System, method, and computer program product for providing relational patterns between entities

• US 6,324,541 B1
• Filed: 06/05/2000
• Issued: 11/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tradeco Asia Limited
• Original Assignee: Boardwalk Ltd. (Caesars Entertainment, Inc.)
• Inventors: de l'Etraz, Paris, Fees, James R., Hatcher, Paul, Bruderer, Otto, Fees, Christina M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALAM, SHAHID AL
• Application Number:
  US09/586,991
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/4, 707/102, 707/104, 707/7, 707/10, 705/1, 705/7, 705/16, 705/17, 705/26, 705/27, 709/201, 709/203
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/26 Visual data mining; Browsing structured data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/94 Hypermedia Hyperlinking G06F40/134
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9558 Details of hyperlinks; Management of linked annotations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A contact intelligence data mining tool for storing, processing, displaying, and printing relational patterns between entities (e.g., business and other contacts). The tool allows proprietary individual contact data to be merged with accurate and up-to-date public information in order to explore the full scope (or sphere) of an individual'"'"'s or business concern'"'"'s scope of influence. It intelligently establishes and presents personal, direct contacts as well as contacts of contacts, and so on. The tool further displays, via a graphical user interface, the optimal relationship path (i.e., contact pathway) to reach desired contacts.

Claims

1. A method for displaying contact pathways between entities, comprising, the steps of:

(1) obtaining information associated with contacts of said first entity from a first private database;

(2) obtaining information associated with contacts of said second entity from a second database;

(3) determining a contact pathway between said first entity and said second entity using said information from said first private database and said information from said second database; and

(4) displaying said contact pathway;

whereby said contact pathway represents a path comprising of one or more other entities by which said first entity may have access to said second entity.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said first entity and said second entity are any one of the following types of entities:

(i) a person; and

(ii) an organization.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said second database is one of the following:

(i) a public database; and

(ii) a quasi-public database.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said step (3) comprises the step of:

determining an optimal contact pathway between said first entity and said second entity, wherein said optimal contact pathway is determined by one of the following steps;

(i) identifying a contact pathway with the least number of other entities between said first entity and said second entity;

(ii) identifying a contact pathway with the greatest total of numerical weightings of other entities between said first entity and said second entity, wherein the level of familiarity of said first entity with the other entities in said pathway is associated with a numerical weight; and

(iii) identifying a contact pathway resulting from performing a mathematical combination of steps (i) and (ii).

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said first entity is an organization and wherein information stored in said first private database that is associated with contacts of at least one person within said organization is restricted from other persons within said organization.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein said first entity is an organization and said step (1) comprises the steps of:

(a) obtaining information associated with contacts of each person of said organization from said first private database, wherein said obtained information is not restricted; and

(b) obtaining information associated with contacts of said organization from said first private database.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said step (1) further comprises the step of:

(c) obtaining private information associated with contacts of at least one person of said organization from said first private database, wherein said private information is restricted from other persons in said organization.

8. A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having control logic stored therein for causing a computer to display contact pathways between entities, the computer control logic comprising:

first computer readable program code means for causing the computer to obtain information associated with contacts of said first entity from a first private database;

second computer readable program cod e means for causing the computer to obtain information associated with contacts of said second entity from a second database;

third computer readable program code means for causing the computer to determine a contact pathway between said first entity and said second entity using said information from said first private database and said information from said second database; and

fourth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to display said contact pathway;

whereby said contact pathway represents a path comprising of one or more other entities by which said first entity may have access to said second entity.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein said second database is one of the following:

(i) a public database; and

(ii) a quasi-public database.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein said third computer readable program code means comprises:

fifth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to determine an optimal contact pathway between said first entity and said second entity, wherein said optimal contact pathway is determined by one of the following computer readable program code means;

sixth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to identify a contact pathway with the least number of other entities between said first entity and said second entity;

seventh computer readable program code means for causing the computer to identify a contact pathway with the greatest total of numerical weightings of other entities between said first entity and said second entity, wherein the level of familiarity of said first entity with the other entities in said pathway is associated with a numerical weight; and

eighth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to identify a contact pathway resulting from performing a mathematical combination of said sixth computer readable program code means and said seventh computer readable program code means.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein said first entity is an organization and wherein information stored in said first private database that is associated with contacts of at least one person within said organization is restricted from other persons within said organization.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said first entity is an organization and said first computer readable program code means comprises:

ninth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to obtain information associated with contacts of each person of said organization from said first private database, wherein said obtained information is not restricted; and

tenth computer readable program code means for causing the computer to obtain information associated with contacts of said organization from said first private database.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said first computer readable program code means further comprises:

eleventh computer readable program code means for causing the computer to obtain private information associated with contacts of at least one person of said organization from said first private database, wherein said private information is restricted from other persons in said organization.

14. A system for displaying contact pathways between entities, comprising:

(A) a private database for storing information associated with contacts of a first entity;

(B) a public database for storing information associated with a second entity;

(C) means for determining an optimal contact pathway between said first entity and said second entity, wherein said optimal contact pathway is determined by one of the following;

(i) first means for identifying a contact pathway with the least number of other entities between said first entity and said second entity;

(ii) second means for identifying a contact pathway with the greatest total of numerical weightings of other entities between said first entity and said second entity, wherein the level of familiarity of said first entity with the other entities in said pathway is associated with a numerical weight; and

(iii) third means for identifying a contact pathway resulting from performing a mathematical combination of said first and second means for identifying a contact pathway; and

(D) a graphical user interface for displaying said optimal contact pathway.