INFORMATION MAPPING APPROACHES

• US 20140229285A1
• Filed: 02/18/2014
• Published: 08/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Never-Search, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Never-Search, Inc.
• Inventors: Kreft, Keith
• Granted Patent: US 9,152,981 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.57
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3811 Point data, e.g. Point of Interest [POI]
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3878 Hierarchical structures, e.g. layering
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 3/08 Use of electric radiation detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/235 Update request formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2379 Updates performed during online database operations; commit processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/252 between a Database Management System and a front-end application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0259 based on store location
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text

Abstract

Methods, systems and applications for updating, enhancing, organizing, and utilizing geographic maps, for locating points of interest and places of businesses, or POI'"'"'s. Embodiments provide a method for collecting geo-coordinate data on POIs by eliciting participation of the business owners or designated employees to identify the specific locations of POI'"'"'s on a map; a map program which synchronizes to a centralized database where POI and other more frequently changing and time-dependent map information is downloaded to individual users; a map program, where in addition to the standard contact information, “qualitative” information and website links are included in an POI information box to aid in pre-qualifying a POI before selection and in booking a reservation; a method for locating markers on an Internet-based search engine map; and an improved contact management system that allows locations of contacts to be viewed on a map while minimizing address geocoding.

Claims

1. One or more non-transitory storage media storing instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause:

causing a geographical map to be displayed on a computer display, wherein the geographical map indicates one or more points of interest;

based on the one or more points of interest, selecting, from among a plurality of advertisements, one or more advertisements;

in response to selecting the one or more advertisements, causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed on the computer display.

2. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein:

the one or more points of interest are a plurality of points of interest;

selecting comprises selecting, based on the plurality of points of interest, multiple advertisements from the plurality of advertisements;

causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the multiple advertisements to be displayed concurrently on the computer display.

3. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed concurrently with the geographical map.

4. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 3, wherein causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed on the geographical map.

5. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 3, wherein:

the one or more points of interest includes a particular point of interest and a description of the particular point of interest that is bounded by a closed boundary;

the one or more advertisements include a particular advertisement;

causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the particular advertisement to be displayed, with the description, within the closed boundary.

6. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 3, wherein:

the one or more points of interest includes a first point of interest and a second point of interest;

the first point of interest is associated with a first description, of the first point of interest, that is bounded by a first closed boundary;

the second point of interest is associated with a second description, of the second point of interest, that is bounded by a second closed boundary;

the one or more advertisements include first advertisement data for the first point of interest and second advertisement data for the second point of interest;

causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing (1) the first advertisement data to be displayed, with the first description, within the first closed boundary and (2) the second advertisement data to be displayed, with the second description, within the second closed boundary.

7. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 3, wherein causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed adjacent to, but not overlapping, the geographical map.

8. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 3, wherein causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed concurrently with the one or more points of interest.

9. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause:

receiving input that indicates a search of point of interest data that indicates a plurality of points of interests, wherein the point of interest data indicates geographical data for each point of interest in the plurality of points of interest;

in response to receiving the input, determining that one or more points of interest satisfy one or more criteria of the search;

wherein causing the one or more points of interest to be displayed on the geographical map comprises causing the one or more points of interest to be displayed on the geographical map in response to receiving the input.

10. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause:

receiving input that indicates update data that is associated with a particular advertisement of the one or more advertisements;

in response to receiving the input, updating the particular advertisement based on the update data.

11. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause:

receiving input that indicates selection of a particular advertisement of the one or more advertisements;

in response to receiving the input;

identifying a detailed version of the particular advertisement;

causing the detailed version of the particular advertisement to be displayed.

12. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 11, wherein causing the detailed version of the particular advertisement to be displayed comprises causing the detailed version of the particular advertisement to be displayed concurrently with the geographical map.

13. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein the one or more points of interest are a first subset of a plurality of points of interest and the one or more advertisements are one or more first advertisements, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause:

in response to input, causing a second subset of the plurality of points of interest to be displayed concurrently with the geographical map;

based on the second subset of the points of interest, selecting, from among the plurality of advertisements, one or more second advertisements that are different than the one or more first advertisements;

in response to selecting the one or more second advertisements, causing the one or more second advertisements to be displayed on the computer display.

14. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein:

the computer display is a computer display of an in-vehicle navigation system.

15. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 14, wherein selecting and causing is performed by a server that is remote relative to the in-vehicle navigation system.

16. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 14, wherein selecting is performed by the in-vehicle navigation system.

17. The one or more non-transitory storage media of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause:

storing the one or more points of interests in a first logical map layer;

storing the geographical map in a second logical map layer that is different than the first logical map layer;

after causing the one or more points of interest to be displayed on the geographical map, updating one of the first logical map layer or the second logical map layer independent of the other of the first logical map layer or the second logical map layer.

18. A method comprising:

causing a geographical map to be displayed on a computer display, wherein the geographical map indicates one or more points of interest;

based on the one or more points of interest, selecting, from among a plurality of advertisements, one or more advertisements;

in response to selecting the one or more advertisements, causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed on the computer display;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein:

the one or more points of interest are a plurality of points of interest;

selecting comprises selecting, based on the plurality of points of interest, multiple advertisements from the plurality of advertisements;

causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the multiple advertisements to be displayed concurrently on the computer display.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed comprises causing the one or more advertisements to be displayed concurrently with the geographical map.