Method for providing a rapid internet search

• US 6,393,417 B1
• Filed: 10/15/1999
• Issued: 05/21/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Patrick Y. De Le Fevre
• Original Assignee: Patrick Y. De Le Fevre
• Inventors: De Le fevre, Patrick Y.
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Application Number:
  US09/419,025
• Time in Patent Office: 949 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/225, 709/226, 709/229, 707/3, 707/4, 707/5, 707/6, 707/7, 707/9
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99937 Sorting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

A method is provided for rapid Internet searching through the creation of a “fingerprint” of information associated with a search request made by an individual. This fingerprint is forwarded to a library that locates information related to the fingerprint from information submitted by entrants who enter their data in accordance with a specialized master plan and format. In one embodiment the master plan has such universal parameters as description, location, price, consumer and consultant feedback, payment, shipment and time, insurance/warranty, and maintenance. A request is encoded in terms of a particular coordinate number reflecting master plan parameters as the fingerprint that is transmitted to the library. The fingerprint, in one embodiment includes the result of a series of branching operations to arrive at a decision or a coordinate number corresponding to a prescribed priority choices of parameters. The decision or coordinate number is then matched with those of the entrants and the results forwarded to the requestor of the information as an Internet website address. The result is an exceptionally rapid and accurate search to give the requester highly specific website information tailored to the fingerprint of the individual'"'"'s requested items which can include his/her demographics and other pertinent data such as past search requests.

Claims

1. A method for providing a rapid internet search for participating vendors, each having an internet website comprising the steps of:

a user creating an inquiry defined by a fingerprint of information containing information categorized as parameters product detail information in accordance with a master plan, the parameters of the master plan being annotated in a number of converging cones of information, each corresponding to a different parameter, each cone having a number of planes at which details of a parameter are encoded with the parameter being the sum of the details, and such that all parameters associated with all cones are used in the query fingerprint;

for each participating vendor, storing information associated with a vendor in accordance with the master plan and coded in a way so as to permit matching of parameters of a participating vendor with those of a fingerprint; and

,

upon a match, transmitting the website of the matching vendor to the user, wherein a user can make a targeted request, returned to the user with the website of the participating vender having the closest match to the user'"'"'s fingerprint.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the coding includes a numeral string, with positions of numerals in the string defining predetermined parameter elements.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein numerals from each of the planes in a cone are accumulated into a string.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the numeral strings from each of the cones are accumulated to create the fingerprint.

5. The method of claim 1, and further including the step of branching of parameter elements at each plane to select a pre-determined element from the set of elements at each plane, thus to cause cones to converge using selected parameter elements, thus to narrow a user search request.

6. The method of claim 5, and further including the step of diverging from the fingerprint assuming no direct match with vendor supplied parameters.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the diverging step includes deselecting the result of a previous branch.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the fingerprint and master plan are coded with the use of numeral strings.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the finger print and master plan are coded via characters.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the characters include bar codes.

11. Method of claim 9, wherein the characters include magnetic strip elements.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the finger print and master plan are coded with numbers arranged in a predetermined order.