System and Method for Automated Discovery, Binding, and Integration of Non-Registered Geospatial Web Services

• US 20100088308A1
• Filed: 11/30/2009
• Published: 04/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The United States of America As Represented By The Secretary of Agriculture
• Original Assignee: The Government Of The United States Of America, As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy
• Inventors: Shulman, Lev I., McCreedy, Frank P., Sample, John T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,024,318 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/709
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/919 Geographic
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/921 Spatial

Abstract

A method and computer system for identifying internet web pages containing documents that comply with a predetermined XML schema. The method includes searching the internet with a search engine for web pages using initial search terms and identifying a first set of HTTP URLs, web crawling at least the first set of HTTP URLs to identify additional HTTP URLs, appending a query to the identified URLs, and evaluating the responses to the query to determine which responses comply with the predetermined XML schema. The XML schema can be a Web Mapping Services schema. The system can store responses that comply with the XML schema in a database of servers, periodically check the database for validity, and convert the map requests for map servers in the database to a GIDB Portal Interface API.

Claims

1. A computer-based method for providing a single point of access to geospatial information system web services, comprising:

periodically searching the internet with an internet search algorithm for for HTTP URLs that include WMS Servers or links to WMS Servers; and

determining whether a web service found by the internet search algorithm is valid by engaging the web service in a query-response interchange.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing the valid web service in a list of available web services.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by a geospatial portal, a map request from a remote computer; and

transferring documents on the stored list of valid web services from the geospatial portal to the remote computer.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the transferred documents appear to the remote computer user to come from a single service.

5. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

designating sources of information or web services which return a valid response as valid; and

adding the valid sources of information or web services to the list of sources available to users.

6. A computer-based system including a server connected to the internet and having software for providing a single point of access to geospatial information system web services, the system including computer readable media with stored instructions configured to:

periodically search the internet with an internet search algorithm; and

determine whether a web service is valid by engaging the web services in a query-response interchange.

7. The system of claim 6, the instructions further configured to:

store the valid web service in a list of available web services.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a geospatial portal configured to receive a a map request from a remote computer and to transfer documents to the remote computer from the stored list of valid web services.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein the transferred documents appear to the remote computer user to come from a single service.

10. The system according to claim 7, the instructions further configured to:

designate sources of information or web services which return a valid response as valid and add the sources of information or web services to the list of sources available to users.