Dynamic database redirection using semantic taxonomy information

• US 20030061060A1
• Filed: 09/27/2001
• Published: 03/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blue Yonder Group, Inc. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: i2 Technologies US Incorporated (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tenorio, Manoel
• Granted Patent: US 7,225,146 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy

Abstract

An electronic commerce system includes one or more seller databases that store product data for one or more products. The system further includes a seller selection interface operable to receive seller requirements from a user and generate one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements. The custom global content directories include a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy with the product classes categorizing a number of products from sellers satisfying the seller requirements and associated with attributes of the products categorized in the product class. At least one of the product classes has associated pointers that identify the on or more of the seller databases. The system further includes a search interface that communicates a search query to the seller databases for product data.

Claims

1. An electronic commerce system applying dynamic database redirection, the system comprising:

one or more seller databases including product data for one or more products;

a seller selection interface operable to receive one or more seller requirements from a user and to generate one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements;

one or more custom global content directories each including a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products from one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements and each product class associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, at least one of the product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify one or more seller databases associated with sellers satisfying the seller requirements; and

a search interface associated with the custom global content directories, the search interface operable to communicate a search query to the seller databases to search the product data stored in the seller databases identified by one of the pointers.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the seller selection interface is further operable to receive one or more product requirements from a user and generate one or more custom global content directories based on the product requirements.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the seller selection interface is further operable to determine a geographic location for the user and one or more languages that correspond to the geographic location of the user and generate custom global content directories where the pointers identify seller databases in the languages corresponding to the geographic location of the user.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein one or more of the pointers identify particular product data in one or more of the seller databases where the product data is associated with sellers satisfying the seller requirements.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the search query comprises desired values, specified by the user, for one or more of the product attributes associated with the selected product class.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the search interface is further operable to:

receive search results from one or more of the seller databases in response to the search query, the search results including product data associated with one or more products satisfying the search query and from sellers satisfying the seller requirements; and

communicate the search results to the user.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the custom global content directories are further operable to:

receive a selection from the user of a product for which product data is included in the search results; and

communicate address information associated with a seller database that includes product data for the selected product, the address information enabling the user to communicate with a seller associated with the seller database who satisfy the seller requirements to conduct a commerce transaction relating to the selected product.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the custom global content directories comprise one or more private global content directories containing product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify product data only available to one or more buyers associated with the private global content directory.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the seller selection interface is further operable to receive an access code from the buyer, the access code operable to allow the buyer to search the product data associated with the private global content directories.

10. A method for dynamic database redirection in an electronic commerce transaction, the method comprising:

receiving one or more seller requirements from a user;

creating one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements, the custom global content directory comprising a directory structure including a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products from one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements and each product class associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, one or more of the product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify a one or more seller databases associated with sellers satisfying the seller requirements;

receiving a selection of a product class from the user, the product class having a pointer identifying one or more of the seller databases;

in response to the selection of the product class by the user, communicating a search query to the seller databases to search the product data.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein one or more of the pointers identify particular product data in one or more of the seller databases where the product data is for sellers satisfying the seller requirements.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving one or more product requirements from a user; and

generating one or more custom global content directories based on the product requirements.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein creating the custom global content directory comprises associating the product classes with product data for one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements.

14. The method of claim 10 further comprising providing multi-language support based upon the geographic location of the user.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein providing multi-language support comprises:

determining a geographic location for the user;

determining one or more languages that correspond to the geographic location of the user; and

creating the custom global content directory using the seller requirements and the one or more languages corresponding to the geographic location of the user.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein communicating a search query to the seller databases comprises communicating the search query to the seller databases associated with the sellers that satisfy the seller requirements.

17. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving search results from one or more of the seller databases in response to the search query, the search results including product data associated with one or more products satisfying the search query from the sellers satisfying the seller requirements; and

communicating the search results to the user.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

receiving a selection from the user of a product for which product data is included in the search results; and

communicating address information associated with a seller database that includes product data for the selected product, the address information enabling the user to communicate with a seller associated with the seller database to conduct a commerce transaction relating to the selected product.

19. The method of claim 10 wherein creating one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements comprises creating one or more private global content directories containing product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify product data only available to one or more buyers associated with the private global content directory.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising receiving an access code from the buyer, the access code operable to allow the buyer to access a private global content directory.

21. Software for dynamic database redirection in an electronic commerce transaction, the software embodied in a computer-readable medium and operable to:

receive one or more seller requirements from a user;

create one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements, the custom global content directory comprising a directory structure including a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products from one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements and each product class associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, one or more of the product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify a one or more seller databases associated with sellers satisfying the seller requirements;

receive a selection of a product class from the user, the product class having a pointer identifying one or more of the seller databases;

in response to the selection of the product class by the user, communicate a search query to the seller databases to search the product data.

22. The software of claim 21 wherein one or more of the pointers identify particular product data in one or more of the seller databases where the product data is for sellers satisfying the seller requirements.

23. The software of claim 21 further operable to:

receive one or more product requirements from a user; and

generate one or more custom global content directories based on the product requirements.

24. The software of claim 21 wherein creating the custom global content directory comprises associating the product classes with product data for one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements.

25. The software of claim 21 further operable to provide multi-language support based upon the geographic location of the user.

26. The software of claim 25 wherein providing multi-language support comprises:

determining a geographic location for the user;

determining one or more languages that correspond to the geographic location of the user; and

creating the custom global content directory using the seller requirements and the one or more languages corresponding to the geographic location of the user.

27. The software of claim 21 wherein communicating a search query to the seller databases comprises communicating the search query to the seller databases associated with the sellers that satisfy the seller requirements.

28. The software of claim 21 further operable to:

receive search results from one or more of the seller databases in response to the search query, the search results including product data associated with one or more products satisfying the search query from the sellers satisfying the seller requirements; and

communicate the search results to the user.

29. The software of claim 28 further operable to:

receive a selection from the user of a product for which product data is included in the search results; and

communicate address information associated with a seller database that includes product data for the selected product, the address information enabling the user to communicate with a seller associated with the seller database to conduct a commerce transaction relating to the selected product.

30. The software of claim 21 wherein creating one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements comprises creating one or more private global content directories containing product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify product data only available to one or more buyers associated with the private global content directory.

31. The software of claim 30 further operable to receive an access code from the buyer, the access code operable to allow the buyer to access a private global content directory.

32. A system for dynamic database redirection in an electronic commerce transaction, the method comprising:

means for receiving one or more seller requirements from a user;

means for creating one or more custom global content directories based on the seller requirements, the custom global content directory comprising a directory structure including a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products from one or more sellers satisfying the seller requirements and each product class associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, one or more of the product classes having one or more associated pointers that identify a one or more seller databases associated with sellers satisfying the seller requirements;

means for receiving a selection of a product class from the user, the product class having a pointer identifying one or more of the seller databases;

in response to the selection of the product class by the user, means for communicating a search query to the seller databases to search the product data.