Abstract
The main aim of a multidatabase system (MDBS) is to achieve data integration and interoperability among distributed and heterogeneous database systems. But data model heterogeneity and schema heterogeneity make this a challenging task. Multidatabase users can only view the global schemas whose real data come from local database systems. Thus, mappings from global schemas to local schemas should be established. At the same time, the recent emergence of XML has shown great attractability as a new standard for data representation and exchange on the web. Data model based on XML becomes more suitable for integrating different types of systems. This paper firstly introduces a multidatabase common data model based on XML, named XML-based Integrated Data Model (XIDM). Then, an approach of schema mappings based on XIDM in MDBSs has been presented. Finally, the illustration and implementation of schema mappings in a multidatabase prototype - Panorama are also discussed.