Dynamically categorizing entity information

• US 20040267727A1
• Filed: 10/24/2003
• Published: 12/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Titus, Jason Harvey, Woodhead, Ira Joseph, Black, Jeffrey Dean
• Granted Patent: US 7,398,266 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

A set of criteria is acquired that defines a category of entities. The set of criteria is dynamically applied to identify an entity that meets the criteria. It is determined that the entity is registered as having control over at least a portion of a World-Wide Web address. The at least a portion of a World-Wide Web address is associated with the entity in a presentation that indicates that the entity belongs to the category of entities. In the presentation, a link may be included to a set of computer data about the entity. The set of computer data includes information other than information provided at a World-Wide Web site corresponding to the World-Wide Web address.

Claims

1-3. -3. (Cancelled)

4. A system for providing a user with at least one response to a search query of the Internet, the system comprising:

a user interface, the user interface effective to receive a search query from a user;

a web page record database connected to the user interface, the web page record database including a plurality of records, the plurality of records including a response to the search query;

a search engine module connected to both the user interface and the web page record database, the search engine module effective to search the web page record database for the response;

an entity information database including information about entities; and

a mapping database connected to the web page record database and the entity information database, the mapping database including information for mapping the records with respective entities.

5. The system as recited in claim 4, wherein the mapping database uses American Business Information Numbers.

6. The system as recited in claim 4, wherein the entity information database includes geographic information about the entities.

7. The system as recited in claim 4, wherein the entity information database uses Standard Industry Code Fields.

8. The system as recited in claim 4, wherein the mapping database maps a particular entity to a plurality of records.

9. The system as recited in claim 4, wherein the entity information database includes information from EDGAR.

10. A method for providing a user at least one response to a search query of the Internet, the method comprising:

receiving a search query from a user;

searching a web page record database for a response to the search query;

mapping the response to an entity associated with the response; and

displaying the response and a name of the entity to the user.

11. The method as in claim 10 wherein the search query is based on a hierarchical category structure.

12. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the mapping uses American Business Information Numbers.

13. The method as recited in claim 10, further comprising displaying geographic information about the entity.

14. A method for providing a user with at least one response to a search query of the Internet, the method comprising:

receiving a search query from a user in the form of category selection;

determining at least one entity associated with the search query;

determining at least one URL under the control of the entity; and

displaying the URL to the user.

15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the determining at least one entity is performed through the use of SIC codes.

16. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the category selection comes from a hierarchical category structure.

17. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the search query includes geographic criteria and the method further comprises filtering the at least one URL based on the geographic criteria before performing the displaying.

18. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the geographic criteria is a city.

19. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the at least one URL includes a plurality of URLs and the plurality of URLs are displayed to the user in an order of popularity.

20. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising displaying a name of the entity.

21. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the displaying includes displaying a plurality of URLs and the method further comprises enabling the user to execute a search in only the plurality of URLs.