Providing navigation objects for communications over a network

• US 20040078294A1
• Filed: 12/22/2000
• Published: 04/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fintegraph, LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Invenda Corporation
• Inventors: Padala, Sailendra, Hendrikse, Norbert, Rollins, Eugene J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,415,429 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/30 Managing network names, e.g. use of aliases or nicknames name-to-address mapping H04L61/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/35 involving non-standard use of addresses for implementing network functionalities, e.g. coding subscription information within the address or functional addressing, i.e. assigning an address to a function
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Communications between participants over a communications link are proxied by an intermediary, such as an Integrated Order Mechanism (IOM). Participants interact with each other through the IOM. The IOM may be transparent to the participants such that they are not aware that the IOM is involved in processing communications. For example, in the context of a transaction by a customer making a purchase from a merchant over the Internet, the IOM facilitates the processing of transactions by processing requests from both the customer and the merchant. Neither the customer nor the merchant may be aware that the transactions are being handled by the IOM. Navigation objects may be provided for the communications over a network. For example, a navigation bar may be included on a merchant web page to provide the customer with a link back to a shopping application provided by the IOM.

Claims

1. A method for processing requests for electronic documents, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

receiving a first request for a first electronic document, wherein the first electronic document is associated with a first address;

providing the first electronic document;

receiving a second request for a second electronic document based upon selection of a first object that is included in the first electronic document, wherein the first object is associated with a second address of the second electronic document;

retrieving the second electronic document;

generating an updated second electronic document that includes a second object associated with the first address; and

providing the updated second electronic document in response to the second request for the second electronic document.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second object is a hyperlink.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the updated second electronic document is a web page.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein

the first electronic document is a first web page,

the second electronic document is a second web page,

the updated second electronic document is an updated second web page, and

the second object is a hyperlink to the first web page.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein

the first electronic document is a first web page that is associated with a shopping application,

the second electronic document is a second web page that is associated with a merchant,

the updated second electronic document is an updated second web page that is generated by the shopping application, and

the second object is a hyperlink to the first web page.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

receiving a third request for a third electronic document based upon selection of a third object that is included in the second electronic document, wherein the third object is associated with a third address of the third electronic document;

retrieving the third electronic document;

generating an updated third electronic document that includes a fourth object that is associated with the first address of the first electronic document; and

providing the updated third electronic document in response to the third request for the third electronic document.

7. A method for processing requests for electronic documents, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

receiving a request for an electronic document that includes one or more relative addresses of one or more other electronic documents;

retrieving the electronic document;

generating a revised electronic document by updating one or more of the one or more relative addresses to specify one or more absolute addresses of the one or more other electronic documents; and

providing the revised electronic document in response to the request for the electronic document.

8. A method for processing requests for electronic documents, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

receiving, at an intermediary, a request for an electronic document that includes at least one document address of one or more other electronic documents;

retrieving the electronic document;

generating, at the intermediary, a revised electronic document by creating at least one modified document address for at least one of the one or more other electronic documents, wherein the modified document address includes both the document address and an intermediary address associated with the intermediary; and

providing the revised electronic document in response to the request for the electronic document.

9. A computer-readable medium for processing requests for electronic documents, the computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of f:

receiving a first request for a first electronic document, wherein the first electronic document is associated with a first address;

providing the first electronic document;

receiving a second request for a second electronic document based upon selection of a first object that is included in the first electronic document, wherein the first object is associated with a second address of the second electronic document;

retrieving the second electronic document;

generating an updated second electronic document that includes a second object associated with the first address; and

providing the updated second electronic document in response to the second request for the second electronic document.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the second object is a hyperlink.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the updated second electronic document is a web page.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein

the first electronic document is a first web page,

the second electronic document is a second web page,

the updated second electronic document is an updated second web page, and

the second object is a hyperlink to the first web page.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein

the first electronic document is a first web page that is associated with a shopping application,

the second electronic document is a second web page that is associated with a merchant,

the updated second electronic document is an updated second web page that is generated by the shopping application, and

the second object is a hyperlink to the first web page.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, further comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out the steps of:

receiving a third request for a third electronic document based upon selection of a third object that is included in the second electronic document, wherein the third object is associated with a third address of the third electronic document;

retrieving the third electronic document;

generating an updated third electronic document that includes a fourth object that is associated with the first address of the first electronic document; and

providing the updated third electronic document in response to the third request for the third electronic document.

15. A computer-readable medium for processing requests for electronic documents, the computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:

receiving a request for an electronic document that includes one or more relative addresses of one or more other electronic documents;

retrieving the electronic document;

generating a revised electronic document by updating one or more of the one or more relative addresses to specify one or more absolute addresses of the one or more other electronic documents; and

providing the revised electronic document in response to the request for the electronic document.

16. A computer-readable medium for processing requests for electronic documents, the computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:

receiving, at an intermediary, a request for an electronic document that includes at least one document address of one or more other electronic documents;

retrieving the electronic document;

generating, at the intermediary, a revised electronic document by creating at least one modified document address for at least one of the one or more other electronic documents, wherein the modified document address includes both the document address and an intermediary address associated with the intermediary; and

providing the revised electronic document in response to the request for the electronic document.

17. A system for processing requests for electronic documents, the system comprising:

an intermediary that is associated with a first electronic document having a first address; and

a server that is associated with a second electronic document having a second address;

wherein the intermediary receives a request for the second electronic document based upon selection of a first object that is included in the first electronic document, wherein the first object is associated with the second address, and

wherein the intermediary retrieves the second electronic document from the server and generates, in response to the request for the second electronic document, an updated second electronic document that includes a second object associated with the first address.