Tracking method for storing event data using database-objects
First Claim
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1. A method for organizing an object-oriented database comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing at least two first customer database-objects having attributes associated with a customer;
(b) defining at least one second customer database-objects as a composite of first customer database-objects (c) providing at least two first product database-objects having attributes associated with a product;
(d) defining at least one second product database-object as a composite of first product database-objects; and
(e) defining at least one sales event database-object as a composite of at least one second customer database-object and at least one second product database-object;
wherein at least one of the attributes of the first customer database-objects is selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises.
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Abstract
Business transactions or other events may be structured as a series of database-objects formed of combinations of sub-objects which in turn may depend on yet a lower level of objects. By creating object templates for the objects that progressively group inter-correlated data and inter-correlated objects, large amounts of event data may be captured with modest data storage requirements. The system is particularly well suited for capturing sales events comprised of a large range of data of different attributes.
12 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method for organizing an object-oriented database comprising the steps of:
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(a) providing at least two first customer database-objects having attributes associated with a customer;
(b) defining at least one second customer database-objects as a composite of first customer database-objects (c) providing at least two first product database-objects having attributes associated with a product;
(d) defining at least one second product database-object as a composite of first product database-objects; and
(e) defining at least one sales event database-object as a composite of at least one second customer database-object and at least one second product database-object;
wherein at least one of the attributes of the first customer database-objects is selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
(d) capturing a sales event by instantiating a sales event database-object.
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3. The method of claim 2 wherein the instantiated sales event database-object uses at least one previously instantiated second customer database-object.
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4. The method of claim 2 wherein the instantiated sales event databsse-object uses at least one previously instantiated first customer databaso-object.
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5. The method of claim 2 wherein the instantiated sales event database-object uses at least one previously instantiated second product database-object
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6. The method of claim 2 wherein the instantiated sales event database-object uses at least one previously instantiated first product database-object.
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7. The method of claim 1 further including the steps of
providing at least two first fulfillment database-objects having attributes associated a customer fulfillment of product to customers; -
defining at least one second fulfillment database-object as a composite of first fulfillment database-objects; and
wherein the sales event database-object is defined as a composite of at least one second customer database-object and at least one second product database-object and at least one second fulfillment database-object.
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8. The method of claim 7 further including the step of:
(d) capturing a sales event by instantiating a sales event database-object
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9. The method of claim 8 wherein the instantiated sales event database-object uses at least one previously instantiated second fulfillment database-object.
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10. The method of claim 9 wherein the instantiated sales event database-object uses at least one previously instantiated first fulfillment database-object.
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11. The method of claim 1 wherein the attributes of the first customer database-objects are selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises.
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12. The method of claim 1 wherein the attributes of the first product database-objects are selected from the group consisting of data describing product information, product business, and product designs.
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13. The method of claim 1 wherein the attributes of the first fulfillment database-objects are selected from the group consisting of data describing fulfillment logistics, fulfillment services, and a fulfillment manufacturing support chain.
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14. A method of accessing strategic sales data associated with products sold to customers and the fulfillment thereof comprising the step of:
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(a) modeling a sales transaction as an intersection of a customer object, a product object and a fulfillment object;
(b) defining, in an object-oriented database, a sales event database-object referencing a customer database-object, a product database-object and a fulfillment database-object corresponding to the modeled customer object, the product object and the fulfillment object;
(c) recording each sales transaction as a sales event database-object; and
(d) accessing strategic sales data of a sales transaction by accessing a sales event database-object;
wherein the customer database-object directly or indirectly references at least one attribute that is selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A data structure comprising:
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first customer database-objects each having attributes associated with a customer;
at least one second customer database-object defined as a composite of first customer database-objects;
first product database-objects each having attributes associated with a product; and
at least one second product database-object defined as a composite of first product database-objects; and
a sales event database-object defined as a composite of at least one second customer database-object and at least one second product database-object;
wherein at least one of the attributes of the first customer database-objects is selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 22, 23, 24, 25)
first fulfillment database-objects having attributes associated with a customer fulfillment of product to customers; at least one second fulfillment database-object defined as a composite of first fulfillment database-objects,; and
wherein the sales event database-object is defined as a composite of at least one second customer database-object and at least one second product database-object and at least one second fulfillment database-object.
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23. The data structure of claim 21 wherein the attributes of the first customer database-objects an selected from the group consisting of:
- data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises.
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24. The data structure of claim 21 wherein the attributes of the first product database-objects are selected from the group consisting of:
- data describing product information;
product business; and
product designs.
- data describing product information;
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25. The data structure of claim 21 wherein the attributes of the first fulfillment database-objects are selected from the group consisting of:
- data describing fulfillment logistics;
fulfillment services; and
fulfillment manufacturing support chain.
- data describing fulfillment logistics;
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26. A method of capturing sales event data of events over time using an object-oriented database having database-objects that may reference either or both of attributes of the event data and other database-objects, wherein the database-objects are instanceable to create database-object instances referencing either or both of data of the attributes of the database-objects and instances of the other database-objects, the method comprising the steps of:
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(a) defining a set of underlying database-objects, each referencing at least a portion of the attributes of the event data;
(b) defining an event database-object referencing at least a portion of the underlying database-objects;
p1 (c) upon each event having given event data,(i) instancing given ones of the set of underlying database-objects referencing new attributes of the given event data; and
(ii) instancing an event database-object referencing the instanced given ones of the set of underlying database-objects;
wherein the underlying database-objects include;
(1) a CUSTOMER database-object in turn referencing other database-objects;
(2) a PRODUCT intermediate database-object in turn referencing other database-objects; and
(3) a FULFILLMENT intermediate database-object in turn referencing other database-objects;
wherein at least one of the attributes referenced, directly or indirectly, by the CUSTOMER database-object is selected from the group consisting of data describing customer locations, customer agents, and customer enterprises. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30)
(a) a LOCATION underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating (b) an AGENT underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating customer agents; and
(c) an ENTERPRISE underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating customer enterprises.
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28. The method of claim 26 wherein the PRODUCT intermediate database-object in turn references:
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(a) a PRODUCT INFORMATION underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product information;
(b) a PRODUCT BUSINESS underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product business; and
(c) a PRODUCT DESIGN underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product designs.
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29. The method of claim 26 wherein the FULFILLMENT intermediate database-object in turn references:
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(a) a FULFILLMENT LOGISTICS underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating fulfillment logistics;
(b) a FULFILLMENT SERVICES underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating fulfillment services; and
(c) a FULFILLMENT MANUFACTURING SUPPORT CHAIN underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating fulfillment manufacturing support chain.
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30. The method of claim 26 wherein the CUSTOMER intermediate database-object in turn references:
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(a) a LOCATION underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating customer locations;
(b) an AGENT underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating customer agents; and
(c) an ENTERPRISE underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating customer enterprises; and
wherein the PRODUCT intermediate database-object in turn references;
(a) a PRODUCT INFORMATION underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product information;
(b) a PRODUCT BUSINESS underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product business; and
(c) a PRODUCT DESIGN underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating product designs; and
wherein the FULFILLMENT intermediate database-object in turn references;
(a) a FULFILLMENT LOGISTICS underlying database-object referencing attributes Indicating fulfillment logistics;
(b) a FULFILLMENT SERVICES underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating fulfillment services; and
(c) a FULFILLMENT MANUFACTURING SUPPORT CHAIN underlying database-object referencing attributes indicating fulfillment manufacturing support chain.
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Specification