TRANSLATING AND GEOCODING ADDRESSES

• US 20110161334A1
• Filed: 12/28/2009
• Published: 06/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Sharma, Nityanand, John, Josy, Sivakkolundhu, Premanand, Chatterjee, Sutap
• Granted Patent: US 8,271,510 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases

Abstract

A device may include a memory and a processor. The memory may be configured to store a regular address database and store a translated address database. The processor may be configured to perform a lookup, in the regular address database, of a regular address that corresponds to a working address. In addition, the processor may be further configured to determine whether the working address is qualified to be converted into an address comprising aliases that correspond to terms in the working address when the regular address is not found in the translated address database, and convert the working address to generate a first translated address when the working address is qualified to be converted.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a memory configured to;

store a regular address database, and

store a translated address database; and

a processor configured to;

perform a lookup, in the regular address database, of a regular address that corresponds to a working address,

determine whether the working address is qualified to be converted into an address comprising aliases that correspond to terms in the working address when the regular address is not found in the translated address database; and

convert the working address to generate a first translated address when the working address is qualified to be converted.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the regular address database includes a database of United States Postal Service (USPS) addresses.

3. The device of claim 1, further comprising:

a network interface configured to;

receive a request for a translated address from a remote device; and

send the first translated address to the remote device in response to the request.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the regular address includes:

an address that exactly matches the working address, and the processor is further configured to;

generate and store a geocode associated with the address.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the regular address includes:

an address that does not exactly match the working address, and wherein the processor is further configured to;

generate and store a geocode associated with the second address.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the geocode comprises a United States National Grid (USNG) code or a Natural Area Code (NAC) code.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive, from a remote device, a request for translated addresses corresponding to locations that are within a particular search area;

retrieve the translated addresses that correspond to the request from the translated address database; and

send the translated addresses that correspond to the request to the remote device.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the search area includes a square whose boundaries are longitudes and latitudes.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a request to search translated addresses that are to become final addresses pending an operator approval.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

identify a record in the translated address database based on a second working address; and

delete the record when the record in the translated address database is identified.

11. A method comprising:

receiving a request to translate a working address from a first remote device;

performing a lookup, in a regular address database, of a regular address that corresponds to the working address;

determining whether the working address is qualified to be automatically converted into an address comprising aliases that correspond to terms in the working address when the regular address is not found in the translated address database;

converting the working address to generate a first translated address when the working address is qualified to be converted; and

transmitting the first translated address to the first remote device or a second remote device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

generating a geocode based on a longitude and latitude associated with the regular address.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes at least one of:

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when the working address is not qualified to be converted;

or

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when the working address does not match the regular address.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

recognizing a community name, zip code, street name, and service location in the working address; and

obtaining aliases, in an order of importance, for the recognized company name, zip code, street name, and service location.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when the regular address includes an alias of a different state than a state indicated in the working address;

or

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when translated addresses of a range of house numbers in the working address do not have a same street name alias.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when a thoroughfare tag in the working address does not match a thoroughfare alias in the regular address corresponding to the working address;

or

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when a house number suffix is mapped to a supplemental address;

or

removing a hyphen in a street number of the translated address.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

determining that the working address matches the regular address when a community name in the working address and a corresponding community alias in the regular address are different, and when the community alias is equivalent to a postal area name or prime zip code area; and

sending the working address to an operator when the working address does not match the regular address.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

determining whether a zip code for the working address exists within a zip code table when the zip code is the only difference between the working address and the regular address;

determining whether house numbers in a range have the same zip code when the zip code is determined to exist;

completing translation of the working address when the house numbers in the range have the same zip code; and

sending the working address to the operator for review when the zip code does not exist in the zip code table or when the house numbers in the range do not have the same zip code.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

mapping supplemental tags in the working address to a supplemental aliases that appear in regular addresses; and

sending the working address to an operator to be reviewed when there is no supplemental alias that corresponds to a supplemental tag in the working address.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

sending the working address to an operator when a directional tag in the working address differs from a directional alias in the regular address;

or

completing translation of the working address when a relative position of a directional tag in the working address differs from a relative position of a corresponding directional alias in the regular address.

21. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

completing translation of the working address when a directional tag, which corresponds to a directional alias in the regular address, in the working address does not exist;

or

completing translation of the working address when a directional tag in the working address is a first word of a street name, when a corresponding directional alias in the regular address is an abbreviation, and when a remainder of the working address matches a remainder of the regular address.

22. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

sending the working address to an operator when a directional tag in the working address is a first word of a street name, when a corresponding directional alias in the regular address is an abbreviation, and when a remainder of the working address does not match a remainder of the regular address.

23. The method of claim 11, wherein the converting the working address includes:

completing translation of the working address when a street name in the working address is a number, being expressed in numeric characters or alphabet and when a street name in the regular address is the same number, being expressed in either numeric characters or alphabet; and

sending the working address to an operator when spelling of the working address exactly matches spelling of the regular address and when a last word of a street address in the working address is a thoroughfare tag and a last word of the street name in the regular address is part of the street address and not a thoroughfare alias.