SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ONLINE COMPATIBILITY MATCHING AND RANKING

• US 20130282745A1
• Filed: 04/20/2012
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eHarmony Incorporated (ParshipMeet Holding GmbH)
• Original Assignee: eHarmony Incorporated (ParshipMeet Holding GmbH)
• Inventors: Essas, Joseph, Mishra, Arvind, Steiner, Greg, Lewis, Ashley, Twomey, Cormac, Barker, Ryan
• Granted Patent: US 8,782,038 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce

Abstract

The field of the invention relates to systems and methods for operation of a matching service, and more particularly to systems and methods that enable online compatibility matching and ranking. In a preferred embodiment, the system includes a matching system server coupled to a public network and accessible to one or more users. The matching system server includes a database that stores match profile data associated with the one more users, wherein the match profile data includes self-identified preferences. The matching server system is configured to correlate a first user'"'"'s match profile data with one or more of the plurality of users'"'"' match profile data to identify a set of potential matches for the first user based on a relaxed set of self-identified preferences and calculate a compatibility value for each match in the set of potential matches.

Claims

1. A computer-based system for presenting interpersonal relationship analysis, comprising:

a matching server system, operatively coupled to a public network, having a database that stores match profile data associated with a plurality of users, wherein the match profile data includes self-identified preferences, wherein the matching server system is configured to;

correlate a first user'"'"'s match profile data with one or more of the plurality of users'"'"' match profile data;

identify an initial set of potential matches for the first user based on the self-identified preferences;

calculate one or more compatibility values for each potential match in the initial set of potential matches and remove each potential match that does not satisfy one or more compatibility scores;

after the calculation step, if the number of potential matches does not meet a minimum threshold value, then identify an expanded set of potential matches for the first user based on a relaxed set of self-identified preferences.

2. The computer-based system of claim 1, wherein the matching server system is further configured to sort each potential match by compatibility value.

3. The computer-based system of claim 1, wherein the matching server system enables a first user to initiate electronic communication with a potential match that satisfies one or more compatibility scores.

4. The computer-based system of claim 1 wherein the one or more compatibility values indicate whether a match may have a successful romantic relationship.

5. The computer-based system of claim 1 wherein the one or more compatibility values indicate whether a match may have a successful professional relationship.

6. The computer-based system of claim 1, wherein the self-identified preferences are assigned different importance levels by the first user and the relaxed set of self-identified preferences excludes a self-identified preference having the lowest importance level.

7. The computer based system of claim 1, wherein the relaxed set of self-identified preferences excludes all initial self-identified preferences.

8. An electronic process for presenting interpersonal relationship analysis, comprising:

storing match profile data associated with a plurality of users in an electronic database, wherein the match profile data includes a set of self-identified preferences;

correlating a first user'"'"'s match profile data with one or more of the plurality of users'"'"' match profile data within the database;

identifying a set of potential matches for the first user based on the set of self-identified preferences;

calculating one or more compatibility values for each potential match in the first set of potential matches and removing the potential matches from the set of potential matches that fail to meet one or more compatibility scores;

if the remaining potential matches in the set do not meet a minimum threshold, then relaxing the set of self-identified preferences;

repeating correlating, identifying, calculating, and relaxing steps until a minimum number of potential matches is generated after the calculating step.

9. The electronic process of claim 8, further comprising transmitting the set of potential matches to first user'"'"'s computing device over a public network.

10. The electronic process of claim 8, further comprising sorting the potential matches by one or more compatibility values.

11. The electronic process of claim 8, further comprising the step of enabling a first user to initiate electronic communication with a potential match.

12. The electronic process of claim 9, wherein the one or more compatibility values indicate whether a match may have a successful romantic relationship.

13. The electronic process of claim 9, wherein the one or more compatibility values indicate whether a match may have a successful professional relationship.

14. The electronic process of claim 9, wherein the self-identified preferences are assigned different importance levels by the first user and the relaxing step includes excluding a self-identified preference having the lowest importance level.

15. The electronic process of claim 9, wherein the relaxing step includes excluding all initial self-identified preferences of the first user.