System, method and software for providing persistent entity identification and linking entity information in an integrated data repository
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented method of creating a data structure stored in a memory, wherein the data structure provides information to link business records that are related to a same person of a plurality of persons, for database searching and business record matching operations, the method comprising:
- (a) associating a first business record, of a first plurality of business records, with a first identifier of a plurality of identifiers that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons, wherein each identifier is unique and persistent for a predetermined period of time;
(b) associating a second business record, of a second plurality of business records, with a second identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons;
(c) determining that the first identifier and the second identifier correspond to a same person by determining that a third business record, of the first of second pluralities of business records, matches with a first element of a first plurality of elements of the first business record and further matches with a second element of a second plurality of elements of the second business record;
(d) determining a plurality of potentially matching business records, and from the plurality of potentially matching business records, eliminating a potentially matching business record which does not match a name element of the third business record;
(e) when the first identifier and the second identifier are determined to correspond to the same person of the plurality of persons, linking the first identifier and the second identifier in a data structure that provides respective references to the first and second business records without merging the first and second business records under either the first or second identifiers and without merging the first and second identifiers;
(f) separately maintaining information in the first business record associated with the first identifier and information in the second business record associated with the second identifier for the predetermined period of time; and
(g) when information about the same person of the plurality of persons is requested, grouping access to the information that is separately maintained in both the first and second business records via either one of the first identifier or second identifier based on the link between the first and second identifiers in the data structure.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides a system, method and software for linking persistent and unique business identifiers, associated with business entities, for associating corresponding business records without a loss of historical records, regardless of subsequent changes, updates, and mergers. In the various embodiments, a first business record, of the plurality of business records, is associated with a first business identifier; and a second business record, which does not match the first record, is associated with a second business identifier. Subsequently, when the first business identifier and the second business identifier are determined to correspond to a singular business entity, the first business identifier and the second business identifier are linked, and respective associations of the first business record and the second business record with the linked first business identifier and second business identifier are maintained, with corresponding source references, and collectively utilized in subsequent search and match determinations.
221 Citations
37 Claims
-
1. A computer-implemented method of creating a data structure stored in a memory, wherein the data structure provides information to link business records that are related to a same person of a plurality of persons, for database searching and business record matching operations, the method comprising:
-
(a) associating a first business record, of a first plurality of business records, with a first identifier of a plurality of identifiers that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons, wherein each identifier is unique and persistent for a predetermined period of time; (b) associating a second business record, of a second plurality of business records, with a second identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons; (c) determining that the first identifier and the second identifier correspond to a same person by determining that a third business record, of the first of second pluralities of business records, matches with a first element of a first plurality of elements of the first business record and further matches with a second element of a second plurality of elements of the second business record; (d) determining a plurality of potentially matching business records, and from the plurality of potentially matching business records, eliminating a potentially matching business record which does not match a name element of the third business record; (e) when the first identifier and the second identifier are determined to correspond to the same person of the plurality of persons, linking the first identifier and the second identifier in a data structure that provides respective references to the first and second business records without merging the first and second business records under either the first or second identifiers and without merging the first and second identifiers; (f) separately maintaining information in the first business record associated with the first identifier and information in the second business record associated with the second identifier for the predetermined period of time; and (g) when information about the same person of the plurality of persons is requested, grouping access to the information that is separately maintained in both the first and second business records via either one of the first identifier or second identifier based on the link between the first and second identifiers in the data structure. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
-
-
15. A system for creating a data structure to link business records that are related to a same person of a plurality of persons, for data repository searching and record matching operations, the system comprising:
-
a memory adapted to store the data repository having first and second pluralities of business records and a plurality of identifiers that identifies the plurality of persons, wherein each identifier is unique and persistent for a predetermined period of time; and a processor coupled to the memory storing the data repository, the processor to associate a first business record with a first identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons;
to associate a second business record with a second identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons;
to determine that the first identifier and the second identifier correspond to the same person by determining that a third business record, of the first of second pluralities of business records, matches with a first element of a first plurality of elements of the first business record and further matches with a second element of a second plurality of elements of the second business record;
to determine a plurality of potentially matching business records, and from the plurality of potentially matching business records, to eliminate a potentially matching business record which does not match a name element of the third business record;
when the first identifier and the second identifier are determined to correspond to the same person of the plurality of persons, to link in the data repository the first identifier and the second identifier in a data structure that provides respective references to the first and second business records without merging the first and second business records under either the first or second identifiers and without merging the first and second identifiers;
to separately maintain in the data repository information in the first business record associated with the first identifier and information in the second business record associated with the second identifier for the predetermined period of time; and
when information about the same person is requested, to group access to the information that is separately maintained in both the first and second business records via either one of the first identifier or second identifier based on the link between the first and second identifiers in the data structure. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
-
- 19. The system of 15, wherein the processor further is to eliminate, from the plurality of potentially matching business records, a potentially matching business record which does not match an address element of the third business record.
-
29. A computer-readable medium storing computer-readable software for creating a data structure in a database stored in a memory, wherein the data structure provides information to link business records that are related to a same person of a plurality of persons, for database searching and business record matching operations, the computer-readable medium storing computer-readable software comprising:
-
a first program construct for associating a first business record, of a first plurality of business records stored in the memory having the database, with a first identifier of a plurality of identifiers that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons, wherein each identifier is unique and persistent for a predetermined period of time; a second program construct for associating a second business record, of the first plurality of business records, with a second identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons; a third program construct for linking in the database the first identifier and the second identifier in the data repository identifier in a data structure that provides respective references to the first and second business records without merging the first and second business records under either the first or second identifiers and without merging the first and second identifiers when the first identifier and the second identifier are determined to correspond to the same person of the plurality of persons; a fourth program construct for separately maintaining information in the first business record associated with the first identifier and information in the second business record associated with the second identifier for the predetermined period of time; and
when information about the same person is requested, grouping access to the information that is separately maintained in both first and second business records via either one of the first identifier or second identifier based on the link between the first and second identifiers in the data structure; anda fifth program construct for determining that the first identifier and the second identifier correspond to the same person by determining that a third business record, of the plurality of business records, matches with a first element of a first plurality of elements of the first business record and further matches with a second element of a second plurality of elements of the second business record, for determining a plurality of potentially matching business records, and from the plurality of potentially matching business records, eliminating a potentially matching business record which does not match a name element of the third business record. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
-
-
37. A computer-implemented method of creating a data structure stored in a memory, wherein the data structure provides information to link business records with a person of a plurality of persons, for database searching and business record matching operations, the method comprising:
-
(a) associating a first business record, of a first plurality of business records, with a first identifier of a plurality of identifiers that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons, wherein each identifier is unique and persistent for a predetermined period of time; (b) associating a second business record, of a second plurality of business records, with a second identifier that identifies at least one person of the plurality of persons; (c) determining that the first identifier and the second identifier corresponds to a same person by determining that a third business record, of the first or second pluralities of business records, matches with a first element of a first plurality of elements of the first business record and further matches with a second element of a second plurality of elements of the second business record; (d) determining a plurality of potentially matching business records, and from the plurality of potentially matching business records, eliminating a potentially matching business record which does not match a name element of the third business record; (e) when the first identifier and the second identifier are determined to correspond to the same person of the plurality of persons, linking the first identifier and the second identifier in a data structure that provides respective references to the first and second business records without merging the first and second business records and without merging the first and second identifiers; (f) separately maintaining information in the first business record associated with the first identifier and information in the second business record associated with the second identifier for the predetermined period of time; and (g) when information about the same person is requested, grouping access to the information that is separately maintained in both the first and second business records via either one of the first identifier or second identifier based on the link between the first and second identifiers in the data structure.
-
Specification