierarchical data structure in an easily transportable file format.

Follow the instructions in the screenshots below for more information on integrating XML schemas into Grooper's processing.

Adding .xsd Resource File

Just about any file can be added as a Resource File object in Grooper. For XML schemas the .xsd file standard will be used.

  • Drag files from a File Explorer window into a Project in Grooper to create a Resource File object.

Creating Data Elements from .xsd Resource File

We can now leverage the added Resource File object as a reference to create "Data Elements" from the schema.

  1. Right-click the "Simple Schema Ex" Data Model and select Import Schema.
  2. In the "Import Schema" dialog click the drop-down for the Source property and choose XML Schema Importer.
  3. Expand the sub-properties of the Source property.
  4. In the drop-down for the Schema File property choose the file "example xml schema.xsd".


  • This action has created all the necessary "Data Elements" in our model according to the XML schema.


  • A more complex schema will have different elements that will create different objects in a Data Model in Grooper. Grooper understands the hierarchy of the .xsd file and can make appropriate objects like Data Sections and their child Data Fields, etc.

Execute Activity to Validate XML Schemas

Configure the Batch Process Step

We can leverage an XML schema file to validate if a document matches a provided schema.

  1. Select the "Execute" Batch Process Step in the "Schema Processing Example" Batch Process
  2. Click the ellipsis button for the Commands property which will open the "Commands" dialog box.
  3. In the "Commands" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a Command and set it to XML File - Validate Schema. You will see a command added to the command list.
  4. Expand the Command sub-properties and click the drop-down for the Schema File property.
  5. From the drop-down menu, select the .xsd file you would like to validate against, in this case we will choose "shiporder schema.xsd". Click the "OK" button to confirm changes and close the dialog box.


Test the Batch Process Step

  1. Click the "Activity Tester" tab.
  2. Select the documents from the "XML Docs - Batch".
  3. Click the test activity button.
  4. Note that "Document (2)" gets flagged, and upon inspection you will notice its XML format does not match the provided schema.

Execute Activity to Collect XML Data

Configure the Batch Process Step

The XML File - Load Data command can be used to collect data from XML files. As with all Grooper commands, an Execute step can be added to apply the command in a Batch Process.

  1. Select the "Execute (1)" step in the "Schema Processing Example" Batch Process
  2. Click the ellipsis button for the Commands property which will open the "Commands" dialog box.
  3. In the "Commands" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a Command and set it to XML File - Load Data. You will see a command added to the command list.


Test the Batch Process Step

  1. Click the "Activity Tester" tab.
  2. Select the "shiporder (1)" document from the "XML Docs - Batch".
  3. Click the test activity button
  4. Because this document is classified as a Document Type that belongs to a model that matches its schema, its contents will be appropriately extracted into the correct "Data Elements".


  • Feel free to use the "Review" activity with the Data Viewer to view the extracted data.

Export XML Format

XML Formats for the Export of data from Grooper are quite powerful, because in spite of the fact that there are a myriad of ways in Grooper to export data directly to backend systems, plenty of businesses still prefer to use this format to control how data enters whatever system they are using.

You can define the structure of your XML Format output by leveraging .xsd schema files.

FYI

The XML File - Format command can format your output XML file in one of two ways:

  • None: This option will strip out any control characters and indentions from your XML file. This will make the file less readable to a human but smaller in file size.
  • Indented: This option will insert control characters and indentions into your XML file. This will make the file more readable to a human but larger in file size.


Like all commands, XML File - Format can be applied in a Batch Process by adding it to an Execute step.

XML Format as an Attachment Using the Merge Activity

An XML Format can be created as an attachment to a document by using the Merge activity. This attachment can later be leveraged by the Export activity.

  1. Select the "Merge" step in the "XML Merge/Export Format Process".
  2. Set the Merge Format property to XML Format.
  3. Define the naming of the attachment using the appropriate path expression on the Attachment Name property and click the drop-down for the "Content Type" property to select an appropriate type.
  4. Click the ellipsis button for the Merge Format property to open its dialog.
  5. From the "Merge Format" dialog box, select an appropriate file for the Schema File property.
  6. You can choose to use any of the other "General" properties in the "Merge Format" dialog to control how the XML Format will be built.

XML Format through Export Behavior

The functionality of the Merge activity is also built into the Export activity and can be handled by an Export Behavior.

  1. Select a "Content Type".
  2. Click the ellipsis button for the Behaviors property to open the "Behaviors" dialog box.
  3. In the "Behaviors" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add an Export Behavior, and click the ellipsis button for the Export Definitions property to open the "Export Definitions" dialog box.
  4. In the "Export Definitions" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a File Export export definition and click the ellipsis button for the Export Formats property to open the "Export Formats" dialog box.
  5. In the "Export Formats" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a XML Format, then select an appropriate file for the Schema File property, and choose any of the other "General" properties in the "Export Format" dialog to control how the XML Format is created.

FYI: EDI Integration - The Precursor to XML Schema Integration

XML Schema Integration was actually born from a necessity for Grooper to efficiently collect data from medical EDI files. Therefore, we will begin our understanding of Grooper's XML integration by learning how Grooper's EDI integration works. Below we will work with a mocked up EOB form.


Follow the instructions in the screenshots below.

  1. With the "EDI Integration - Batch" selected...
  2. ...on the "Viewer" tab...
  3. ...we can see the contents of this EDI file. This is a standardized format used by businesses to send data in a way that might typically be seen in the form of a document like an "Invoice" or "EOB Form". Understanding the structure of this document, especially to the untrained eye, is daunting at best. Grooper will do the hard work for us.

Selecting an EDI Schema

There is a massive library of EDI standards, and Grooper has built into a small selection of X12 schemas to choose from. These act as templates that will populate a Data Model with all the appropriate "Data Elements" necessary to house all data from a given format.

  1. Right-click on the "EDI Integration" Data Model and choose Import Schema.
  2. Check the Remove Existing property if you want to remove existing "Data Elements" from the model.
  3. In the "Import Schema" dialog click the drop-down for the Source property and choose EDI Schema Importer.
  4. Once set, expand the sub-properties of Source.
  5. Choose X12 837 Professional in the drop-down for the X12 Schema property.


  • This action has created a massive assortment of requisite "Data Elements" for the chosen standard, including validation.

Execute Activity to Collect EDI Data

Configure the Batch Process Step

Extraction using EDI Schemas does not leverage the standard Extract activity. Instead, the Execute activity will be used.

  1. Select the "Execute" Batch Process Step in the "EDI Process" Batch Process.
  2. Click the ellipsis button for the Commands property which will open the "Commands" dialog box.
  3. In the "Commands" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a Command and set it to EDI File - Load Data. You will see a command added to the command list.
  4. Click the ellipsis button for the Mappings property which will open the "Mappings" dialog box.
  5. In the "Mappings" dialog box, click the "Add" button to add a Mapping and set the Schema Name property to X12 837 Professional". You will see a mapping added to the mapping list.
  6. Click the drop-down for the "Content Type" property and set it to the 837 Prof Document Type. Click "OK" to confirm changes and close all dialog boxes.

Test the Batch Process Step

  1. With the "Execute" Batch Process Step selected, go to the "Activity Testing" tab.
  2. Select the document from the "EDI Integration - Batch" in the "Batch Viewer".
  3. Click the "Test" button to test the activity and get extraction results.

Data View to see Results

  1. To view results, go to the "Data Review" Batch Process Step.
  2. Go to the "Activity Tester" tab.
  3. Select the "EDI Integration - Batch" in the "Batch Viewer".
  4. Click the Test button to test the activity.


  • In the Data Viewer you will see that the appropriate data was collected.

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