Data structures for intelligently resolving deterministic and probabilistic device identifiers to device profiles and/or groups

• US 10,091,312 B1
• Filed: 10/13/2015
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The 41st Parameter, Inc. (Experian plc)
• Original Assignee: The 41st Parameter, Inc. (Experian plc)
• Inventors: Khanwalkar, Manoj, Camacho, Adler, Van Lare, Stephen, Winkler, Omer, Tuttle, Luke David, Patel, Surag I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Jungwon
• Application Number:
  US14/882,340
• Time in Patent Office: 1,085 Days
• Field of Search: 709220, 709221, 709205, 709224, 709228, 709245, 709223, 718 1, 707600, 707737, 707723, 726 10, 726 6
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/18 for evaluating statistical data , e.g. average values, frequency distributions, probability functions, regression analysis forecasting specially adapted for a specific administrative, business or logistic context G06Q10/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/14 Network analysis or design
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

An electronic device identifier mapping and resolution system are disclosed which may be used to analyze various device identifiers associated with an online event initiated by a particular device in applying a matching algorithm to determine a unique device identifier and/or device profile for the device. Device identifiers provided from disparate sources (such as web browser cookies, network IP addresses, device-specific identifiers, application-specific identifiers, custom identifiers, probabilistic identifiers, etc.), including both deterministic and/or probabilistic identifiers, may be analyzed according to the matching algorithm to determine a device identifier associated with the device. Matching algorithms may be customized and configured to a high degree of complexity for respective entities, such as to analyze disparate device identifiers according to a variety of identifier comparison functions and matching tiers. Matching algorithms may include conditional requirements that streamline execution of such algorithms, e.g., which may reduce processor load and increase execution time, such as conditional requirements that bypass portions of the matching algorithm based on particular identifiers associated with the online event that are initially analyzed.

Claims

1. A computing system, comprising:

one or more hardware computer processors;

a network interface providing data communication with

(1) a first electronic data store configured to store a plurality of matching algorithms associated with a corresponding plurality of online requesting entities, the plurality of matching algorithms each including one or more deterministic matching rule and one or more probabilistic matching rule, and

(2) a second electronic data store configured to store a plurality of device profiles, each device profile associated with a different electronic communication device and including at least;

a unique device identifier; and

one or more device identifiers associated with the electronic communication device, each of the one or more device identifiers being associated with a respective identifier type of a plurality of identifier types;

a non-transitory storage device storing executable software instructions that when executed;

receive online event data including a plurality of device identifiers associated with a first device that has interacted with a first online requesting entity;

access, from the first electronic data store, a first matching algorithm associated with the first online requesting entity, the first matching algorithm including a plurality of matching rules;

until either a determination that a particular accessed device profile of the plurality of device profiles matches a selected matching rule of the first matching algorithm, or until all of the matching rules of the first matching algorithm are evaluated with reference to the online event data, in real-time;

select a highest priority matching rule of the first matching algorithm that has not yet been evaluated with reference to the online event data;

determine a selected identifier type indicated in the selected matching rule;

determine a device identifier of the selected identifier type from the plurality of device identifiers of the online event data;

for each of the plurality of device profiles;

access a device profile identifier of the selected identifier type in the device profile;

determine whether the device profile identifier matches the device identifier of the selected identifier type from the online event data;

in response to determination that the device profile identifier matches the device identifier of the selected identifier type from the online event data, provide, to the requesting entity, the unique device identifier associated with the device profile in the second electronic data store;

in response to determination that none of the matching rules of the first matching algorithm match the device profile of the plurality of device profiles;

generate a new device profile associated with a unique device identifier and at least some of the online event data, and

provide, to the requesting entity, the unique device identifier associated with the new device profile; and

wherein the first matching algorithm is executed in real-time in response to receiving the online event data.

2. The computing system of claim 1, wherein a first matching rule of the plurality of matching rules indicates a deterministic identifier type and at least some of the plurality of matching rules having a lower priority than the first matching rule indicate probabilistic identifier types.

3. The computing system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of the matching rules includes at least one tier condition that indicates an identifier type and a match tier indicating a value or value range, wherein a particular tier condition is matched by the online event data when a device identifier of the online event data of the indicated identifier type matches the value or value range.

4. The computing system of claim 3, wherein the first matching rule of the plurality of matching rules includes a first tier condition indicating a first identifier type and a first match tier and a second tier condition indicating a second identifier type and a second match tier, wherein the first matching rule is matched by the online event data only if both of the first and second tier conditions are matched.

5. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the selected matching rule includes a precondition requirement indicating a device type, wherein the online event data including device identifiers for the indicated device type are further evaluated with reference to the selected matching rule.

6. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the selected matching rule includes a key window such that if a maximum quantity of device profiles within the plurality of device profiles matching the key window is exceeded, each of one or more tier conditions of the selected matching rule are not evaluated.

7. The computing system of claim 1, further comprising transmitting one or more of the device identifiers to a third party data source and receiving, in return, a derived device identifier that is evaluated with reference to at least some of the plurality of matching rules.

8. The computing system of claim 7, further comprising linking the derived device identifier with the device profile.

9. The computing system of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based on one or more of the device identifiers, whether the device is associated with a residential location or the device is associated with a commercial location;

in response to determining that the device is associated with a residential location, creating a group identifier associated with the device; and

associating one or more additional devices that are also associated with a same residential location with the group identifier.

10. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the executable software instructions when executed further receives a request from an online requesting entity of the plurality of online requesting entities, wherein the request includes an indication of one or more resolution data items to be returned to the requesting entity, wherein the software instructions are further configured to:

access the device profile;

parse the device profile to extract the one or more resolution data items; and

transmit the one or more resolution data items to the requesting entity.

11. A method comprising:

under control of one or more hardware processors;

receiving online event data including a plurality of device identifiers associated with a device that has interacted with an online requesting entity;

accessing a matching algorithm associated with the online requesting entity, the matching algorithm comprising a plurality of matching rules which comprises one or more deterministic matching rules and one or more probabilistic matching rules;

until a determination that at least one device profile of a plurality of device profiles matches a selected matching rule of the matching algorithm or that all of the matching rules of the matching algorithm are evaluated with reference to the online event data, in real-time;

selecting a highest priority matching rule of the matching algorithm that has not yet been evaluated with reference to the online event data;

determining a selected identifier type indicated in the selected matching rule;

determining a device identifier of the selected identifier type from the plurality of device identifiers of the online event data;

accessing a device profile identifier of the selected identifier type in the device profile;

determining whether the device profile identifier matches the device identifier of the selected identifier type from the online event data;

in response to a determination that the device profile identifier matches the device identifier of the selected identifier type from the online event data, providing, to the online requesting entity, the unique device identifier associated with the device profile;

in response to determination that none of the matching rules of the matching algorithm match the device profile of the plurality of device profiles;

generating a new device profile associated with a unique device identifier and at least some of the online event data, and

providing, to the requesting entity, the unique device identifier associated with the new device profile; and

wherein the matching algorithm is executed in real-time in response to receiving the online event data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a first matching rule of the plurality of matching rules indicates a deterministic identifier type and at least some of the plurality of matching rules having a lower priority than the first matching rule indicate probabilistic identifier types.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of the matching rules includes at least one tier condition that indicates an identifier type and a match tier indicating a value or value range, wherein a particular tier condition is matched by the online event data when a device identifier of the online event data of the indicated identifier type matches the value or value range.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first matching rule of the plurality of matching rules includes a first tier condition indicating a first identifier type and a first match tier and a second tier condition indicating a second identifier type and a second match tier, wherein the first matching rule is matched by the online event data only if both of the first and second tier conditions are matched.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the selected matching rule includes a precondition requirement indicating a device type, wherein the online event data including device identifiers for the indicated device type are further evaluated with reference to the first selected matching rule.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the selected matching rule includes a key window such that if a maximum quantity of device profiles within the plurality of device profiles matching the key window is exceeded, each of one or more tier conditions of the selected matching rule are not evaluated.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising transmitting one or more of the device identifiers to a third party data source and receiving, in return, a derived device identifier that is evaluated with reference to at least some of the plurality of matching rules.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising linking the derived device identifier with the device profile.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining, based on one or more of the device identifiers, whether the device is associated with a residential location or the device is associated with a commercial location;

in response to determining that the device is associated with a residential location, creating a group identifier associated with the device; and

associating one or more additional devices that are also associated with a same residential location with the group identifier.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a request from an online requesting entity, wherein the request includes an indication of one or more resolution data items to be returned to the requesting entity;

accessing the device profile;

parsing the device profile to extract the one or more resolution data items; and

transmitting the one or more resolution data items to the requesting entity.