Intelligent multimedia e-catalog

• US 7,299,202 B2
• Filed: 02/07/2002
• Issued: 11/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Exalt Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Exalt Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: Swanson, Leslie H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Garg; Yogesh C.
• Application Number:
  US10/071,266
• Publication Number:
  US 20020184111A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,112 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 707/4, 707/102, 719/310, 703/27, 709/224, 709/205, 709/206, 715/810, 713/1
• US Class Current: 705/26.5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 Catalogue ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• 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

Abstract

An intelligent product catalog system provides for electronic creation, management and viewing of product information using a multimedia display system. A central database repository stores the product information and provides for an unlimited number of product attributes and dynamic reconfiguration of the product information. The central database repository comprises a meta data system, a scheme system and an object model system. A plurality of applications access the central database repository, the applications being automatically adaptive to the dynamic reconfiguration of the product information. A user interface provides display, sorting and filtering of the product information including the unlimited number of product attributes.

Claims

1. A computer implemented intelligent catalog system for electronic creation, management and viewing of product information using a multimedia display system comprising:

(a) a database repository storing information including executable object model code on a computer readable medium about products from one or more vendors, where the product information is stored according to an object model representing the product information, the object model including parametric objects, graphic objects, document objects, configuration business rules objects and procurement rule objects, where the object model handles an unrestricted number of objects for each product;

(b) the configuration business rules objects being stored according to a hierarchy by;

(i) storing information on sub-products that a product is comprised of, including storing product part replacement information;

(ii) storing product accessories that can be added to a product;

(iii) storing rules for building product solutions that incorporate product information stored in the database;

or

(iv) storing rules for equivalence or substitution of products for use when building a product solution;

(c) the database using a meta data system describing the product information, the meta data system dynamically reconfiguring user applications when new product types are added to the database;

(d) an executable content translator stored on a computer readable medium, in communication with the database, converting unstructured product content into structured product content based on the object model and the meta data system, where the content translator indexes the structured product content in the database to create at least a portion of the product information;

(e) executable user applications stored on a computer readable medium, in communication with the database, using the object model and the meta data system, the user applications including a catalog application and a bill of materials application; and

(f) one or more of the user applications configuring and designing a product solution based on the configuration business rules objects, where the product solution being configured and designed includes one or more products each containing one or more sub-products, the architecture of the user applications enabling changes to be made to the configuration business rules objects without any custom reprogramming by storing the configuration business rules objects separate from application code of the user applications.

2. A computer implemented intelligent catalog system as in claim 1 wherein new configuration business rules are added without reprogramming the object model.

3. A computer implemented intelligent catalog system as in claim 1 wherein the one or more user applications are automatically adaptive to the dynamic reconfiguration of the product information.

4. A computer implemented intelligent catalog system for electronic creation, management and viewing of product information using a multimedia display system comprising:

(a) a database repository storing information including executable object model code on a computer readable medium about products from one or vendors, where the product information is stored according to an object model representing the product information, the object model including parametric objects, graphic objects, document objects, configuration business rules objects and procurement rule objects, where the object model handles an unrestricted number of objects for each product;

(b) a generic scheme defining organization of the product information stored in the database, the scheme allows the addition of new products to the product information without any custom reprogramming, the scheme enabling data interchange and fast retrieval of the product information stored in the database;

(c) the configuration business rules objects being stored according to a hierarchy by;

(i) storing information on sub-products that a product is comprised of, including storing product part replacement information;

(ii) storing product accessories that can be added to a product;

(iii) storing rules for building product solutions that incorporate product information stored in the database;

or

(iv) storing rules for equivalence or substitution of products for use when building a product solution;

(d) the database using a meta data system describing the product information, the meta data system dynamically reconfiguring user applications when new product types are added to the database;

(e) an executable content translator stored on a computer readable medium, in communication with the database, converting unstructured product content into structured product content based on the object model and the meta data system, where the content translator indexes the structured product content in the database to create at least a portion of the product information;

(f) executable user applications stored on a computer readable medium, in communication with the database, using the object model and the meta data system, the user applications including a catalog application and a bill of materials application; and

(g) one or more of the user applications configuring and designing a product solution based on the configuration business rules objects, where the product solution being configured and designed includes one or more products each containing one or more sub-products, where application code for the user applications is stored separate from the configuration business rules objects such that changes are capable of being made to the configuration business rules objects without having to perform custom reprogramming.