Method of and system for accessing consumer product related information at points of consumer presence on the World Wide Web(WWW) at which UPN-encoded java-applets are embedded within HTML-encoded documents

• US 20060212361A1
• Filed: 10/28/2005
• Published: 09/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thomas J. Perkowski
• Original Assignee: Thomas J. Perkowski
• Inventors: Perkowski, Thomas J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,533,040 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9554 by using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0234 Rebates after completed purchase
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0239 Online discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0611 Request for offers or quotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/16 for devices exhibiting advertisements, announcements, pictures or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

Method of and system for delivering consumer product related information to consumers over the Internet. The system and method involves creating an UPN-encoded Consumer Product Information (CPIR) enabling Applet for each consumer product registered within a manufacturer-managed UPN/URL database management system. Each CPIR-enabling Applet is encapsulated within an executable file and then stored in the UPN/URL database management system. Each CPIR-enabling Applet is searchable and downloadable by, for example, (1) retailers purchasing products from an electronic-commerce enabled product catalog, (2) advertisers desiring to link consumer product information to Web-based product advertisements, or (3) anyone having a legitimate purpose of disseminating such information within the stream of electronic commerce. After downloading and extraction from its encapsulating file, the CPIR-enabling Applet is embedded within an HTML-encoded document associated with, for example, an EC-enabled store, on-line auction site, product advertisement, Internet search engine or directory, and the like. Upon encountering such an Applet-encoded HTML document on the WWW, the consumer need only perform a single mouse-clicking operation to automatically execute the underlying CPIR-enabling Applet (on either the client or server side of the network), causing a UPN-directed search to be performed against the manufacturer-defined UPN/URL Database, and the results thereof displayed in an independent Java GUI, without disturbing the consumer'"'"'s point of presence on the WWW. Preferably, the CPIR-enabling Applets are realized using Java™ technology, although it is understood that alternative technologies can be used to practice the system and methods of the present invention.

Claims

1-33. -33. (canceled)

34. A consumer product information catalog system for operation on the World Wide Web (WWW), said consumer product information catalog system comprising:

a database management subsystem including a relational database containing (i) a plurality of Universal Product Numbers (UPNs) uniquely associated with a plurality of consumer products offered for sale in a stream of commerce, and (ii) a plurality of Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) symbolically linked to each one of said plurality of UPNs, wherein each said categorized URL points to a consumer product related information resource published on the World Wide Web (WWW) supported by the infrastructure of the Internet;

said database management subsystem providing means for manufacturers and/or their agents to dynamically update said relational database,

a Consumer Product Information Request (CPIR) enabling tag containing information related to the location of a computer executable server-side component;

a first Internet information server for publishing a collection of the CPIR-enabling tags on the Internet,

said first Internet information server with means for providing to a consumer'"'"'s Web browser, HTML-encoded documents publishable on the WWW with at least one of the CPIR enabling tags embedded within one of said HTML-encoded documents;

a second Internet information server operably connected to said database management subsystem and the infrastructure of the Internet, with means for detecting when at least one of said CPIR-enabling tags embedded in one of said HTML-encoded documents has been selected by the consumer'"'"'s Web browser, and means for activating said computer executable server-side component;

wherein said means for activating activates said computer executable server-side component, automatically executing a method comprising;

loading and running classes so as to perform a UPN-directed search on said database management subsystem,

conducting a UPN-directed search carried out within said database management subsystem, and

displaying within the consumer'"'"'s Web browser, program results from said UPN-directed search,

said displaying including a GUI in the form of a menu of URLs pointing to consumer product related information resources published on said WWW and symbolically linked to the UPN corresponding to the selected CPIR-enabling tag.

35. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, which further comprises:

license-related information specifying the terms and conditions of use of the system and the conditions under which said computer executable servlet shall operate on domains of the Internet.

36. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said first Internet information server is a Java-enabled information server.

37. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said first Internet information server is an HTTP-type information server.

38. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said first Internet information server is implemented on a first computing system, and said second Internet information server is implemented on a second computing system.

39. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said classes and said method are expressed in the Java programming language.

40. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said GUI is implemented as a Web-based GUI.

41. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said GUI is implemented as a Java-based GUI.

42. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said HTML-encoded document contains a graphical image of the consumer product uniquely associated with the UPN corresponding to the selected CPIR-enabling tag.

43. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein the said CPIR-enabling tag is selected by said consumer'"'"'s Web browser by the consumer performing a mouse-clicking operation.

44. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein the said CPIR-enabling tag is selected by said consumer'"'"'s Web browser by the consumer performing a touch-screen operation.

45. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said second Internet information server is an HTTP-type information server.

46. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said plurality of URLs are categorized.

47. The consumer product information catalog system of claim 34, wherein said computer executable server-side component is a computer executable servlet.

48. An Internet-based electronic commerce (EC) enabled shopping system comprising:

a Web-enabled client subsystem connected to the infrastructure of the Internet;

a Web-enabled information server for serving an EC-enabled WWW site comprising a plurality of interlinked HTML-encoded documents arranged and rendered to provide an electronic store environment for a consumer when served to said Web-enabled client subsystem,

wherein said electronic store environment presenting a plurality of products for purchase and sale by an EC-enabled payment method supported over the Internet,

wherein a consumer product information request (CPIR) enabling tag, associated with each said product, is embedded within at least one of said HTML-encoded documents displayed on said Web-enabled client subsystem, and each said CPIR-enabling tag being associated with an executable server-side component encoded with information related to the universal product number (UPN) assigned to one said product, and

whereby, when the Web-enabled client subsystem encounters one said CPIR-enabling tag, the associated computer executable server-side component is automatically executed, enabling a search to be conducted against a product information database hosted on an Internet database server connected to the Internet, and the results from the search displayed in a GUI served to said Web-enabled client subsystem.

49. The Internet-based electronic commerce (EC) enabled shopping system of claim 48, wherein said computer executable server-side component is a computer executable servlet.

50. A method of purchasing a consumer product over the Internet comprising the steps of:

(a) storing on a first Internet-based information server connected to an information network, a Consumer Product Information Request (CPIR) enabling server-side component encoded with information related to a Universal Product Number (UPN) identifying a particular consumer product;

(b) embedding a CPIR-enabling tag associated with said CPIR-enabling server-side component within the HTML code of a Web page served from a second Internet-based information server;

(c) displaying said Web page with said CPIR-enabling tag embedded therein, on a Web-browser enabled graphical user interface (GUI) running on a client computer operably connected to said information network and accessible by a consumer;

(d) said Web-browser selecting said CPIR-enabling tag embedded within said Web page, so as to automatically initiate said CPIR-enabling server-side component associated with said CPIR-enabling tag to execute on said information network, and request information on the consumer product identified by said UPN to be carried out against an Internet-enabled database server; and

(e) in response to said request, automatically displaying on said Web-browser enabled GUI, information retrieved from said Internet-enabled database server for access and use by said consumer;

wherein said displayed information comprises one or more Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) pointing to one or more EC-enabled stores or on-line catalogs on the World Wide Web (WWW) at which the consumer product identified by said encoded UPN can be purchased by the consumer.

51. The method of purchasing a consumer product over the Internet of claim 50, wherein said CPIR-enabling server-side component is a CPIR-enabling servlet.

52. A cyber-kiosk launchable from a predefined point of presence along the HTML fabric of the World Wide Web (WWW), said cyber-kiosk comprising:

a Consumer Product Information Request (CPIR) enabling server-side component stored on an Internet-enabled information server operably connected to an information network, and encoded with information related to a Universal Product Number (UPN) identifying a particular consumer product; and

a CPIR-enabling tag associated with said CPIR-enabling server-side component, and being embedded within a Web-based document located at a predefined point of presence along the HTML fabric of the WWW;

wherein said Web-based document is served from a Web-based information server operably connected to said information network;

wherein said CPIR-enabling tag is selectable by a Web-browser of a consumer so that said CPIR-enabling server-side component is executed, and a search is conducted against an Internet-enabled database, and the information results from said search are automatically displayed in an independent graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on said Web-browser, and

wherein said displayed information results comprise one or more Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) pointing to one or more information resources on the WWW, at which brand-related information about the consumer product identified by the encoded UPN can be accessed, displayed and reviewed by the consumer.

53. The cyber-kiosk of claim 52, wherein said CPIR-enabling server-side component is a CPIR-enabling servlet.

54. An Internet-based method of electronic commerce (EC) enabled shopping comprising the steps of:

(a) operating an Internet information server connected to the infrastructure of the Internet and supporting the hypertext transmission protocol (http);

(b) operating a Web-enabled client subsystem connected to the infrastructure of the Internet;

(c) serving from said Internet information server, an EC-enabled WWW site comprising a plurality of interlinked HTML-encoded documents arranged and rendered to provide an electronic store environment for a consumer when served to said Web-enabled client subsystem,

wherein said electronic store environment presents a plurality of products for purchase and sale by an EC-enabled payment method supported over the Internet, and

wherein a Consumer Product Information Request (CPIR) enabling tag, associated with each said product, is embedded within at least one of said HTML-encoded documents displayed on said Web-enabled client subsystem, and each said CPIR-enabling tag being associated with a CPIR-enabling server-side component encoded with a Universal Product Number (UPN) assigned to one said product; and

(d) selecting one said CPIR-enabling Servlet tag in one of said HTML-encoded documents, and executing the associated CPIR-enabling server-side component so as to automatically enable a search to be conducted against a product information database hosted on an Internet database server connected to the Internet, and the results from the search displayed in a graphical user interface (GUI) served to said Web-enabled client subsystem.

55. The Internet-based method of claim 54, wherein said CPIR-enabling server-side component is a CPIR-enabling servlet.