Intelligent Multimedia E-Catalog

• US 20140222625A1
• Filed: 01/09/2014
• Published: 08/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Exalt Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Exalt Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: Swanson, Leslie H.
• Granted Patent: US 9,754,315 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/27.1
• 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 product catalog system comprising:

one or more computing devices having a processor and a memory accessing a first portal of a first vendor having an electronic catalog providing product options and accessing a second portal of a second vendor having an electronic catalog providing product options;

a syndication and publishing system configured to syndicate at least a portion of the product options from the first catalog with at least a portion of the product options from the second catalog to create syndicated catalogs;

one or more user applications, including a bill of materials application, capable of being processed by one or more computing devices having a processor and a memory, the one or more user applications configured to design a multivendor product solution based on at least a portion of the product options from the syndicated catalogs;

a configurator configured to use configuration rules that specify certain compatibility requirements of the product options from the first and second, the configuration rules specifying valid configurations of the first and second product catalogs options for a multivendor product solution, the configurator in communication with the one or more user applications, including a bill of materials application, to facilitate the design of the multivendor product solution using at least a portion of the product options from the syndicated catalogs; and

the one or more user applications configured to implement changes to the configuration rules, from the first and second vendors, without any custom reprogramming by storing the configuration rules separate from application code of the one or more user applications that are configured to design the multivendor production solution using a portion of the product options from the syndicated catalogs.