Data linking system and method using encoded links

• US 6,766,327 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2002
• Issued: 07/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LiveRamp, Inc. (Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Acxiom Corporation (Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc.)
• Inventors: Morgan, Charles D. Jr., Talley, Terry M., Harvey, Shawn G., Talburt, John R., Welch, Samuel Kenton, Anderson, Walter E., White, C. Stuart
• Primary Examiner(s): Mizrahi, Diane D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mofiz, Apu M
• Application Number:
  US10/217,059
• Publication Number:
  US 20030135512A1
• Time in Patent Office: 708 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/3, 707/4, 707/5, 707/6, 707/8, 707/10, 707/100, 707/101, 707/102, 707/103.R, 705/16, 705/27, 705/37, 709/227, 709/246, 709/203
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9558 Details of hyperlinks; Management of linked annotations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9566 URL specific, e.g. using aliases, detecting broken or misspelled links
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A method for linking data using persistent links is disclosed. The links are created in a central repository, which maintains an identification class for each entity. The identification class contains all available information concerning the entity. By matching links instead of names and addresses, potential ambiguities and erroneous duplicates are eliminated. The links are encoded before external distribution with a client-specific key; the link encoding discourages clients from collaborating to use personal information without authorization.

Claims

1. A data linking system for use by a plurality of clients at a plurality of client sites, comprising:

(a) a plurality of data elements resident at each client site, wherein each of said data elements pertains to a particular entity;

(b) a plurality of links resident at each client site, wherein each of said links is unique over time, each of said links uniquely corresponds to a particular entity, each of said data elements is tagged with that one of said links corresponding to the entity to which said data element pertains, and each of said links is encoded distinctively for each client site such that data elements may not be shared between clients; and

(c) a repository, wherein all of said links are resident on said repository, and said repository contains a substantially comprehensive listing of all said entities from which said links are generated.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of identification classes is resident on said repository, and each of said identification classes pertains to a particular entity, contains data concerning the entity to which it pertains, and is tagged with that one of said links corresponding to that entity.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the data contained in each of said identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings, and common name misspellings.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein each of said links comprises a domain field comprising a domain field value, and wherein said domain field value corresponds to a client identity.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein each of said links comprises a link identifier field comprising a link identifier field value, and wherein said link identifier field value corresponds to the particular entity to which said link pertains.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein each of said links comprises a type code field comprising a type code value, and wherein each said type code value corresponds to the data contained in that one of said identification classes corresponding to said link.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein each of said links comprises a country code comprising a value, and wherein each said country code value corresponds to one of a particular country and region.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein said type code field comprises a link level field comprising a link level field value and a link type field comprising a link type field value, wherein each said link level field value corresponds to one of a maintained link, a derived link, and a custom link, and wherein each said link type field value corresponds to one of a consumer link, an address link, an occupancy link, a business link, and a household link.

9. A method of integrating a plurality of data elements resident on a data storage system maintained at one of a plurality of client sites wherein each of the data elements pertains to a particular entity, comprising the steps of:

(a) building a transfer file comprising the data elements;

(b) transmitting the transfer file to a repository, wherein at least one identification class is resident on the repository, and each identification class comprises;

(ii) at least one link, wherein each link uniquely corresponds to a particular entity and each link comprises an unencoded value and an encoded value; and

(ii) data relevant to the entity to which the link corresponds;

(c) matching each of the data elements in the transfer file to the corresponding identification class;

(d) tagging each of the data elements in the transfer file with at least one of the links contained in the identification class matched to that data element;

(e) encoding each of the links with which the data elements are tagged, wherein said encoded value is dependent upon that one of said plurality of client sites from which said transfer file was built;

(f) rebuilding the data storage system using the data elements and encoded links in the transfer file; and

(g) collecting all data elements resident on the data storage system that are tagged with a particular link by searching for the particular link across the data storage system.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the data contained in each of the identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name spellings, and common name misspellings, and said matching step comprises the matching of the data elements to at least one of name aliases, name change history, addresses aliases, address change history, alternate name spellings, and common name misspellings in the identification class corresponding to each data element.

11. A method of constructing a total customer view using a data processing system, wherein at least one data element is resident on the data processing system, and each data element is tagged to the link corresponding to the customer to which the data element pertains, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a request for the total customer view, wherein the request includes an encoded link corresponding to the customer;

(b) decoding the link corresponding to the customer utilizing an encoding key that is matched to a particular client;

(c) matching the link corresponding to the customer with the link tagged to all data elements pertaining to the customer;

(d) retrieving all data elements to which the link corresponding to the customer is tagged; and

(e) forming the total customer view based on at least one of the retrieved data elements.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said data processing system comprises a plurality of physically independent databases and at least two of said data elements pertaining to the same customer are resident on two different physically independent databases.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising the steps of:

(a) transmitting the link corresponding to the customer from the data storage system to a repository, wherein a plurality of identification classes are resident on the repository, each of said identification classes is tagged with at least one link, and each of said identification classes pertains to a particular customer;

(b) matching the link to the identification class that is tagged with that link;

(c) retrieving additional data from the matched identification class;

(d) encoding the link;

(e) transmitting from the repository to the data processing system the additional data, linked to the encoded link corresponding to the identification class from which the additional data was retrieved; and

(f) adding at least a portion of the additional data to the total customer view.

14. A method of updating at least one of a plurality of physically independent databases maintained by a client, on each of which reside a plurality of data elements, wherein each of the data elements pertains to a particular entity, each of the data elements are tagged to a link corresponding to the entity to which that data element pertains, and each of said links comprise an encoded value and an unencoded value, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving update data pertaining to at least one of the entities at a message center;

(b) encoding the link corresponding to the entity to which the update data pertains, wherein said encoded value of said link is generated based on an encoding key matched to the client;

(c) transmitting from the message center to at least one of the databases the update data and the encoded link corresponding to the entity to which the update data pertains; and

(d) for those of the databases to which update data was transmitted, overlaying the update data onto the data elements that are tagged with the encoded link corresponding to the entity to which the update data pertains.

15. A data linking system to provide services to a plurality of clients, said system comprising data and a plurality of links, wherein each of said links comprises:

(a) a domain value that corresponds to a client identity; and

(b) a link identifier value that corresponds to a particular entity to which each said link pertains, and the data linking system further comprises an encoding algorithm operable to encode said link identifier value in a manner dependent upon the client for whom said data is to be linked.

16. The data linking system of claim 15, wherein said data comprises a plurality of data types, and each of said links further comprises a type code value that corresponds to one of said data types.

17. The data linking system of claim 16, wherein each of said links further comprises a country code value that corresponds to one of a particular country and region.

18. A method of encoding links for use by a plurality of clients wherein each of the links comprise a domain value and a link identifier value, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) replacing the domain value with a domain value corresponding to a particular client; and

(b) encoding said link identifier value in a manner specific to the particular client such that another of said clients cannot match links with said particular client.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said step of encoding said link identifier value comprises the step of executing an encoding algorithm that utilizes a client-specific encoding key.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of distributing the encoded links to a client corresponding to the client-specific encoding key.

21. A data linking system, comprising:

(a) a plurality of data elements, wherein each of said data elements pertains to a particular entity;

(b) a plurality of links, wherein each of said links is unique over time, each of said links uniquely corresponds to a particular entity, each of said data elements is tagged with that one of said links corresponding to the entity to which said data element pertains;

(c) a repository, wherein all of said links are resident on said repository, and said repository contains a substantially comprehensive listing of all said entities from which said links are generated; and

(d) a link encoding engine comprising a plurality of client-specific encoding keys, wherein a first client provided with encoded links cannot match said encoded links with a second client provided with said encoded links.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein a plurality of identification classes is resident on said repository, and each of said identification classes pertains to a particular entity, contains data concerning the entity to which it pertains, and is tagged with that one of said links corresponding to that entity.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the data contained in each of said identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings, and common name misspellings.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein each of said links comprises a domain field comprising a domain field value, and wherein said domain field value corresponds to a client identity.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein each of said links comprises a link identifier field comprising a link identifier field value, and wherein said link identifier field value corresponds to the particular entity to which said link pertains.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein each of said links comprises a type code field comprising a type code value, and wherein each said type code value corresponds to the data contained in that one of said identification classes corresponding to said link.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein each of said links comprises a country code comprising a value, and wherein each said country code value corresponds to one of a particular country and region.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein said type code field comprises a link level field comprising a link level field value and a link type field comprising a link type field value, wherein each said link level field value corresponds to one of a maintained link, a derived link, and a custom link, and wherein each said link type field value corresponds to one of a consumer link, an address link, an occupancy link, a business link, and a household link.