Source- and venue-specific inventory data processing and identification system

• US 8,275,717 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2006
• Issued: 09/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CDK Global Incorporated
• Original Assignee: ADP Dealer Services Incorporated (CDK Global Incorporated)
• Inventors: Ullman, Matthew Royce, Worsham, Brian T., Leonard, Douglas George Orman
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender, Ryan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Amsdell, Dana
• Application Number:
  US11/525,009
• Publication Number:
  US 20070282713A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,196 Days
• Field of Search: 705/28, 705/51, 705/300
• US Class Current: 705/51
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A system processes product data including values for a product data record corresponding to a product style. A network interface receives a product data record over a network from a source. A memory has stored thereon computer readable instruction code, including, a rule set having rules associated with the product data record, and a processing manager to apply the rules to the product data record and determine availability of values to a venue. The processing manager includes a style identification manager to determine from among the available values a product style associated with the available values, and to make the product style available to the venue based on the rules.

Claims

1. A system to provide attributes of a vehicle available in an inventory to a plurality of different venues for providing vehicle information, each venue associated with a respective venue entity, the system comprising:

a vehicle data record stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the vehicle data record comprising a plurality of source-attribute pairs, each source-attribute pair comprising an attribute value corresponding to the vehicle and identifying a respective source of the attribute value;

a plurality of availability rules stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium specifying which of the plurality of venues are to have available attribute values associated with attribute value sources, wherein the availability rules are based upon business relationships between the venue entity and the attribute value sources, wherein a business relationship comprises one of a sponsored dealer and a manufacturer of the vehicle and a dealer group and a manufacturer of the vehicle;

a computing device comprising an augmentation manager and an assignment manager;

the augmentation manager configured to access a vehicle style database comprising a plurality of vehicle styles, each vehicle style comprising a plurality of reference attribute values shared by vehicles of a particular vehicle style, to select one of the vehicle styles in the vehicle style database using the vehicle data record, and to augment the vehicle data record with source-attribute pairs derived from the selected vehicle style; and

an assignment manager operating on a computing device and configured to provide vehicle information to a first one of the plurality of venues by,

accessing the augmented vehicle data record and the availability rules,

applying the availability rules to the augmented vehicle data record to identify source-attribute pairs of the augmented vehicle data record that are from sources available to the first venue according to the availability rules, and

providing a first set of attribute values to the first venue, the first set comprising attribute values of the identified source-attribute pairs.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager selects the selected vehicle style by matching a granular standard vehicle class attribute value of the vehicle data record with a vehicle style in the vehicle style database.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the granular standard vehicle class attribute is a model code value.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager is to select the selected vehicle style using a taxonomic classification comprising matching one or more attribute values of the vehicle data record with reference attribute values of vehicle styles in the vehicle style database.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager identifies a plurality of candidates for the selected vehicle style by comparing a first attribute value of the vehicle data record to vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, and eliminates candidate vehicle styles that are not associated with a second attribute value of the vehicle data record.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a transformation manager configured to modify an attribute value available to the first venue using a transformation rule of the first venue, wherein the transformation manager is configured to augment the vehicle data record by adding the modified attribute value to the vehicle data record.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager is configured to augment the vehicle data record responsive to detecting a change in the vehicle style database.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager is configured to augment the vehicle data record responsive to detecting a change to the availability rules.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the augmentation manager is configured to select the selected vehicle style using a subset of the attribute values of the vehicle data record, the subset comprising the attribute values of the vehicle data record that are available to the first venue as determined by the availability rules and sources of the attribute values of the vehicle data record.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a transformation manager to modify one or more of the attribute values of the vehicle data record, and wherein the augmentation manager uses one or more of the modified attribute values to select the selected vehicle style in the vehicle style database.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the transformation manager provides one or more aliases for standard style label elements to the augmentation manager, and wherein the augmentation manager uses the one or more aliases to select the selected vehicle style.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the assignment manager provides a second set of attribute values to a second venue, wherein the first set comprising an attribute value that is not included in the second set, and

wherein the first venue has a business relationship with a manufacturer of the vehicle and the second venue does not have a business relationship with the manufacturer, and

wherein the availability rules specify that the first venue is to have access to attribute values sourced from the manufacturer and that the second venue does not have access to attribute values sourced from the manufacturer.

13. A method for providing attributes associated with a vehicle available in an inventory to a plurality of different venues for providing vehicle information, each venue associated with a respective venue entity, the system comprising:

accessing at a computing device a vehicle data record comprising a plurality of source-attribute pairs, each source-attribute pair comprising an attribute value corresponding to the vehicle in the inventory and identifying a respective source of the attribute value;

accessing at the computing device, availability rules specifying which of the plurality of venues are to have available attribute values associated with attribute value sources, wherein the availability rules are based upon business relationships between the venue entity and the attribute value sources, wherein a business relationship comprises one of a sponsored dealer and a manufacturer of the vehicle and a dealer group and a manufacturer of the vehicle;

accessing at the computing device a vehicle style database comprising a plurality of vehicle styles, each vehicle style comprising reference attribute values shared by vehicles of a particular vehicle style;

selecting by the computing device one of the plurality of vehicle styles in the vehicle style database using the attribute values of the vehicle data record;

generating an augmented vehicle data record by adding one or more reference attribute values of the selected vehicle style to the vehicle data record, the one or more reference attribute values comprising attribute values not previously included in the vehicle data record; and

selecting from the augmented vehicle data record, a first set of attribute values to be available to a first one of the plurality of venues by,

accessing the augmented vehicle data record and the availability rules,

applying the availability rules to the augmented vehicle data record to identify source-attribute pairs of the augmented vehicle data record that are from sources available to the first venue according to the availability rules, and

providing a first set of attribute values to the first venue, the first set comprising attribute values of the identified source-attribute pairs.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises, determining one or more candidates for the selected vehicle style by matching a granular standard vehicle class attribute value of the vehicle data record with vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the candidate vehicle styles.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the granular standard vehicle class attribute value comprises a model code value.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected using a taxonomic classification comprising matching one or more attribute values of the vehicle data record with reference attribute values of vehicle styles in the vehicle style database.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

identifying a plurality of candidate vehicle styles by comparing a first attribute value of the vehicle data record to vehicle styles in the vehicle style database; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles that are not associated with a second attribute value of the vehicle data record.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

transforming one or more attribute values of the first set to produce one or more modified attribute values using a transformation rule of the first venue, and

adding the one or more modified attribute values to the vehicle data record.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising detecting a change in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected responsive to detecting the change in the vehicle style database.

20. The method of claim 13, further comprising identifying a set of the attribute values of the vehicle data record that are not available to the first venue, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected without using any of the attribute values of the identified set.

21. The method of claim 13, further comprising transforming one or more of the attribute values available to the first venue, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected using one or more of the transformed attribute values.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein one or more of the transformed attribute values comprises an alias for a standard style label element, and wherein the alias is used to select the selected vehicle style.

23. The method of claim 13, further comprising determining whether the vehicle data record includes one or more required attribute values, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected when the one or more required attribute values are included in the vehicle data record.

24. The method of claim 13, wherein the first venue comprises a website, and wherein the first set of attribute values are displayed on the website to one or more users via a network.

25. The method of claim 13, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises populating a first style candidate list with candidate vehicle styles based on matching a granular standard product class attribute value of the vehicle data record to vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the first style candidate list.

26. The method of claim 25, the method further comprising:

comparing a second attribute value of the vehicle data record with each candidate vehicle style of the first style candidate list; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles from the first style candidate list that do not match the second attribute value.

27. The method of claim 13, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises populating a first style candidate list with candidate vehicle styles using a taxonomic classification comprising matching one or more attribute values of the vehicle data record with reference attribute values of the vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the first style candidate list.

28. The method of claim 27, the method further comprising:

comparing a second vehicle attribute value with each candidate vehicle style of the first style candidate list; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles from the first style candidate list that do not match the second vehicle attribute value.

29. The method of claim 13, wherein the vehicle styles correspond to vehicle types.

30. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium including computer readable instruction code for causing a computing device to perform a method for providing attributes associated with a vehicle available in an inventory to a plurality of different venues for providing vehicle information, each venue associated with a respective venue entity, the method comprising:

accessing a vehicle data record comprising a plurality of source-attribute pairs, each source-attribute pair comprising an attribute value corresponding to the vehicle in the inventory and identifying a respective source of the attribute value;

accessing at the computing device, availability rules specifying which of the plurality of venues are to have available attribute values associated with attribute value sources, wherein the availability rules are based upon business relationships between the venue entity and the attribute value sources, wherein a business relationship comprises one of a sponsored dealer and a manufacturer of the vehicle and a dealer group and a manufacturer of the vehicle;

accessing a vehicle style database comprising a plurality of vehicle styles, each vehicle style comprising reference attribute values shared by vehicles of a particular vehicle style;

selecting one of the plurality of vehicle styles in the vehicle style database using the attribute values of the vehicle data record;

generating an augmented vehicle data record by adding one or more reference attribute values of the selected vehicle style to the vehicle data record, the one or more reference attribute values comprising attribute values not previously included in the vehicle data record; and

selecting from the augmented vehicle data record, a first set of attribute values to be available to a first one of the plurality of venues by,

accessing the augmented vehicle data record and the availability rules,

applying the availability rules to the augmented vehicle data record to identify source-attribute pairs of the augmented vehicle data record that are from sources available to the first venue according to the availability rules, and

providing a first set of attribute values to the first venue, the first set comprising attribute values of the identified source-attribute pairs.

31. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises, determining one or more candidates for the selected vehicle style by matching a granular standard vehicle class attribute value of the vehicle data record with vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the candidate vehicle styles.

32. The computer readable medium of claim 31, wherein the granular standard vehicle class attribute value comprises a model code value.

33. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected using a taxonomic classification comprising matching one or more attribute values of the vehicle data record with reference attribute values of vehicle styles in the vehicle style database.

34. The computer readable medium of claim 30, the method further comprising:

identifying a plurality of candidate vehicle styles by comparing a first attribute value of the vehicle data record to vehicle styles in the vehicle style database; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles that are not associated with a second attribute value of the vehicle data record.

35. The computer readable medium of claim 34, the method further comprising:

transforming one or more attribute values of the first set to produce one or more modified attribute values using a transformation rule of the first venue, and

adding the one or more modified attribute values to the vehicle data record.

36. The computer readable medium of claim 30, the method further comprising detecting a change in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected responsive to detecting the change in the vehicle style database.

37. The computer readable medium of claim 30, the method further comprising identifying a set of the attribute values of the vehicle data record that are not available to the first venue, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected without using any of the attribute values in the identified set.

38. The computer readable medium of claim 30, further comprising transforming one or more of the attribute values available to the first venue, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected using one or more of the transformed attribute values.

39. The computer readable medium of claim 38, wherein one or more of the transformed attribute values comprises an alias for a standard style label element, and wherein the alias is used to select the selected vehicle style.

40. The computer readable medium of claim 30, the method further comprising determining whether the vehicle data record includes one or more required attribute values, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected when the one or more required attribute values are included in the vehicle data record.

41. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein the first venue comprises a website, and wherein the first set of attribute values are displayed on the website to one or more users via a network.

42. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises populating a first style candidate list with candidate vehicle styles based on matching a granular standard vehicle class attribute value of the vehicle data record to vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the first style candidate list.

43. The computer readable medium of claim 42, the method further comprising:

comparing a second attribute value of the vehicle data record with each candidate vehicle style of the first style candidate list; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles from the first style candidate list that do not match the second attribute value.

44. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein selecting the selected vehicle style comprises populating a first style candidate list with candidate vehicle styles using a taxonomic classification comprising matching one or more attribute values of the vehicle data record with reference attribute values of the vehicle styles in the vehicle style database, wherein the selected vehicle style is selected from the first style candidate list.

45. The computer readable medium of claim 44, the method further comprising:

comparing a second vehicle attribute value with each candidate vehicle style of the first style candidate list; and

eliminating candidate vehicle styles from the first style candidate list that do not match the second vehicle attribute value.

46. The computer readable medium of claim 30, wherein the vehicle styles correspond to vehicle types.