Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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INCREMENTAL SEARCHING IN ECOMMERCE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to product search and retrieval in
ecommerce.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Ecommerce is regarded as the sales aspect of e-business.
Ecommerce needs well executed e-tailing or virtual storefronts in order to
facilitate access by consumers (e.g. users, shoppers, etc.) to online catalogs
or
product inventory. On-line or network access to a merchant's product inventory
is typically done by consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller
over the network (e.g. Internet) using a web browser. The manner in which the
consumer is able to quickly navigate to their product/service of choice on the
seller's website will dictate, to a large extent, the ability of the seller to
execute
the product/service sales transaction.
[0003] An online storefront can facilitate business-to-consumer (B2C) and
business-to-business (B2B) online shopping, depending upon the targeted user
of the online shop. With the growth of online shopping, comes a wealth of new
market opportunities for stores that can appropriately cater to market demands
and service requirements, however consumers still expect the ability to
efficiently
find online the products they are looking for amongst all of the various types
and
variations of products available. Like traditional physical stores, the
ability of
online stores to quickly and efficiently present consumers with consumer
desired
product selections and descriptions greatly enhances the online store's
desired
goal of converting consumer product interest into product sales.
[0004] One critical tool used by online shoppers to find a product of
interest amongst the website of the retailer directly, or by searching among
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alternative vendors, is a shopping search engine interface. Only once a
particular product has been found and selected on the website of the seller,
can
the consumer use a shopping cart to accumulate multiple items and to adjust
quantities, with an associated "checkout" process. The access to and execution
of the search engine by the online shop needs to handle the effects of
information load, or overload, as the product information environment
presented
to the user via the search engine can provide additional product information
such
as comparative products and services, as well as various alternatives and
attributes of each alternative (e.g. variants). This product information
presented
to the user by the search engine must describe products for sale with text,
photos, and multimedia files that are considered relevant to the consumer in
response to their product search query, otherwise the user may quickly lose
interest in the online shop and may gravitate to another online shop with a
better
executed product information presentation experience. The online store must
make sure that it's easy for the purchaser to get the product information
they're
likely to want in response to their search queries, rather than purchaser
deemed
irrelevant, useless or wrong information. Accordingly, the online shopping
experience (and return online experience) of the user, as facilitated via the
browser through the website search engine, should provide the consumer with
access to product information and merchant information (e.g. shipping, store
location, etc.) that is perceived by the consumer as ease of use and presence
of
user-friendly features.
[0005] Further, research has shown that many consumers will not buy
from websites that they do not trust. What's more, site aesthetics, i.e. how
good
the web store looks, ease of desired product identification, and/or ease of
site
navigation, can be the most important factor(s) contributing to how shoppers
judge the merchant's professionalism and trustworthiness. A disadvantage with
current eCommerce websites is the presentation via inefficiently configured
search engine interfaces that return endless pages of product grids containing
product items that are mostly irrelevant to the consumer search. Consumers
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desire a search engine configured with a means to sort and filter category
pages
and search results in order to return relevant search results to a consumers'
search/navigation query submitted to the search engine, as well as providing
ease of access to purchase those products desired by the consumer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The systems and methods disclosed herein provide for product
search and retrieval to obviate or mitigate at least some of the above
presented
disadvantages.
[0007] A disadvantage with current eCommerce websites is the
presentation via inefficiently configured search engine interfaces that return
endless pages of product grids containing product items that are mostly
irrelevant
to the consumer search. Consumers desire a search engine configured with a
means to sort and filter category pages and search results in order to return
relevant search results to a consumers' search/navigation query submitted to
the
search engine, as well as providing ease of access to purchase those products
desired by the consumer.
[0008] According to one aspect there is provided a method for
optimizing
identification and access to product records in a product database, the method
executed as a set of stored instructions by a computer processor to implement
the steps of: receiving over a communications network textual information
representing a potential portion of multiple different words or phrases, the
textual
information being a sequence of characters; searching metadata of each of a
set
of product listings stored in the product database for one or more of said
multiple
different words or phrases in the metadata matching the sequence of characters
by having the sequence of characters included as a portion of the one or more
of
said multiple different words or phrases; executing a search query against the
set
of product listings using the one or more of said multiple different words or
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-06-22
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phrases to return a query search result containing a plurality of product
listings
matching the search query; selecting a product listing subset from the query
search result, each product listing in the product listing subset associated
with
respective said metadata containing the sequence of characters; sending over
the communications network the product listing subset for display on a user
interface as a list of user selectable links, each of the user selectable
links in the
list for each said product listing coupled to a respective product record of
the
product records; and receiving over the communications network a link
selection
from the list of user selectable links and returning the respective product
record
associated with the link selection.
[0009]
[0010] A further aspect provided is prior to receiving the link selection:
receiving a content update to the textual information; searching the metadata
of
each of the set of product listings based on the content update to update the
one
or more of said multiple different words or phrases in the metadata matching
the
content update included as a portion of said update the one or more of said
multiple different words or phrases; re-executing the search query against the
set
of product listings using said update the one or more of said multiple
different
words or phrases to return an updated query search result containing an
updated
plurality of product listings matching the updated search query; selecting an
updated product listing subset from the updated query search result, each
product listing in the updated product listing subset associated with the
content
update to the textual information; sending over the communications network the
updated product listing subset for replacing on the display the list of user
selectable links with an updated list of user selectable links, each of the
user
selectable links in the updated list for each said product listing in the
updated
product listing subset coupled to a respective product record of the product
records; and receiving over the communications network said link selection
from
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the updated list of user selectable links and returning the respective product
record associated with said link selection.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described in
conjunction with the following drawings, by way of example only, in which:
[0012] Figure 1 is a view of a network system for facilitating item
retrieval;
[0013] Figure 2 shows an operational example of the system of Figure 1;
[0014] Figure 3 shows a further operational example of the system of
Figure 1;
[0015] Figure 4 is an example configuration of a network device of the
system of Figure 1; and
[0016] Figure 5 is an example configuration of a network server of the
system of Figure 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
[0017] Referring to Figure 1, shown is an item search retrieval system 10
including one or more network devices 12 coupled to a product service 14 (e.g.
a
retailer's ecommerce website hosted on a server) via a communications network
16. The product service 14 receives product based query requests 18 (including
search text as query content 40¨ see Figure 2) from the network devices 12
(e.g. via a browser application executing on the devices 12) and sends
appropriately configured query responses 20 back to the network device(s) 12
(e.g. for presentation on the user interface 104 of the device ¨ for example
using
the browser application), containing product information 22 received from a
search engine 24. The query responses 20 can also contain search term
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suggestions 41 (see Figure 2), based on the query content 40, for
selection/use
by the device 12 user as a supplemental query requests 18. The search engine
24 obtains the product information 22 from object records 32 in the form of a
product index stored in product storage 30 (e.g. database), based on a
comparison for relevancy of the query content 40 (or search term suggestions
41) against the product records 32 of the product index. The query responses
20 can also contain product summary links 23 providing both summary product
definitions containing both words or phrases or terms (e.g. descriptive
metadata)
44 and at least one representative image 46 representative of a respective
product defined by the descriptive metadata 44. In other words each product
summary link 23 can have both summary descriptive metadata 44 of a particular
product as well as a product image 46 representative of the descriptive
metadata
44. As further described below, the product summary links 23 can represent a
direct link to the corresponding full product record 32 in the product storage
30.
It is recognised that the product summary link 23 can be referred to as an
abridged or partial version of the full product record 32 and as such the
content
of the summary descriptive metadata 44 of a particular product as well as the
product image 46 can be an abridged or partial version of full descriptive
metadata 34 of the particular product as well as the full product image(s) 36
contained in the product record 32 for the product represented by the each
product summary link 23.
[0018] The query content 40 (and search term suggestions 41) is/are
continuously updated using incremental search techniques, used to implement
continually updated product links 23 and/or search term suggestions 41
reflecting
incremental changes to the query content 40. These incremental changes to the
query content 40 are entered by the device 12 user via the user interface 104
of
the device 12. One example of incremental search techniques is Search as you
Type (SayT). As further described below, the search term suggestions 41 and/or
the product links 23 can contain the query content 40 as a content portion 43
(e.g. text) of the search term suggestions 41 and/or the product links 23. For
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example, referring to Figure 2, the query content 40 "ten" is included as the
portion 43 of the search term suggestions 41 "tents", "Eureka tent", etc. It
is also
recognised that the search term suggestion 41 "shelters" does not contain
explicitly the query content 40 "ten" as a portion 43, rather the search term
suggestion 41 is a suggested alternative or synonym of the term "tent" which
does contain the query content 40 as the portion 43. Similarly, it is
recognised
that the representative descriptors "Product 1", "Product 2", "Product 3" can
contain query content 40 as the content portion 43 therein (e.g. Product 1 can
include descriptive product detail of "4 Person Tent Fly").
[0019] In terms of
the content contained in the product information 22, this
content is stored in the product index (e.g. records 32) such as but not
limited to
product master records (e.g. labelled shirt with generic shirt description and
picture/image) and/or product variant records (e.g. labelled blue shirt, red
shirt,
size 6 shirt, polo shirt, short sleeve shirt with specific variant related
description
and specific variant relevant picture/image). As such, the product records 32
contain descriptive content (e.g. product information 22 including product
defining
multimedia content) of the individual products which are matched against the
query content 40 of the query requests 18. The product records 32 can
represent various product definitions containing both words or phrases or
terms
(e.g. descriptive metadata) 34 and at least one representative image 36
representative of a respective product defined by the descriptive metadata 34.
In
other words each object record 32 has both descriptive metadata 34 of a
particular product as well as a product image 36 representative of the
descriptive
metadata 34, for example including a master record 32 and a number of variant
records 32 of the product contained in different or combined object records
32.
For example, the object record 32 can represent a pair of blue jeans, such
that
the descriptive metadata 34 can contain descriptors for "jeans", pricing,
specified
colour(s) such as red or black, specified size(s), specified style(s) such as
boot
cut or skinny, specified in stock status, etc. Also included in the object
record 32
would be a representative image 36 of the blue jeans as the product. For
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example, the object record 32 for a red pair of blue jeans would have a
picture 36
of a red coloured jeans, an object record 32 for a pair of boot cut jeans can
have
an image 36 of a standard dark blue jeans image of a boot cut style. As such,
it
is recognised that systematic searching through the object records 32 by the
search engine 24 can provide for item/product search and retrieval in a
variant
product space.
[0020] The product service 14 can forward any query requests 18 received
from the devices 12 to the search engine 24 (e.g. via the communications
network 16), including the ability to reformat (e.g. suggest alternative
spellings,
synonyms, alternative product choices, etc.) the query content 40 before
sending
to the search engine 24. The product service 14 can format/reformat the
product
information 22 obtained from the search engine 24 based on one or more
predefined formats 26 (e.g. based on rules, etc.), configured for presentation
of
the product information 22 on a user interface 104 (see Figure 4) of the
network
device(s) 12 as the query response 20, in order to provide product search and
retrieval information 22 in the form of the incremental search (e.g. SayT)
interaction between the product service 14 and the devices 12 (e.g. client-
server
interactions between the browser application of the device and web service
application of the product service 14). It is recognised that SayT can be
regarded as a form of incremental search, further described below, whereby
real
time suggestions for search terms 41 are presented to the consumer by the
product service 14 based on analysis of a portion of the search term(s)
entered
(e.g. typed) so far (contained in the query requests 18) by the consumer using
a
user interface (of the device 12) connected to the search engine 24 (via the
product service 14) over the communications network 16.
[0021] The item search retrieval system 10 facilitates the application of
the
multiple incremental queries 18 (or modified/augmented versions as further
described below) by the search engine 24 (e.g. Elastic Search, Google Search
Appliance, and other readily available search engines) to provide meaningful
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content (e.g. product information 22) for the purpose of supporting eCommerce
websites (those in contact with or otherwise facilitating operation of the
network
devices 12 generating the queries 18). These methods implemented by the
product service 14, the search engine 24, and/or the product service 14 in
combination with the search engine 24) provide for intelligent generation of
continually updated product information 22 provided to the devices 12, using a
set of incremental queries (e.g. multiple queries) based on the continually
updated query 18 incremental content received from the network device 12. The
set of incremental queries (e.g. including one or more generated augmented
queries 19 further described below) are relevant to the searchable content
stored
in the product index as records 32 in the storage 30 accessible to the search
engine 24. As further described below, the product service 14 intercepts the
continually updated queries 18 and, based on comparison of the queries 18
against one or more rules 25 (e.g. stored in a storage such as a database
accessible to the product service 14), can apply the queries 18 against the
search engine 24 and resultantly to the product search index stored in the
storage 30.
[0022] Referring to
Figure 2, incremental search, incremental find or real-
time suggestions (e.g. SayT) of the item search retrieval system 10 is
configured
as a user interface 104 interaction method to progressively search for and
filter
through a search query 18 (e.g. text string) as the user enters portions of
the
query content 40 (e.g. text) into the user interface 104 (e.g. via text box 42
and
associated search action control 39). For each portion of the query content 40
entered into the user interface 104, the product service 14 references a
content
storage 50 for one or more possible matches for the query content 40 are found
and immediately presented to the user interface 104 as search term suggestions
41 deemed to be match the received query content 40 identified in the content
storage 50. This immediate feedback for the return of the search term
suggestions 41 based on the user only entering a portion of the query content
40
submitted as the search query 18 often allows the user to stop short of typing
the
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entire word or phrase of the query content 40 they were looking for. The user
may also choose a closely related option from any presented lists or other
selections provided in the search term suggestions 41, as further described
below. As such, the search term suggestions 41can be referred to as
dynamically
presented suggestions and/or auto-complete content based on the query content
40 before the user is even done typing.
[0023] Further, the product service 14 can implement at least some of the
search term suggestions 41 by sending them to the search engine 24 for
execution against the product records 32 of the storage 30 prior to selection
of
the search term suggestions 41 by the user. Upon receipt of product
information
22 from the search engine 24 resulting from executing the search term
suggestions 41, the product service 14 can select (e.g. filter) a subset of
the
product information 22 and send to the device 12 in the query response 20 as
one or more product summary links 23 (see Figure 2). In other words, each of
the product summary links 23 represents only a portion of the full listing of
product information 22 obtained from the search engine 24 as a result of
executing the search term suggestions 41 against the product records 32. In
this
manner, the product service 14 can act as an intermediary between the network
device 12 and the search engine 24.
[0024] For example, the product summary link 23 of "Product 1" could be a
direct link to an example tent contained within one of multiple product
records 32
matching the search term "tents", the product summary link 23 of "Product 2"
could be a direct link to an example Eureka tent contained within one of
multiple
product records 32 matching the search term "Eureka tent" and , the product
summary link 23 of "Product 3" could be a direct link to an example Shelter
contained within one of multiple product records 32 matching the search term
"shelters". As such, the query responses 20 can be formatted by the product
service 14 to include complete product records 32, offering word suggestions
(e.g. search term suggestions 41) as the device 12 user is typing,
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selected/filtered product results (e.g. product summary links 23) and targeted
category and/or attribute suggestions 52 that automatically update as a user
scrolls through the search term suggestions 41 and/or as the user augments the
query content 40 (e.g. progresses from text of "te" to "tent" to "tents"
during entry
of the query content 40 into the input field 42 of the user interface 104. For
example, Figure 3 is an example of dynamically updated search term
suggestions 41 and resulting product summary links 23 based on the query
content 40 changing from "ten" to "tents". A similar effect of dynamic update
of
the search term suggestions 41 (representing a change in user interface 104
content of that of Figure 2 to that of Figure 3) and resulting product summary
links 23 can be effected by the user scrolling and selecting the search term
suggestion 41 of "tents" in the Suggestions section of the user interface 104.
For
example, every letter added to the query content 40, as the user enters the
letters into the user interface 104, can be interpreted and executed as a new
query for submission to the search engine 24 to obtain updated product
information 22 and/or compared against the product content 50 to ascertain
matches representing updated search term suggestions 41. It is recognised that
changes to the search term suggestions 41would also be represented by
corresponding changes to the product summary links 23. One example of the
product content 50 is a collection of metadata descriptors contained in the
metadata of the product records 32. Alternatively, the product service 14
could
use the product records 32 themselves as the content upon which the query
content 40 is compared in order to determine matching suggested search terms
41. For example, the product service 14 can interrogate the product records
directly or could do so by passing the query content to the search engine 24
in
order for the search engine to determine all metadata (and combinations
thereof)
matching the query content 40, for subsequent passing back to the product
service for use in generating the suggested search terms 41 forwarded in the
query response 20 back to the device 12. AS such, it is recognised that the
suggested search terms 41 are selected from metadata related to the product
records 32 of the product storage 30, and thus advantageously particularly
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relevant to the user as the suggested search terms 41 are focussed to match
exactly similar terminology contained in the product records 32 themselves.
Further, it is recognise that search log information (frequent search terms,
popular items, related items, etc.) could be used to select/filter by the
product
service 14 a subset of all the suggested search terms 41 matching the metadata
(e.g. product content 50) related to the product records 32 of the product
storage
30.
[0025] The search term suggestions 41can be selected by the product
service 14 based on the product content 50 representing a collection of
metadata
also used to define the product records 32. Examples of the metadata can
include data such as but not limited to product name, product brand, product
category, product description, product location, related products, list of
product
features, etc. In this manner, the product service 14 can act as an
intermediary
between the network device 12 and the search engine 24.
[0026] It is recognised that the product summary links 23 and/or the
suggested search terms 41 and/or product categories 52 can be selected by the
product service 14 using the rules 25 (e.g. top categories based on frequency
of
searching, top products based on selection by users, etc.), as part of the
content
returned in the query response 20 to the device 12 for presentation on the
user
interface 104. The query response 20 could also contain links 52 relating to
similar items (determined by way of search log or sales log content matching
with
the query content 40 and/or the suggested search terms 41. Also consider in
the
query response 20 could be graphical user action links/buttons 53 providing
the
user with the option to "Buy now", "Purchase", "Add to Cart" or "Check out"
for a
particular product represented by the summary product link 23.
[0027] For example, the product service 14 would receive the query
content 40, compare the query content 40 against the metadata of the product
content 50 (or product records 32 directly) in order to determine matching
suggested search terms 41, apply those suggested search terms 41 to the
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search engine 24 in order to obtain search results 23 containing information
34,36, filter (e.g. most popular, most frequent) the search results 21 using
the
rule set 25 in order to select the representative product summary links 23
related
to the suggested search terms 41 and then include the suggested search terms
41 and corresponding representative product summary links 23 as content of the
query response 20 back to the device 12 for rendering on the user interface
104.
Also included as part of the query response 20 content could be the graphical
user action links/buttons 53 linked to the ability on the website 50 to guide
the
user through a purchase transaction of the product identified by the
representative product summary link 23 selected by the user. As such, the user
could be guided from entry of a portion of a search term in the input field 42
(see
figure 2) and then immediately presented with an option to purchase a product,
thus bypassing the steps of 1) entering and selecting the complete search term
manually, 2) receiving a search result listing containing multiple listings
with one
of the listings being a link to the product, 3) reviewing the listings to
select the
relevant product listing therefrom, 4) clicking on selected product listing,
and then
5) clicking on a purchase option (e.g. add to cart) for the product. As
demonstrated, the ability of the system 10 to present representative product
summary links 23 to the user on the user interface 104, before the user
formally
enters the respective full search term as the query content 40, provides for
the
ability of the system 10 to facilitate product purchase by the user. This
facilitation
can be enhanced in the case where the graphical user action links/buttons 53
are
linked to the representative product summary links 23 on the user interface
104.
[0028] In one embodiment, the product summary links 23 can be defined
using hypertext. The product summary links 23 can be referred to in general as
a selectable connection from one word, picture, or information object to
another.
In a multimedia environment such as the Internet, such objects can include
sound and motion video sequences. One example form of the product summary
links 23 is a highlighted word or picture that can be selected by the user
(with a
mouse or in some other fashion on the user interface 104), resulting in the
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delivery and view of another file, i.e. the product record 32 obtained from
the
product storage 30. The highlighted object can be referred to as an anchor,
such
that the anchor reference and the object referred to constitute the product
summary links 23. In Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) ,the anchor is the
establishing of a term, phrase, image, or other information object as being
either:
the target of the hypertext product summary links 23 within a document (e.g.
web
page), or a reference (a product summary link 23 you can select) to such a
target.
[0029] It is noted that any HTML file name can be automatically be part of
the product summary links 23 as either the anchor or target that can be linked
to.
For example, the anchor within the file to which one can link directly is
identified
by a # symbol followed by the name, such that the # is used to take the device
12 user to a specific part of a referred page. Further, although most links do
not
offer the user a choice of types of link, it would be possible for the user to
be
provided a choice of link 23 types, such as but not limited to: a definition
of the
object, an example of the object, a picture of the object, a smaller or larger
picture of the object, etc. Further, it is recognised that hypermedia can be
used
to extend the meaning of the product summary links 23 to include product
summary links 23 among any set of multimedia objects, including sound, motion
video, and virtual reality, for example. Hypermedia product summary links 23
can
also connote an increased level of visitor/network interactivity than the
interactivity already implicit in hypertext. It is recognised that the product
summary links 23 can include link mechanisms such as but not limited to:
Inline
Text Links; Text Banners; Graphical/Rich Media Banners; In-page Graphical
Banner; Pop-Unders/Ups; XML Feeds, for example.
[0030] In terms of products associated with product records 32, in
economics, economic output is divided into goods and services. When an
economic activity yields a valuable or useful thing, it can be known as
production
output of the totality of products (e.g. goods or services) in an economy that
the
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company (e.g. provider of the product service 14) makes available for use by
the
user of the device 12. Products as goods can range from a simple safety pin,
food, clothing, computer components to complex aircraft. Products as services
are the performance of any duties or work for another (e.g. helpful or
professional
activity) and can be used to define intangible specialized economic activities
such as but not limited to: providing access to specific information; web
services;
transport; banking; legal advice; accounting advice; management consultant
advice; and medical services. The company providing the products can be a
businessperson/individual engaged in wholesale/retail trade, an organization,
an
administration, and/or a business that sells, administers, maintains, charges
for
or otherwise makes available product(s) that are desirable by the user.
Accordingly, the company can be one person, or an association of persons, for
the purpose of carrying on some enterprise or business; a corporation; a firm;
etc. Further, it is recognised that the use of the product summary links 23
can be
applied to direct the user to company activities not related to specific
product(s),
for example customer service, community activities, and/or sponsorships. These
general activities of the company are also considered as part of the
definition of
company products.
[0031] It is also
recognised that the product service 14 can modify search
text contained in the query request 18 in order to generate a modified query
request 19 (i.e. containing modified search text) that is forwarded to the
search
engine 24, as further described below, before the query request 19 is sent to
the
search engine 24, e.g. the search query 18 is not sent to the search engine 24
and instead the product service 14 modifies the search query 18 to produce the
modified search query 19 which is then sent to the search engine 24, based on
rules 25 available to the product service 14. It is recognised that the rules
25
contain knowledge of specific terms and phrases contained in the product
information stored in the product index (e.g. records 32) of the storage 30.
Accordingly when the product service obtains the query 18, the product service
14 analyzes the query 18 content (e.g. search term(s), search phrase(s),
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navigation term(s), navigation phrase(s)) against those contained in the rules
25
and when the query 18 content matches any of the rules 25, then the product
service 14 modifies the query 18 content to generate augmented query 19,21
content (for subsequent consumption by the search engine 14)
[0032] Search engines 24 can be defined as programs (i.e. a set of
computer processor executed instructions) that searches documents (e.g.
contained in the product index) for specified keyword(s) (in the query 18,19)
and
returns (i.e. product information 22 for use in the query response 20) a list
of the
documents in which where the keyword(s) were found. The search engine 24
can be thought of as a general class of programs that facilitate users to
search
for product information 22 on the network 16.
[0033] The search engine 24 can be configured to work by sending out a
spider to fetch/identify as many documents (records 32) as possible. Another
program of the search engine 24, called an indexer, then reads these documents
and creates the product index based on the words/phrases contained in each
document. Each search engine 24 can use a proprietary algorithm that is
augmented by the configuration data in conjunction with the product service
14,
in order to create the indices such that, ideally, only meaningful results are
returned for each query 19,21. The search results 23 returned by the search
engine 24 in response to the query 19 can be presented in a line of results
often
referred to as search engine results pages (SERPs). The information can be a
specialist in web pages, images, information and other types of files, as
interpreted by the product service 14 via rules 25, 26 and then served up to
the
user as query response(s) 20 (e.. including product records 32, summary
product
links 41, etc.). Some search engines 24 can also mine data available in
databases or open directories. Unlike web directories, which can be maintained
only by human editors, search engines 24 can also maintain real-time
information
by running an algorithm on a web crawler in order to keep the product index
current in the storage 30. In one example, the search engine 24 can work by
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storing information about many web pages containing the product information 22
in the product index, which they retrieve from the HTML markup of the pages
(e.g. as provided by the configuration data¨ i.e. template files). These pages
can
be retrieved by a crawler (sometimes also known as a spider), such as an
automated crawler which follows every link of the product information 22 in
the
storage 30, for example related to product details as well as navigation
details
between the product details.
[0034] The search engine 24 can also analyze the contents of each page
(or collection of text like a document) to determine how it should be indexed
(for
example, words can be extracted from the titles, page content, headings, or
special fields called meta tags). Data about product information 22 is stored
in
the product index database 30 for use in later queries 19,21 processing. When
the query 19,21 is received by the search engine 24 (typically by using
keywords), the engine 24 examines its index and provides a listing of best-
matching web pages (e.g. product information content 22) according to its
configuration data, for example with a short summary containing the document's
title and sometimes parts of the text as well as a representative product
image.
The index is built by the search engine 24 from the product information 22
stored
with the data and the method by which the product information 22 is indexed
according to the configuration data. It is recognised that the product index
can
also be referred to as a structured directory of topics.
[0035] Elastic search is another example of a search engine 24 for
querying written words contained in the product information 22 organized by
the
Elastic search product index. Elastic search can perform tasks, such as wading
through text, returning text similar to a given query 19,21 and/or statistical
analyses of a corpus of text. More specifically, Elastic search can be
considered
as a standalone database server, written in Java, that takes data (product
information 22) in and stores it in a sophisticated format (as defined by the
configuration data) optimized for language based searches. As such, Elastic
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search can search the database 30 of retail products by description, finding
similar text in a body of crawled web pages, or searching through posts on a
blog, or other formats of the product information 22. Elastic search
configured
search engine 24 can pertain to the actual algorithms (i.e. set of computer
processor implemented instructions) for matching text and storing optimized
indexes of searchable terms.
[0036] In conjunction with the search engine 24, the product service 14
can use the rule set 25 to account for spell checking, synonyms, cross
promotion
of products based on identified search text within the query request 18, etc,
in
augmenting the query request 18 to generate the modified query request 19
(e.g.
containing the suggested search terms 41). As such, the product service 14 can
be exemplified as a proxy or bridge component positioned between the network
devices 12 and the search engine 24, such that the product service 14
interacts
with the search engine 24 on behalf of the network device 12. An example of
the
query request 18 of the network device 12 is a request for product information
by
a consumer from a merchant website 50 (shown by example in different ghosted
view versions ¨ see Figure 1) making products available for sale in an
ecommerce enterprise. As such, the query responses 20 could include pricing
and optionally other purchase information (e.g. shipping details, payment
instructions, etc.) of products detailed in the query responses 20. As further
described below, the rules 25,26 can be configured and sent to the product
service 14, for subsequent use in processing search queries 18 and product
information 22, by an administration service 40. It is recognised that the
network
device 12 can be operated by a user wishing to access a merchant (e.g.
ecommerce website) expressed by the product service 14.
[0037] Alternatively, the network device 12 can be operated by the
ecommerce website that is in communication with the user (e.g. online shopper)
wishing to access the merchant (e.g. ecommerce website), and as such the
network device 12 forwards the query 18 on behalf of the user to the product
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CA 02921285 2016-02-19
service 14. In this example, it is the ecommerce website expressed by the
network device 12 that is a intermediary between the product service 14 and
online shoppers (not shown) accessing the ecommerce website in order to
generate the search/navigation queries 18.
[0038] Further, the product service 14 can be considered as the client of
the search engine 24, which is acting as the server of the network device 12
in
their client-server relationship. Similarly, the network device 12 can be
considered as the client of the product service 14 acting as the server in
their
client-server relationship. Similarly, the search engine 24 can be acting as
the
server with the product service 14 as the client in their client-server
relationship.
It is recognised that the physical server device 201 (see Figure 5) of the
product
service 14 can be the same or different physical server device 201 of the
search
engine 24. In this manner, the system 10 includes a number of differentiated
client and server roles in the ecommerce application for product information
request and retrieval. For example, the client¨server model of the system 10
can
be defined as a distributed application structure that partitions tasks or
workloads
between the providers of a resource or service (e.g. query response 20,
product
information 22,21), called servers, and service requesters (e.g. query request
18,19 product information 22,21), called clients. The clients and servers can
communicate over the computer network 16 on separate hardware, but both
client and server can reside in the same system. A server host (e.g. computer
device 201) can run one or more server programs which share their resources
with clients. Also, the client can be defined as one that does not share any
of its
resources, but requests the server's content or service function (e.g. query
response 20, product information 22,21). Clients therefore initiate
communication
sessions with servers which await incoming requests (e.g. query request 18,19
product information 22,21). The client¨server characteristic can describe the
relationship of cooperating programs in the ecommerce application. The server
component can provide a function or service to one or many clients, which
initiate
requests for such services. As such, it is recognised that whether a computer
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device 12,201 is a client, a server, or both, is determined by the nature of
the
application that requires the service functions.
[0039] For example, a single computer device 12,201 can run web server
and file server software at the same time to serve different data to clients
making
different kinds of requests. Client software can also communicate with server
software within the same computer device 12,201. Communication between
servers, such as to synchronize data, is sometimes called inter-server or
server-
to-server communication. Client-host and server-host can be defined
differently
than client and server. The host can be any computer device 12,201 connected
to the network 16. Whereas the words server and client may refer either to a
computer device 12,201 or to the client/server computer program.
[0040] In view of the cooperation between the product service 14 and the
search engine 24, it is recognised that that the system 10 provides the
ecommerce environment in which the network device 12 cannot always submit
an unaltered query request 18 for receipt by the search engine 24 and the
network device 12 cannot always receive an unaltered query response 20 from
the search engine 24, as the product service 14 is interposed between the
network device 12 and the search engine 24. Therefore, the product service 14
can be defined as a bridge (or proxy) that sits in front of the search engine
24
and intercepts search queries 18 (e.g. potentially modifies them as search
queries 19 using rule data 25) and can also augment the search results 22
received from the search engine 24 with any format data 26 that are applicable
in
order to generate the query response 20. As mentioned above, the product
service 14 can execute multiple search queries 18,19 in serial succession
(e.g.
as incremental searching) before deciding to process (e.g. via rules 25) the
received product information 22, in response to one of the serially executed
queries 18,19 (e.g. the last query in the series), and send back to the
network
device 12 as the query response 20. This can also be referred to as an
one/initial search query 18 received by the product service 14 to a many
search
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CA 02921285 2016-02-19
query 18,19 submitted to the search engine 24 by the product service 14 in
response to receipt of the one initial search query 18 (i.e. a one to many
example). An advantage of the product service 14 configured to execute
multiple
search queries 18,19 in a sequential series to the search engine 24, based on
only a common query 18 originally received from the network device 12, is that
bandwidth savings and increased response time can be realized by the
ecommerce system 10 while at the same time providing for a better ecommerce
user experience (of the network device 12). This better ecommerce user
experience can be reflected in the user perceiving more relevant search
results
20 returned to the user, as compared to waiting for the user to respond to
each
query response 20 (sent by the product service 14 to the network device 12)
before sending another search query 18 (by the product service 14) to the
search
engine 24 without receipt beforehand of a different search query 18 from the
network device 12. As such, it is recognised that the product summary links 23
represent individually executed searches done by the search engine 24 using
the
suggested search terms 41 determined by the product service 14.
[0041] The product
service 14 can also receive a query 18 and decide not
to send the query 18 to the search engine 24 and instead satisfy the query 18
itself using relevant product information 22 already in possession of the
product
service 14 (e.g. in local storage) that is now external to the product index
(e.g.
records 32). An example of the using product information 22 external to the
search index is for navigation (e.g. the query 18 is a navigation query) of
product
information already received from the search engine 24 and stored in a local
cache of the product service 14. A further example is where the product
service
14 determines, via comparison of the query 18 contents against the rule set
25,
that the query 18 can be satisfied using product information 22 external to
the
product index 32 (e.g. store location information, store hours, credit card or
payment information, shipping information, etc.).
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[0042] It is recognised that the storage 30 can be considered local as
part
of the website 50 hosted on one or more servers 201, and/or the storage 30 can
be considered remote from the website 50 and hosted on one or more remote
servers (not shown) accessible over the network 16.
[0043] In terms of the storage 30, the records 32 can be represented by a
table of all the data feeds (containing data 34,36) as uploaded by the
merchant
(e.g. via the administration service 40) and processed by the search engine 32
with their status. For example, a status of Complete can mean that the data
34,36 has been ingested by the search engine 24, stored in the storage 30 and
can also mean that the data 34,36 has been organized as a series of records 32
that have been added to the index and ready to be searched by the search
engine 24. A way for the administration service 40 to check that the uploaded
data 34,36 is in the search index associated with the search engine 24 and the
storage 30 is to test query for something specific in the newly uploaded data
34,36 now represented as searchable and indexed records 32.
[0044] It is recognised that a master record 32 can be defined as
representing a generic version of a product, e.g. having metadata description
34
and an image 36 that is the "default" form of the product the master record 32
represents. For example, when the product comes in multiple colors or styles,
these combinations can be considered of the type 'variant'. As such, master
records 32 exist in a "master" sub-collection as categorized in the complete
dataset of records 32 stored in the storage 30 as accessible and searchable by
the search engine 24, based on the search text or modified search text of the
search query 18,19 received from the product service 14. Further, a variant
record 32 (typically multiple records 32 for a particular product that has
only one
master record 32) can be considered as the children of the 'master' records
32.
The variant records 32 represent the various different combinations of
attributes
that are possible of their master record 32, such as the blue version of a
shirt that
comes in many colors (each of the colours will be a variant record 32 with its
own
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metadata descriptors 34 and representative image 36 while the master record 32
will have a generic metadata description 34 of the product and a generic image
36 of the product. This variant record 32 will be placed in the "variant" sub-
collection as categorized in the complete dataset of records 32 stored in the
storage 30 as accessible and searchable by the search engine 24, based on the
search text or modified search text of the search query 18,19 received from
the
product service 14. A further type of record 32 can be a unique record type
that
has no children and no master, as the unique record 32 only comes in one form
(e.g. there is only one version of the product). This unique record 32 can be
placed in both the "master" and "variant" sub-collections as categorized in
the
complete dataset of records 32 stored in the storage 30 as accessible and
searchable by the search engine 24, based on the search text or modified
search
text of the search query 18,19 received from the product service 14. As such,
it
is recognised that the suggested search terms 41 can be selected by the
product
service 14 using the product content 50 containing information about master
and
variant records 32. For example, some of the suggested search terms 41 can be
metadata obtained from one or more variant records 32 matching the query
content 40. For example, some of the suggested search terms 41 can be
metadata obtained from one or more master records 32 matching the query
content 40.
[0045] As such, the search engine 24 searches the object records 32 of
the storage 30 using the search text (or modified search text), hereafter
referred
to generically as search data, of the search query 18,19 and compares the
search data to the descriptive metadata 34 of the various object records 32 in
order to determine the product data 21 matching the search data. Based on the
search results product data, the search engine 24 uses configuration data
(e.g.
containing biasing logic, dynamic navigation logic, etc. pertinent to
providing
relevant search results to the user) to assist in ranking the product data to
produce the resultant product information 22, which contains a ranked order of
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multiple search hits from the storage 30 including paired text 34 and image 36
data from each of the matching object records 32.
[0046] Also included in the system 10 is the administration service 40
used
to generate the configuration data to incorporate ecommerce related
functionality
to the searching algorithm of the search engine 24 including ecommerce related
functionality such as but not limited to: dynamic navigation; biasing; as well
as
spell corrections specific to the descriptive metadata 34 of the products and
synonyms specific to the descriptive metadata 34 of the products. The
administration service 40 can also be used to generate the rule data 25,26
used
by the product service 14. As such, the configuration data of the search
engine
24 is used to modify operation of the search engine 24 by adjusting the
ranking
algorithm, dynamic navigation, biasing, and any other functional operations
that
affect the content of the product information 22 for ecommerce purposes (e.g.
provides content useful to the user of the network device 12 such that the
query
response 20 includes product information 22 deemed relevant to the user based
on their intended product information desired as expressed by their search
text
submitted in the query request 18 by the network device 12.
[0047] It is recognised that the rules 25,26 can be created by a business
user of the administration service 40 that utilizes page templates and
controls
when and where record content is surfaced. These rules 25,26 can be triggered
from both search and navigation states (e.g. a result of receiving a search
query
18 or a navigation query 18 from the network device 12) as well as events such
as having no results. A rule can contain one or more of the following
elements,
by example: Name - The name assigned the particular rule. An example might be
"PS3 Upsell"; Triggers - a trigger is a search and navigation state definition
of the
query 18 that triggers a rule because they determine where a rule will fire.
The
trigger types can be used to give the ability/flexibility to the system 10 to
cross-
sell and/or upsell (i.e. add into the search results 20,22 via the suggested
search
terms 41 those content records 32 that would not have been matched strictly by
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the original search text provided in the query 18 sent by the network device
12)
at intersections of data that is supported by the content and categorization
of the
product records 32 in the storage 30 as accessed by the search engine 24. To
add a trigger, one can chose from trigger types such as but not limited to: 1)
Search - A search state that triggers a rule. For example, if a user searches
for
"PS3", you may want to have that search trigger a rule that generates via the
suggested search terms 41 to take the user to a rich landing page with a
banner
featuring a new game for the PlayStation 3, and upsells of related PS3
products
on the side, such as headphones, or game controllers. The search box takes a
comma separated list of values that can all trigger the rule; 2) Navigation -
This
rule can be triggered during a navigation state. For example, if a user
navigates
by $200-400, then a you might want this rule to fire via the suggested search
terms 41; 3) No Results Event - In the event an item is misspelled, for
example,
and no results are shown, you can have a rule in place to redirect a user to
another page to assist them in their search via the suggested search terms 41;
4)
No Navigation Event - In an event where there is no dynamic navigation on the
left hand side, you may want to use this additional retail space as an
opportunity
to upsell via the suggested search terms 41; 5) Custom URL Parameter -
provides you to fire a rule based on any piece of information that it can pass
rules
through the rule engine of the product service 14. For example, if you know
that a
user is signed in, and is a high net worth client, then they can make this
rule fire
exclusively for high net worth clients via the suggested search terms 41. This
trigger can provide you to do anything you'd like above and beyond the normal
operations of the search engine 24.
[0048] Further rules 25,26 can be used to modify the suggested search
terms 41 and/or the product information 22 received and now it is used to
generate the content of the results query 20 and/or can be used to modify the
search query 18 to produce the modified query 19. One rule type provides for
aspect(s) of the query 18 to be rewritten by the product service 14 before a
search request 19 is made to the search engine 24, based on the suggested
- 25 -
CA 02921285 2016-02-19
search terms 41. Another rule is Phrases - Create auto-quoted phrases to help
the user get to a specific set of results via the suggested search terms 41.
Another rule is Redirect - Search terms can be intercepted, and users re-
directed
to appropriate pages via the suggested search terms 41. For example, a search
for "shipping" will redirect the user to the shipping details page, as opposed
to a
results page for products with the word "shipping" such as shipping labels.
Another rule is Spelling - Intercept a user's search by overriding specific
words
that don't come out of the box with the search engine 24 via the suggested
search terms 41. Another rule is Synonyms - Search terms can be expanded by
adding one-way synonyms, or two-way synonyms via the suggested search
terms 41. One-Way Synonym: In this query, a search for computers will expand
to laptops, which will inhibit results for computers surfacing when a user
searches for laptops via the suggested search terms 41. Two-Way Synonym: In
this query rewrite, a search for "PS3" would get expanded to "PlayStation 3"
and
vice versa via the suggested search terms 41.
[0049] Further rules 25,26 can be an Autobucket rule set used by the
product service 14 to allow it to automatically create and manage refinement
value ranges from data feeds (e.g. product information 22) via the suggested
search terms 41. Autobucket rule set when triggered processes the full set of
data 22 to figure out how the numeric data should be bucketed via the
suggested
search terms 41. Autobucket can scan the input data 22 and determine what
buckets should be created for the numeric fields to be included in the content
of
the response query 20. For example, if you have price data that ranges from
$1.00 to $10,000.00, Autobucket can create a number of buckets from $0 -
$10,000. The number and granularity of the buckets can depend on the
distribution of the price data in the product information 22 via the suggested
search terms 41. For example, if the price data is most dense in the range 0 -
100, more buckets can be created in that range and fewer higher up the range
as
configured by the Autobucket rule set definitions/rules.
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[0050] Further rules 25,26 can be an Autonav rule set used by the product
service 14 to determine what refinements to display (on user interface 104) at
which points in the user experience via the suggested search terms 41. The
system can learn what to show based on a specified refinement via the
suggested search terms 41. This refinement can be referred to as the keystone
navigation. For example, if you have a property called Category_level_1 on
your
records 32, autonav can identify this is the 'keystone' value. Autonav rule
set can
configure the product service 14 to scan through all the records 32 in the
incoming data directory and figure out what dynamic navigation should show up
for each of the values in Category_level_1 via the suggested search terms 41.
As such, the product service 14 can support dynamic navigation which can helps
users refine products displayed on the user interface 104 through intelligent
(as
dictated by the Autonav rule set) and automated filtering via the suggested
search terms 41.
[0051] The refinements to the query content 40 as represented by the the
suggested search terms 41 can be Brand, Department, Price and On Sale. Each
refinement has a set of refinement values defined in the rules 25,26 that
users
can select to further refine the search results 20, as implemented by the
product
service 14 in comparison of the selected refinements of the query 18 (e.g.
navigation query). For example, the Department refinement 80 has refinement
values of Accessories, Applicance, Auto, etc.
[0052] Further rules 25,26 can be for the specification of one numeric
product attribute (e.g. price, average rating) to make sortable/filterable.
The
search engine 24 can sort on relevancy and date via the suggested search terms
41. Behind the scenes, the product service 14 is using the specified numeric
field
as a date so the search engine 24 can sort on it via the suggested search
terms
41. The end result is that websites 50 can sort on relevancy or one numeric
product. Using this method/rule set can have performance implications as it
can
instruct the bridge to fire two queries.
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CA 02921285 2016-02-19
[0053] As such, it
is recognised that the product service 14 can modify the
received query 18 (e.g. search query, navigation query, etc.) in a number of
different ways. For example, when the query 18 comes in, the product service
18 looks at it, and if an area of the query content is specified in the rules
25 (e.g.
in comparison of the query content with the rules of the rule set 25), then
the
product service modifies the query 18 content as the modified query 19 to use
a
specific front end (e.g. set of configuration data and associated
interpretation and
implementation of the modified query 19 against the product index of the
records
32 stored in the storage 30) that is created by the configuration data upload
provided to the search engine 24 and ultimately to the user interface 104 of
the
device 12 as the suggested search terms 41. Another example is biasing, such
that when the query18 comes in, the product service 14 looks for any biasing
profile name(s) in the query 18 content, in comparison of with the rules 25
for
matching biasing name words or phrases, and then modifies the query 18
content (as defined by the rules 25) to match the name of the biasing profile
defined in the search engine 24 by the configuration data upload in order to
generate the suggested search terms 41. In other words, the biasing related
text
(e.g. words, phrases) submitted by the user in the query 18 content may not
match the specific biasing text labels/names recognised by the search engine
24
via its configuration data 38 (e.g. biasing names/labels associated with
specific
actions specifying application or return results of the modified query 19
content).
Another example is Product Data, such that example data files (e.g. records
32)
represented in the product index of the storage 30 can be Comma Separated
Value (CSV) files, Google Commerce Search (GCS) files, etc. The files 32 can
be grouped into a flat directory and a product data processing tool (as hosted
by
the administration service 40) can process the files by using the file
templates.
For example, the template file (e.g. configuration data can be used by the
data
processing tool to format the (e.g. HTML) body of the product description that
is
sent along with each product record to the search engine 24 to be incorporated
as part of the product index in the storage 30. The template file can be used
to
format what the product detail page would look like to the search engine 24
and
- 28 -
CA 02921285 2016-02-19
,
thereby assist in constructing the product index by the search engine 24 as
well
as helping the search engine 24 with relevancy of the individual template
processed records 32 when evaluating them against the contents of the modified
query 19 represented by the suggested search terms 41. The template files can
include template (defaultTemplate.vm) to reflect the attribute (e.g.
master/variant
data differentiation as well as title and description data) in the product
information
22 represented in the product index.
[0054] A further example is another method performed by the product
service 14 (as expressed in the rule set 25) to instruct the product service
14 to
fire multiple queries19 based on the suggested search terms 41 generated from
the original query content 40 (i.e. in response to comparison of the query 18
content to the rules of the rule set 25 in conjunction with the metadata of
the
product content 50).
[0055] Further to the above, the set of stored rules 25 can
optionally
include a rule to dynamically change ranking relevance of the suggested search
terms 41. Also, for received search results 21 from the executed suggested
search terms 41, the product service 14 can use the rules 25 to dynamically
change the ranking relevance of two or more of the individual product listings
represented by the summary product links 23 with respect to one another
according to a relevance rule selected from the group consisting of: biasing
of
one product type over another; overriding result order of the individual
product
listings; changing how navigation of the individual product listings are
ordered
and displayed. These dynamic changes are implemented based on whether ,
certain rules of the rule set 25 are triggered (or not) when the search
results 21
are compared to the rule set 25 by the product service 14. For example, each
of
the product listings and/or a group of the product listings of the search
results 21
can be compared on a rule by rule basis of the rules contained in the rule set
25.
Those product listing(s) matching one or more of the rules provide
instructions for
the product service 14 in order to implement the functionality expressed by
the
- 29 -
CA 02921285 2016-02-19
matching rule(s) in order to select which of the products represented in the
search results 21 should be selected as a subset of the products to be put
into
the summary product links 23 selected for display on the user interface 140 by
being included in the query response 20.
[0056] The ecommerce enabled system 10 uses the communications
network 16 to facilitate communication between the network devices 12 (hosting
a query enabled client application 200 such as a web browser), the product
service 14, the search engine 24, the administration service 40 and/or storage
30. Preferably, the communications network 16 can be a wide area network such
as the Internet, however the network 16 may also comprise one or more local
area networks 16. Further, the network 16 need not be a land-based network,
but
instead may comprise a wireless network and/or a hybrid of a land-based
network and a wireless network for enhanced communications flexibility. One
example is where the communications network 16 includes a local area network
16 segment (e.g. wired, wireless, etc. on which the network device 12 is
registered, communicates on) and a wide area network 16 segment (e.g. the
Internet on which the product service 14 is addressed) to which the local area
network 16 is connected to. It is also recognised that the product service 14
and
the search engine 24 can be coupled via a network 16 when on different
machines 201 (e.g. a local or wide area network 16 as desired).
[0057] Each network device 12 typically comprises a land-based network-
enabled personal computer. However, the invention is not limited for use with
personal computers. For instance, one or more of the network devices 12 can
comprise a wireless communications device, such as a wireless-enabled
personal data assistant, a tablet, or e-mail-enabled mobile telephone if the
network 16 is configured to facilitate wireless data communication. The
network
device 12 is capable of supplying geographical location information of itself
to the
system 10 in the communication 18 to request product details of the storage 30
as facilitated via interaction between the product service 14 and the search
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engine 24. The user of the network device 12 can provide its geographical
coordinates through any suitable mechanism known to those skilled in the art,
including latitude/longitude co-ordinates, GPS, and wireless triangulation.
Other
methods of obtaining geographical coordinates may also includes Wi-Fi based
services. Further, the location information can be in the form of geographical
coordinate data, such as, for example, Global Positioning System ("GPS")
coordinate data specifying latitude, longitude and elevation. In some
embodiments, the location information may comprise the GPS satellite network
and the location information via a GPS transceiver for obtaining GPS
coordinate
data.
[0058] As shown in FIG. 4, the network device 12 comprises a network
interface 102, the user interface 104, and a data processing system 106 in
communication with the network interface 102 and the user interface 104.
Typically, the network interface 102 comprises an Ethernet network circuit
card,
however the network interface 102 may also comprise an RF antenna for
wireless communication over the communications network 16. Preferably, the
user interface 104 comprises a data entry device (such as keyboard, microphone
or writing tablet), and a display device (such as a CRT or LCD display). The
data
processing system 106 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 108, and a non-
volatile memory storage device (DISC) 110 (such as a magnetic disc memory or
electronic memory) and a read/write memory (RAM) 112 both in communication
with the CPU 108. The DISC 110 includes data which, when loaded into the RAM
112, comprise processor instructions for the CPU 108 which define memory
objects for allowing the network device 12 to communicate with the product
service 14 over the communications network 16.
[0059] !n view of the above descriptions of storage 30 (and other local
device storage used to store the rules 25,26 and/or configuration data 38),
the
storage 30 can be configured as keeping the stored data (e.g. records 32) in
order and the principal (or only) operations on the stored data are the
addition of
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and removal of the stored data from the storage (e.g. FIFO, FIAO, etc.). For
example, the storage can be a linear data structure for containing and
subsequent accessing of the stored data and/or can be a non-linear data
structure for containing and subsequent accessing of the stored data. Further,
the storage receives various entities such as data that are stored and held to
be
processed later. In these contexts, the storage can perform the function of a
buffer, which is a region of memory used to temporarily hold data while it is
being
moved from one place to another (i.e. between the services 14,40,24 and/or
towards the network device 12). Typically, the data is stored in the memory
when
moving the data between processes within/between one or more computers. It is
recognised that the storage can be implemented in hardware, software, or a
combination thereof. The storage is used in the network system 10 when there
is
a difference between the rate/time at which data is received and the rate/time
at
which the data can be processed.
[0060] Further, it will be understood by a person skilled in the art that
the
memory/storage described herein is the place where data can be held in an
electromagnetic or optical form for access by the computer processors/modules.
There can be two general usages: first, memory is frequently used to mean the
devices and data connected to the computer through input/output operations
such as hard disk and tape systems and other forms of storage not including
computer memory and other in-computer storage. Second, in a more formal
usage, memory/ storage has been divided into: (1) primary storage, which holds
data in memory (sometimes called random access memory or RAM) and other
"built-in" devices such as the processor's L1 cache, and (2) secondary
storage,
which holds data on hard disks, tapes, and other devices requiring
input/output
operations. Primary storage can be faster to access than secondary storage
because of the proximity of the storage to the processor or because of the
nature
of the storage devices. On the other hand, secondary storage can hold much
more data than primary storage. In addition to RAM, primary storage includes
read-only memory (ROM) and L1 and L2 cache memory. In addition to hard
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disks, secondary storage includes a range of device types and technologies,
including diskettes, Zip drives, redundant array of independent disks (RAID)
systems, and holographic storage. Devices that hold storage are collectively
known as storage media.
[0061] A database is one embodiment of memory as a collection of
information that is organized so that it can easily be accessed, managed, and
updated. In one view, databases can be classified according to types of
content:
bibliographic, full-text, numeric, and images. In computing, databases are
sometimes classified according to their organizational approach. The most
prevalent approach is the relational database, a tabular database in which
data is
defined so that it can be reorganized and accessed in a number of different
ways. A distributed database is one that can be dispersed or replicated among
different points in a network. An object-oriented programming database is one
that is congruent with the data defined in object classes and subclasses.
Computer databases typically contain aggregations of data records or files,
such
as sales transactions, product catalogs and inventories, and customer
profiles.
Typically, a database manager provides users the capabilities of controlling
read/write access, specifying report generation, and analyzing usage.
Databases
and database managers are prevalent in large mainframe systems, but are also
present in smaller distributed workstation and mid-range systems such as the
AS/400 and on personal computers. SQL (Structured Query Language) is a
standard language for making interactive queries from and updating a database
such as IBM's DB2, Microsoft's Access, and database products from Oracle,
Sybase, and Computer Associates.
[0062] Memory/storage can also be defined as an electronic holding place
for instructions and data that the computer's microprocessor can reach
quickly.
When the computer is in normal operation, its memory usually contains the main
parts of the operating system and some or all of the application programs and
related data that are being used. Memory is often used as a shorter synonym
for
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random access memory (RAM). This kind of memory is located on one or more
microchips that are physically close to the microprocessor in the computer.
[0063] In terms of a server, it is recognised that the server 201 as host
for
the product service 14, search engine 24 and/or administration service 40 can
be
configured as hardware, software, or typically a combination of both hardware
and software to provide a network entity that operates as a socket listener.
It is
recognised that any computerised process that shares a resource (e.g. data) to
one or more client processes can be classified as a server in the network
system
10. The term server can also be generalized to describe a host that is
deployed
to execute one or more such programs, such that the host can be one or more
configured computers that link other computers or electronic devices together
via
the network 16. The server(s) 201 can provide specialized services across the
network 16, for example to private users inside a large organization or to
public
users via the Internet 16. In the network system 10, the servers can have
dedicated functionality and/or can share functionality as described.
Enterprise
servers are servers that are used in a business context and can be run on/by
any
capable computer hardware. In the hardware sense, the word server typically
designates computer models intended for running software applications under
the heavy demand of a network 16 environment. In this client¨server
configuration one or more machines, either a computer or a computer appliance,
share information with each other with one acting as a host for the other.
While
nearly any personal computer is capable of acting as a network server, a
dedicated server will contain features making it more suitable for production
environments. These features may include a faster CPU, increased high-
performance RAM, and typically more than one large hard drive. More obvious
distinctions include marked redundancy in power supplies, network connections,
and even the servers themselves.
[0064] Referring to Figure 5, a computing device 201 of the service 14,40
can include a network connection interface 202, such as a network interface
card
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or a modem, coupled via connection 218 to a device infrastructure 206. The
connection interface 202 is connectable during operation of the devices to the
network 16 (e.g. an intranet and/or an extranet such as the Internet), which
enables the devices to communicate with each other (e.g. that of servers 201
with respect to one another and the devices 12) as appropriate. The network 16
can support the communications 18,19,20,22 and the related content.
[0065] Referring again to Figure 5, the device 201 can also have a user
interface 204, coupled to the device infrastructure 206 by connection 222, to
interact with a user (e.g. server administrator ¨ not shown). The user
interface
204 can include one or more user input devices such as but not limited to a
QWERTY keyboard, a keypad, a stylus, a mouse, a microphone and the user
output device such as an LCD screen display and/or a speaker. If the screen is
touch sensitive, then the display can also be used as the user input device as
controlled by the device infrastructure 206. Referring again to Figure 5,
operation of the device 201 is facilitated by the device infrastructure 206.
The
device infrastructure 206 includes one or more computer processors 208 and can
include an associated memory (e.g. a random access memory 224). The
computer processor 208 facilitates performance of the device 201 configured
for
the intended task (e.g. of the respective module(s) of the service 14,40)
through
operation of the network interface 202, the user interface 204 and other
application programs/hardware of the device 201 by executing task related
instructions. These task related instructions can be provided by an operating
system, and/or software applications located in the memory, and/or by
operability
that is configured into the electronic/digital circuitry of the processor(s)
208
designed to perform the specific task(s). Further, it is recognized that the
device
infrastructure 206 can include a computer readable storage medium 212 coupled
to the processor 208 for providing instructions to the processor 208 and/or to
load/update the instructions. The computer readable medium 212 can include
hardware and/or software such as, by way of example only, magnetic disks,
magnetic tape, optically readable medium such as CD/DVD ROMS, and memory
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cards. In each case, the computer readable medium 212 may take the form of a
small disk, floppy diskette, cassette, hard disk drive, solid-state memory
card, or
RAM provided in the memory module 212. It should be noted that the above
listed example computer readable mediums 212 can be used either alone or in
combination.
[0066] Further, it
is recognized that the computing device 201 can include
the executable applications comprising code or machine readable instructions
for
implementing predetermined functions/operations including those of an
operating
system and the service 14,40 modules, for example. The processor 208 as used
herein is a configured device and/or set of machine-readable instructions for
performing operations as described by example above. As used herein, the
processor 208 may comprise any one or combination of, hardware, firmware,
and/or software. The processor 208 acts upon information by manipulating,
analyzing, modifying, converting or transmitting information for use by an
executable procedure or an information device, and/or by routing the
information
with respect to an output device. The processor 208 may use or comprise the
capabilities of a controller or microprocessor, for example. Accordingly, any
of
the functionality of the service 14,40 (e.g. modules) may be implemented in
hardware, software or a combination of both. Accordingly, the use of a
processor
208 as a device and/or as a set of machine-readable instructions is hereafter
referred to generically as a processor/module for sake of simplicity. Further,
it is
recognised that the service 14,40 can include one or more of the computing
devices 201 (comprising hardware and/or software) for implementing the
modules, as desired. It will be understood in view of the above that the
computing devices 201 of the service 14,40 can be, although depicted as a
single computer system, may be implemented as a network of computer
processors, as desired.
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