Method and apparatus for dynamic information connection engine

• US 20050262065A1
• Filed: 05/03/2005
• Published: 11/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kayak Software Corporation (Booking Holdings, Inc., fka Priceline Group Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Kayak Software Corporation (Booking Holdings, Inc., fka Priceline Group Inc.)
• Inventors: Winkler, Philipp M.B., Kelly, Stewart A., Barth, Brian E., Janssens, Marcel D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,483,883 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0627 using item specifications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99937 Sorting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99938 Concurrency, e.g. lock management in shared database
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 : Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided for a dynamic information connection engine. User actions are detected on at least one client system. In response, a determination is made whether the user is searching for supported information. When the user is searching for supported information, information is extracted electronically from third party web sites, direct supplier connections, and intermediate databases. Potential information suppliers are automatically selected in response to the detected user search. Queries are formulated from the user search and transferred to each selected supplier over a network coupling. The queries include a request for information. Responses are received from the suppliers, and the responses are used to generate a result list for the user. The result list includes information and query status information. Further, an electronic link may be provided to a web site of each supplier from which the information was derived.

Claims

1-62. -62. (canceled)

63. A search method, comprising:

extracting query information based on input from a user, wherein the query information includes at least one category of a supported information;

pruning a list of at least three suppliers of the supported information to automatically generate a list of at least two suppliers of the supported information based on the query information, wherein the pruning is carried out using at least one server;

searching, via at least one network, at least two supplier sites, each of which searched supplier sites is associated with a respective one of the pruned suppliers, receiving, as a result of the searching, at least one search result for a first one of the searched supplier sites and at least one search result for a second one of the searched supplier sites; and

incrementally presenting the search results to the user, such that the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites is presented to the user before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites.

64. The method of claim 63, wherein the incremental presentation comprises adding the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites to a presentation display which includes the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites.

65. The method of claim 63, wherein the search results are incrementally presented to the user as the search results are received, such that the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites which is received before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites is presented to the user before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites.

66. The method of claim 63, further comprising filtering the received search results to select at least a portion of the search results to be presented to the user based on the input from the user.

67. The method of claim 66, wherein the filtering comprises assigning a score to each search result and not presenting to the user each search result having an assigned score below a first threshold.

68. The method of claim 67, wherein the filtering comprises essentially immediately presenting to the user, upon being received, each search result having an assigned score above a second threshold.

69. The method of claim 68, wherein the filtering comprises comparing each search result having an assigned score below the second threshold and above the first threshold to at least one other search result to determine whether to present the search result having the assigned score below the second threshold and above the first threshold to the user.

70. The method of claim 69, wherein the filtering provides a target number of search results to be presented to the user.

71. The method of claim 70, wherein at least one of the first and second thresholds is selected such that the target number of search results is displayed to the user.

72. The method of claim 63, wherein the searching produces a plurality of search results for each of the searched supplier sites.

73. The method of claim 63, wherein at least a portion of the query information is itinerary information.

74. The method of claim 73, wherein the itinerary information is associated with a reservation selected from the group including:

(a) an airline reservation;

(b) a lodging reservation; and

(c) ground transportation reservations.

75. The method of claim 63, wherein at least one of the extracting, pruning, searching, receiving and presenting is performed in real time.

76. The method of claim 63, wherein the steps are carried out in the order recited.

77. A search system, comprising:

extracting software, which extracting software extracts query information based on input from a user, wherein the query information includes at least one category of a supported information;

pruning software, which pruning software prunes a list of at least three suppliers of the supported information to automatically generate a list of at least two suppliers of the supported information based on the query information, wherein the pruning is carried out using at least one server;

searching software, which searching software searches, via at least one network, at least two supplier sites, each of which searched supplier sites is associated with a respective one of the pruned suppliers,

receiving software, which receiving software receives, as a result of the searching, at least one search result for a first one of the searched supplier sites and at least one search result for a second one of the searched supplier sites; and

presenting software, which presenting software incrementally presents the search results to the user, such that the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites is presented to the user before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites.

78. The system of claim 77, wherein the incremental presentation comprises adding the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites to a presentation display which includes the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites.

79. The system of claim 77, wherein the search results are incrementally presented to the user as the search results are received, such that the search result for the first one of the searched supplier sites which is received before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites is presented to the user before the search result for the second one of the searched supplier sites.

80. The system of claim 77, further comprising filtering software, which filtering software filters the received search results to select at least a portion of the search results to be presented to the user based on the input from the user.

81. The system of claim 80, wherein the filtering comprises assigning a score to each search result and not presenting to the user each search result having an assigned score below a first threshold.

82. The system of claim 81, wherein the filtering comprises essentially immediately presenting to the user, upon being received, each search result having an assigned score above a second threshold.

83. The system of claim 82, wherein the filtering comprises comparing each search result having an assigned score below the second threshold and above the first threshold to at least one other search result to determine whether to present the search result having the assigned score below the second threshold and above the first threshold to the user.

84. The system of claim 83, wherein the filtering provides a target number of search results to be presented to the user.

85. The system of claim 84, wherein at least one of the first and second thresholds is selected such that the target number of search results is displayed to the user.

86. The system of claim 77, wherein the searching produces a plurality of search results for each of the searched supplier sites.

87. The system of claim 77, wherein at least a portion of the query information is itinerary information.

88. The system of claim 87, wherein the itinerary information is associated with a reservation selected from the group including:

(a) an airline reservation;

(b) a lodging reservation; and

(c) ground transportation reservations.

89. The system of claim 77, wherein at least one of the extracting, pruning, searching, receiving and presenting is performed in real time.

90. The system of claim 77, wherein the presenting software comprises display software for displaying to the user a webpage with links associated with each of the presented search results.

91. The system of claim 90, wherein the webpage comprises at least one of HTML and JavaScript.

92. The system of claim 77, wherein the searching software comprises at least two search adapter objects, each of which search adapter objects is associated with a respective one of the supplier sites.

93. The system of claim 92, wherein each search adapter object performs a search independently and asynchronously.

94. A search method, comprising:

obtaining a first search result;

obtaining a second search result; and

incrementally presenting the first search result and the second search result to a user;

wherein the incremental presentation of the first and second search results comprises presenting the first search result to the user before the second search result; and

wherein the incremental presentation of the first and second search results comprises adding the second search result to a presentation display which includes the first search result.

95. The method of claim 94, wherein the incremental presentation of the first and second search results comprises adding the second search result to a template which includes the first search result.

96. The method of claim 95, wherein the template comprises at least one of HTML and JavaScript.