RULE PROCESSING METHOD, APPARATUS AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIUM TO PROVIDE IMPROVED SELECTION ADVICE

• US 20090228420A1
• Filed: 05/18/2009
• Published: 09/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mineral Lassen LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Verde Sabor Assets LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Mair, Douglas M., Huelsman, David L., Love, Sharon E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,055,604 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 706/47
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A computer-implemented method, apparatus therefore, and/or computer-readable medium to provide selection advice during rule processing to help a user choose desired specifications of a product, service or other rule-based system characterized by a ZDD rule model having one or more Include and/or Exclude rules. One aspect includes displaying on a monitor or other I/O device multiple attributes having multiple enumerations that identify possible feature, specifications, or conditions of a product; selecting multiple alternative enumerations of the attributes; determining a selection advice for each enumeration selected; combining the selection advice for each enumerations in order to produce a result; communicating the result to an end user; and then using the result to choose a product having desired compliant specifications or conditions. The product may include a service offering. Another aspect include, based on user selections, removing nonessential information inherent in a relevant rule set and propagating (determining in advance) selection advice regarding other enumerations based on values of related rule components.

Claims

1. In a rule processing method utilizing a Zero-suppress Decision Diagram (ZDD) rule model to define compliant features characterized by attributes and enumerations of a product or service, a computer-implemented method of providing selection advice to choose among compliant features characterized by multiple rule components of the ZDD rule model, the method comprising:

identifying a central one of the rule components having a pending value of an enumeration not yet selected;

determining selection advice for at least one enumeration of at least one rule component directly related to the central one of the rule components based on possible selections of enumerations of other rule components directly related to the central one of the rule components but indirectly related to the at least one rule component responsive to the identifying;

displaying results of the selection advice based on the possible selections of the enumerations; and

using the results to choose among enumerations that render specifications of the product or service compliant;

where each of the multiple rule components directly relates to the central one of the rule components; and

where the at least one rule component does not directly relate to at least another of the multiple rule components.

2. The method of claim 1, where the determining includes combining an attribute relation ZDD representative of the central one of the rule components with an attribute relations ZDD of the ZDD rule model.

3. The method of claim 1, where the central one of the rule components has a mutually exclusive Exclude relationship with multiple other rule components, and the determining includes assigning a negative selection value to entire selections of other rule components related to the central one of the rule components when a negative selection is denoted for the one other rule component.

4. The method of claim 1, where the central one of the rule components for which a selection is pending relates to other rule components through an Exclude relationship and the determining includes propagating a negative selection value to entire enumeration values of a rule component under examination when other components related to the central one of the rule components also have a negative value asserted.

5. The method of claim 1, where the determining includes searching through Exclude rules to remove non-essential information by removing covers detected therein whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules.

6. The method of claim 1, where the determining includes searching through Exclude rules to detect and remove cyclic covers whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules.

7. For use in a computer-implemented rule processing system that uses a ZDD rule model having multiple ZDD rule components to define compliant specifications of a product or service, a computing device programmed to provide selection advice to render the rule model compliant after receiving an indication of non-compliancy thereof to guide selection of compliant specifications, the rule components being related to a common one of the multiple rule components, the device comprising:

an I/O interface to receive inputs from and to communicate results in response to selections; and

a processor having program instructions

to effect acquisition of inputs,

to identify a common one of the rule components of the ZDD rule model having a pending selection of an enumeration,

to determine selection advice for at least one enumeration of at least one rule component directly related to the common one of the rule components based on possible selections of enumerations of other rule components directly related to the common one of the rule components but indirectly related to the at least one rule component responsive to the identifying; and

to communicate the selection advice based on the possible selections of the enumerations whereby enable choosing among enumerations that render features of the product or service compliant.

8. The device of claim 7, where the common one of the rule components has a mutually exclusive Exclude relationship with at least one other rule component, and the processor includes program instructions to assign a negative selection value to entire selections of other rule components related to the common rule component when a negative selection is denoted for the one other rule component.

9. The device of claim 7, where the common one of the rule components for which a selection is pending relates to other rule components by an Exclude relationship and the processor includes program instructions to propagate a negative selection value to entire enumeration values of a rule component under examination when other components related to the common one of the rule components also have a negative value asserted.

10. The device of claim 7, where the processor includes program instructions to effect searching through Exclude rules to remove non-essential information by removing covers detected therein whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules.

11. The device of claim 7, where the processor includes program instructions to effect searching through Exclude rules to detect and remove cyclic covers whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules and to reduce processing time.

12. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor result in:

utilizing a ZDD rule model to define compliant features including attributes and enumerations of a product or service;

providing selection advice to guide selection of a desired set of compliant features characterized by multiple rule components of the ZDD rule model;

identifying a common one of the rule components having a pending selection of an enumeration;

determining selection advice for at least one enumeration of at least one rule component directly related to the common one of the rule components based on possible selections of enumerations of other rule components directly related to the common one of the rule components but indirectly related to the at least one rule component responsive to the identifying;

communicating the selection advice based on the possible selections of the enumerations whereby to enable choosing among enumerations that render features of the product or service compliant.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 12, where the common one of the rule components has a mutually exclusive Exclude relationship with one other rule component and the computer-readable medium includes program instructions to assign a negative selection value to entire selections of other rule components related to the common central one of the rule components when a negative selection value is denoted for the one other rule component.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 12, where the common one of the rule components for which a selection is pending relates to other rule components by an Exclude relationship, the computer-readable medium further including propagate instructions to propagate a negative selection value to entire enumeration values of a rule component under examination when other components related to the common one of the rule components have negative advice asserted.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 12 further including program instructions to effect searching through Exclude rules to remove nonessential information by removing covers detected therein whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 12 further including program instructions to effect searching through Exclude rules to detect and remove cyclic covers whereby to reduce the complexity of the Exclude rules.

17. For use in a computer-implemented rule processing system that employs a ZDD rule model having multiple ZDD rule components to define compliant conditions of a rule-based system, a computing device programmed to provide selection advice in selecting compliant ones of the conditions wherein the selection advice indicates that at least one attribute or enumeration to choose to satisfy the rule model in response to an unsatisfied condition, the device comprising:

an I/O interface to receive inputs from and to communicate a result in response to user selections; and

a processor having programs instructions;

to effect acquisition of inputs,

to identify a common rule component of the ZDD rule model having a pending selection of a condition,

to determine selection advice for at least one enumeration of at least one rule component directly related to the common rule component based on possible selections of enumerations of other rule components directly related to the common rule components but indirectly related to the at least one rule component responsive to the identifying; and

to provide the alternative selections via the I/O interface thereby to enable choosing compliant conditions of the rule-based system according to multiple alternative choices of conditions.

18. In a rule processing method utilizing a BDD rule model to define compliant features characterized by attributes and enumerations of a product or service, a computer-implemented method of providing selection advice to guide choosing among compliant features characterized by multiple rule components of the BDD rule model that are related to a central one of the multiple rule components, the method comprising:

identifying the central one of the rule components having a pending value of an enumeration not yet selected;

determining selection advice for at least one enumeration of at least one rule component directly related to the central one of the rule components based on possible selections of enumerations of other rule components directly related to the central one of the rule components but indirectly related to the at least one rule component responsive to the identifying;

displaying results of the selection advice based on the possible selections of the enumerations; and

using the results to choose among enumerations that render specifications of the product or service compliant.