Product catalog management system and method

• US 8,799,094 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2008
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CNET Media Incorporated (Red Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: CBS Interactive Inc. (Paramount Global (f/k/a ViacomCBS Inc.))
• Inventors: Kolemasov, Sergey, SMOLOVIK, Vlad, Schmidt, Douglas, Uskov, Alexei, Lapin, Andrei, Pankov, Severin, Gudkov, Sergey
• Primary Examiner(s): Civan, Ethan D
• Application Number:
  US12/276,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20090138320A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,080 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 705 261- 272
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1097 Task assignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• 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

Abstract

A product catalog management system and method is provided for managing product data associated with a plurality of products. In one embodiment, the system comprises a processor, a product information database for storing product data associated with a plurality of products therein, a workflow design module for allowing creation of a workflow diagram for processing product data for storage in the product information database. The product catalog management system also includes a task management module that facilitates generation of a plurality of tasks for processing product data according to the workflow diagram, and a task assignment module adapted to assign the generated task for processing product data for completion.

Claims

1. A product catalog management system for managing product data associated with a plurality of products, said system comprising:

a processor;

a product information database in electronic communication with said processor for storing product data associated with a plurality of products therein, said product information database including a plurality of product templates, each product template corresponding to a product category and having a plurality of product attribute fields, where a particular product template can be associated and linked with other templates to thereby effectively reference a plurality of templates within a product template, and a plurality of instantiated product templates, each of said instantiated product templates being associated to a particular product, with said product attribute fields being populated with attributes of the particular product;

a task management module in electronic communication with said product information database that facilitates generation of a plurality of tasks; and

a task assignment module in electronic communication with said task management module, said task assignment module adapted to assign a generated task for processing product data for completion.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein processing of product data assigned in said generated task is at least one of entry of product data into said product information database, verification of product data, comparison of products, writing a review of a product, associating products together, and translating product data into an another language.

3. The system of claim 1, said system further comprising:

a workflow design module in electronic communication with said processor for creating a workflow diagram for processing product data for storage in said product information database, wherein the workflow diagram is used by the task management module to facilitate generation of said plurality of tasks.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said workflow design module includes a graphical user interface with a plurality of user selectable graphical objects for creating said workflow diagram.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said attributes includes a standard description with at least make and model of said particular product, and at least one of an image of said particular product, text describing said particular product, and technical specifications of said particular product.

6. The system of claim 1, further including an interface module adapted to allow an analyst to interface with said system to complete said assigned task.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising an editor module adapted to allow creation and editing of said plurality of product templates.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said task assignment module assigns said generated task to an analyst, and said system further includes a terminal in electronic communication with said task assignment module that is accessed by the analyst to process said product data to complete said assigned task.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein said terminal is accessed by said identified analyst to at least one of enter product data, to verify product data, to compare products, to write a review of a product, associate products together, and translate product data into another language.

10. The system of claim 8, further comprising an analyst database having qualification information regarding a plurality of analysts, wherein said task assignment module is further adapted to assign a generated task to an analyst at least partially based on qualification information.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein said task assignment module further restricts access of the assigned analyst to product data in said product information database required to complete said assigned task.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein said task management module assigns a task type name to said generated tasks that identifies a type of product data processing required to complete said generated task.

13. The system of claim 12, further including an interface module with a plurality of plug-ins associated with task type names, and wherein said interface module provides a user interface to said terminal customized by a plug-in based on said assigned task to facilitate processing of said product data.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein said terminal is remotely located from said task assignment module, and is in electronic communication with said task assignment module via a wide area network.

15. The system of claim 1, further including a tools module including at least one of a normalization tool that normalizes or suggests normal values of an attribute for a product template, and a value determination tool that calculates values of product data for a product template.

16. A computer-implemented method for managing product data stored in one or more databases associated with a plurality of products, said method comprising:

providing a product information database for storing product data associated with a plurality of products therein, said product information database including a plurality of product templates, each product template corresponding to a product category and having a plurality of product attribute fields, where a particular product template can be associated and linked with other templates to thereby effectively reference a plurality of templates within a product template, and a plurality of instantiated product templates, each of said instantiated product templates being associated to a particular product, with said product attribute fields being populated with attributes of the particular product;

generating by a computing device a plurality of tasks for processing said product data; and

assigning by a computing device said generated task for processing said product data for completion.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of creating a workflow diagram on a computing device for processing product data for storage in said product information database, wherein the workflow diagram is used in said generating step to facilitate generation of said plurality of tasks.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein said attributes include a standard description with at least make and model of said particular product, and at least one of an image of said particular product, text describing said particular product, and technical specifications of said particular product.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein processing of product data assigned in said task is at least one of entry of product data into said product information database, verification of product data, comparison of products, writing a review of a product, associating products together, and translating product data into another language.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising providing an interface module to allow an analyst to interface with said computing device to complete said assigned task.

21. The method of claim 16, further comprising providing an analyst database having qualification information regarding a plurality of analysts, and assigning a generated task to an analyst at least partially based on qualification information.

22. The method of claim 21, further including restricting access of the assigned analyst to product data in said product information database required to complete said assigned task.

23. The method of claim 21, further including assigning a task type name to said generated tasks that identifies a type of product data processing required to complete said generated task, and providing user interface incorporating a plug-in program to the analyst to facilitate processing of said product data by the analyst.

24. The method of claim 23, further including normalizing or suggesting normal values of an attribute for a product template, or calculating values of product data for a product template.

25. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to:

provide a product information database for storing product data associated with a plurality of products therein, said product information database including a plurality of product templates, each product template corresponding to a product category and having a plurality of product attribute fields, where a particular product template can be associated and linked with other templates to thereby effectively reference a plurality of templates within a product template, and a plurality of instantiated product templates, each of said instantiated product templates being associated to a particular product, with said product attribute fields being populated with attributes of the particular product;

generate a plurality of tasks for processing product data; and

assign said generated task for processing product data for completion.

26. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to allow creation of a workflow diagram for processing product data to store in said product information database.

27. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein said attributes includes a standard description with at least make and model of said particular product, and at least one of an image of said particular product, text describing said particular product, and technical specifications of said particular product.

28. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein processing product data for completion comprises at least one of entering of product data into said product information database verification of product data, comparison of products, writing write a review of a product, associating products together, and translating product data into another language.

29. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to provide an interface module that allows an analyst to complete said assigned task.

30. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to provide an analyst database for storing qualification information regarding a plurality of analysts, and computer executable instructions for assigning a generated task to an analyst at least partially based on qualification information.

31. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 30, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to restrict access of the assigned analyst to product data in said product information database required to complete said assigned task.

32. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 30, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to assign a task type name to said generated tasks that identifies a type of product data processing required to complete said generated task, and computer executable instructions for providing a plug-in to the analyst corresponding to the task type name of the assigned task to facilitate processing of said product data by the analyst.

33. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 32, further storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more computing devices, cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to normalize or suggest normal values of an attribute for a product template, or calculate values of product data for a product template.