Data administration method

• US 6,772,174 B1
• Filed: 07/18/2001
• Issued: 08/03/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Doppler Go Holding AB
• Original Assignee: Cycore AB
• Inventors: Pettersson, Jerry
• Primary Examiner(s): Coby, Frantz
• Application Number:
  US09/831,942
• Time in Patent Office: 1,112 Days
• Field of Search: 707/102, 707/104.1, 707/1, 707/100, 701/200
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• 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 method is disclosed for administrating large amounts are of data being associated with a spatial entity. The data are organised in layers of data having a mutual relation, primarily defining rules for interacting with other layers of data so as to generate derived layer of data of which one or more are output layers. The computer system represents the output layers to the user by means of a virtual representation of a spatial entity generated by a computer, and the data for generating the layers are administrated by a data communication network. Different sets of data are represented as different layers that interact and are presented to the user as being superimposed on the representation of the geographical entity, the different layers of data may interact so as e.g. to produce a new representation for the user or to initiate actions at systems or items being external to the computer operated by the user.

Claims

1. A method for administering information at least some of which are related to a spatial entity, comprising

providing, in a computer system, a data system residing on data storage means of the computer system and representing the spatial entity,

at least some of the data of the data system being co-ordinate data representing respective sets of spatial co-ordinates of a co-ordinate to system spanning the spatial entity,

at least some of the data of the data system being spatial entity basic descriptor data which are associated with co-ordinate data and describing basic properties of the spatial entity at the respective co-ordinates, or the co-ordinate data being predefined as co-ordinate data pertaining to a particular known spatial entity,

at least some of the data of the data system being layer data which are associated with co-ordinate data and describing phenomena related to the spatial entity at the respective co-ordinates, the layer data being organised in at least two layers, each layer containing one or several layer data the layers comprise at least two types of layers, one type being input layers comprising input data, and another type being derived layers comprising at least some data whit are the result of interaction between data of at least two layers of the data system or which are the result of the processing of data of a layer and other data of the data system,

the generation of a derived layer resulting from interaction between data of at least two layers comprises, for each particular position of the spatial entity to which layer data of a least one of the layers relate, the steps of

generating a layer data of the derived layer from said layer data relating to the particular position of the spatial entity, and

entering the generated layer data into the data system as pertaining to the derived layer and being related to the particular position of the spatial entity,

the method further comprising the step of outputting, to an output device, layer data of a derived layer and representing the layer data at the output device in such a manner that one or more phenomena described by the layer data can be perceived as related to the particular position of the spatial entity which is defined by the co-ordinate data with which the particular layer data is/are associated,

the data system comprising property data permitting the definition of how the data of a particular layer, or certain data of a particular layer, is/are to be represented at the output device in relation to the basic descriptor data and/or in elation to data of one or more other layers, and the output representing the spatial entity in accordance with these data.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the output device comprises a visual output device and the representative of the layer data comprises a visual representation.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the output device comprises means for representing the layer data by means of visual indication and/or sound indication and/or sensory indication and/or olfactory indication and/or indication which can be transformed to one or more of these indications.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the spatial entity is a universe, globe, country, landscape, house, room or other physical spatial entity.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the output device associated with a computer being remote to the computer system comprising the data storage means on which the data system resides and the layer data are outputted to the output device via a public data communication network.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the spatial entity basic descriptor data are map data defining a virtual representation of geographical or topographical characteristics of the spatial entity.

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the property data of at least one of the layers comprise time span data defining dates pertaining to at least some of the phenomena described by the layer data.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein the inclusion in the output layer data of a phenomena described by the layer data of one layer of the data system is triggered by a phenomenon described by the layer data of another layer of the data system.

9. A method according to claim 1, comprising an input layer generation procedure having the steps of

retrieving from an external server via a public data communication network data being associated with the spatial entity,

generating a layer of input data from the retrieved data, and

entering said layer of input data into the data system of the computer system.

10. A method according to claim 7, wherein the procedure further comprises the steps of retrieving from an external server via a public data communication network property data being associated with the retrieved data,

generating property data pertaining to said layer of input data, and

entering said property data into the data system of the computer system.

11. A method according to claim 1, wherein the generation of a derived layer resulting from interaction between data of at least two layers further comprises, for each particular position of the spatial entity to which layer data of at least one of the layers relate, the steps of

correlating property data pertaining to said layer data, and

generating a layer data of the derived layer from said layer data relating to the particular position of the spatial entity as well as said correlation.

12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the correlation of property data and the generation of layer data is performed according to rules defined for the combination of layers of which the interaction is performed, said rules deviating from rules applied to deviating combination of layers and said rules being applied to each particular position of said spatial entity.

13. A method according to claim 11, wherein the generation of a derived layer further comprises the steps of

correlating property data pertaining to said layer data,

generating property data of the derived layer from said correlation, and

entering the property data into the data system as pertaining to the derived layer.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the correlation of property data and the generation of property data is performed according to rules defined for the combination of layers of which the interaction is performed, said rules deviating from rules applied to deviating combination of layers and said rules being applied to each particular position of said spatial entity.

15. A method according to claim 11, wherein the generated layer data according to one type of generation is selected from layer data of one of the layers in question.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein the property data of at least one of the layers in-question comprise penetration level data pertaining to the phenomena described by the layer data of said layer and at the property data of least one of the other layers in question comprise resistance level data pertaining to the phenomena described by the layer data of said other layer, the correlation of property data comprises the step of comparing the penetration level of one or more possible phenomena associated with the particular position of the spatial entity with the resistance level of one or more possible phenomena of the at least one other layer and associated with the particular position of the spatial entity.

17. A method according to claim 11, wherein the generated layer data according to one type of generation is calculated from numerical representation of layer data of one or more of the layers in question.

18. A method according to claim 9, wherein the data of at least one of the input layers are updated regularly by means of the input layer generation procedure and derived layers related to said input layer(s) are re-generated accordingly.

19. A method according to claim 9, wherein the external server via a public communication network communicates data being associated with a spatial entity with the computer system and as well as with one or more suppliers of data or precursors for data.

20. A method according to claim 19, wherein an individual supplier supplies all the data necessary for establishing and maintaining the layer data as well as the property data of one or more layers.

21. A method according to claim 19, wherein an individual supplier supplies part of the data necessary for establishing and maintaining the layer data as well as the property data of one or more layers, another part of the data being supplied by the server and/or by another supplier.

22. A method according to claim 1, wherein the representation of the spatial entity is three-dimensional rendering.

23. A method according to claim 22, wherein the three-dimensional rendering is dynamic, moving, three-dimensional rendering.

24. A method according to claim 23, wherein the dynamic character of the three-dimensional rendering of the representation of the spatial entity is maintained substantially throughout a session.

25. A method according to claim 1, wherein individual layers are zoomable and are zoomed to reveal greater detail in the layer.

26. A method according to claim 1, wherein one or more layers comprise a number of sub-layers which can be activated locally, territorially or globally within the spatial entity representation to present more details of or different aspects of the phenomena.

27. A method according to claim 1, wherein the representation of at least some of the spatial entities locally, territorially or globally comprises a number of sub-layers organized in a hierarchy and the sub-layers may be opened by user-activation of a domain, such as activating the representation of a particular spatial entity by means of a pointing device, so as to present a new representation of the spatial entity on a level of greater details or, expressed in another manner on a lower hierarchical level, and activation of a domain of the presentation of lower hierarchical level opens a representation on a still lower hierarchical level to the extent that such a representation is provided for.

28. A method according to claim 27, wherein representations of phenomena are associated with each of the hierarchical spatial levels.

29. A method according to claim 1, wherein one hierarchical level of spatial entity is a globe, and the dynamic three-dimensional rendering comprises turning of the globe.

30. A method according to claim 29, wherein the highest hierarchical level of spatial entity is a globe or several globes.

31. A method according to claim 1, wherein a sequence of hierarchically increasingly lower levels comprises globe→

nation, state or city→

street→

building→

room or parts of the sequence or shortcuts within the sequence or equivalent stepwise approaching a particular locally where a phenomenon is represented.

32. A method according to claim 31, wherein the phenomenon is a representation of a commercial product or a commercial service.

33. A method according to claim 32, wherein the commercial product or service is represented in connection with advertising the product or the service.

34. A method according to claim 32, wherein the commercial product or service is represented in connection with advertising the product or the service.

35. A method according to claim 34, wherein the commercial product is represented in dynamic three-dimensional rendering, and the representation allows operations, by actuating a domain or domains of the representation, selected from opening openable parts of the product, moving movable parts of the product, and dismantling dismantable parts of the product.

36. A method according to claim 32, wherein the commercial product is a product having actuating means actuating particular functions of the product, and the representation of the commercial product permits actuation, such as by activation of a particular domain of the representation, of one or more and optionally all of the actuation means, the representation responding to the actuation by representing the particular function actuated.

37. A method according to claim 36, wherein the commercial product is an electronic device such as a computer, a cellular phone, a television set, etc., and the actuation results in execution of the function in the representation.

38. A method according to claim 37, wherein at least part of the actual programming of the functions of the actual commercial product has been translated into a computer readable code, such as a code in a machine-independent language such as Java or a Java-like language, which code is executable on one or more network resources such as the client, to result in representation of the same functionality on the output device of the client.

39. A method according to claim 38, wherein, when the actuation results in a function that can be executed through the network, the function is, in the representation, actually executed through the network, such as, e.g., the dialing of a telephone number on a telephone represented in the representation will result in the number actually being called via the network.

40. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least some of the spatial entity basic descriptor data are based on data obtained from an official entity having authority with respect to the particular type of data.

41. A method according to claim 40, wherein the official authority is the provider of the particular layer or sub-layer of spatial entity basic descriptor data.

42. A method according to claim 40, wherein the official authority is a state authority or a municipal authority.

43. A method according to claim 40, wherein the authority, when the spatial entity comprises more than one state, is a federal or multilateral authority, such as The United States of America, The European Commission and United Nations.

44. A method according to claim 1, wherein representation of a commercial product or service is associated with representation of the price of the product or service and representation of dealers within one or more geographic territories.

45. A method according to claim 44, wherein the price is based on a neutral basic price provided, e.g., by the provider of the representation of the product, and is recalculated taking into consideration local taxes and other local costs based on information on local taxes and costs supplied by suppliers different from the provider of the representation of the product.

46. A method according to claim 1, wherein the selection of a layer or a combination of layers to be included in generating the output to the output device is performed by a user from a menu of layers or of stored profiles representing combinations of layers, said menu being presented to the user by means of the output device.

47. A method according to claim 1, wherein types of phenomena to be represented at the output device are selected by the user from a menu of types of phenomena or of stored profiles representing combinations of types of phenomena, said menu being presented to the user by means of the output device.

48. A method according to claim 1, wherein combinations of layers and types of phenomena are selected by the user of the client from a menu of stored profiles representing such combinations, said menu being presented to the user by means of the output device.

49. A computer system comprising at least one general purpose computer having one or more computer programs stored within data storage means associated therewith, the computer system being arranged for, e.g. with appropriate data communication connections to appropriate external servers, as well as being adapted for performing the method of claim 1.

50. A computer program product being adapted to enable a computer system comprising at least one general purpose computer having data storage means associated therewith and being arranged suitably, e.g. with appropriate data communication connections to appropriate external servers, to perform the method of claim 1.