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UI Categories

The Helmholtz KG Web UI organizes all content into eight main categories. These are displayed as clickable cards on the Search Results Overview page and as tabs in the navigation bar on the Search Results page. Understanding these categories helps you quickly navigate to the type of resource you are looking for.

Main Categories

Each record in the Knowledge Graph is assigned to one primary category in the UI.

CategoryContainsTypical Examples
DatasetsResearch data files and collectionsData files, measurement outputs, experimental results
SoftwareTools, code, and software packagesApplications, libraries, analysis scripts, pipelines
DocumentsPublications and written resourcesPapers, technical reports, preprints, deliverables
InstrumentsScientific instruments and equipmentSensors, measurement devides, large scale infrastructure
PeopleResearchers and contributorsScientists, engineers, data stewards
InstitutionsOrganisations and research bodiesHelmholtz research centres, universities, funding bodies
EventsScientific and community eventsAcademic events, community meetings, training activities
Data CatalogsCurated collections of datasetsRepositories and data portals

💡 Tip: Categories with no results for your current search appear greyed out on the Overview page and cannot be selected. If an expected category shows zero results, try broadening or refining your search.


Relation of UI categories and Graph semantics

The underlying Knowledge Graph contains more than 20 semantic types, which cannot all be represented as separate UI categories. To simplify navigation, multiple semantic types are grouped into a smaller set of user-facing categories.

While the UI displays eight categories, the original semantic types are preserved. They are shown in result cards and can be used as filters to further refine results within a category.

A single record may have multiple semantic types. For example, a scholarly article may also be classified as a schema:CreativeWork, or a software resource may also be linked to a schema:Dataset. Depending on its assigned types, a record may therefore appear in more than one category.

The table below shows how semantic types are grouped into UI categories:

CategorySemantic Types
Documentsschema:CreativeWork, schema:ScholarlyArticle, schema:Report, schema:Thesis, schema:Article, schema:Periodical, schema:Book, schema:Chapter, schema:Dataset, schema:PresentationDigitalDocument, schema:Collection, schema:Event, schema:WebPage
Datasetsschema:Dataset
Softwareschema:CreativeWork, schema:SoftwareSourceCode, schema:SoftwareApplication
Instrumentsdatacite:Instrument, schema:CreativeWork
Peopleschema:Person
Institutionsschema:Organization, schema:FundingAgency, schema:GovernmentOrganization, schema:EducationalOrganization, schema:NGO
Eventsschema:Event
Data Catalogsschema:DataCatalog

Using Categories Effectively

The following practices can help you navigate the UI more effectively:

  • Start by checking the category overview to ensure you are exploring the most relevant type of resource.
  • If unsure where a resource belongs, use the Overview page - the category with the highest result count is often a good starting point.
  • Be aware that the same entity may appear in multiple categories, depending on how it is described in the source metadata.
  • Use the “Semantic Type” filter within a category to narrow results to more specific entity types.