# US 10,872,366 B1 · Product identification validation > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,872,366 B1 - Document ID: US10872366B1 - Status: Granted - Kind: B1 - Application number: 15/605,912 - Filed: 2017-05-25 - Granted: 2020-12-22 - Earliest claimed: 2013-09-20 - Assignees: Amazon Technologies, Inc. - Applicants: Amazon Technologies, Inc. - Inventors: Bradley John Pitzel - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10872366B1 ## CPC - G06Q 30/0609: {Qualifying participants for shopping transactions (payment transaction verification G06Q20/401)} - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR ## Abstract The technology may receive a product identification from a merchant and evaluate the product identification against evaluation rules to determine a likelihood of whether the product identification is valid for a product associated with the product identification. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A computer-implemented method, comprising: under control of one or more computer systems configured with one or more processors and a memory storing executable instructions: receiving, by a processor associated with the one or more computer systems, a UPC and product information for selling a product in an online marketplace from a merchant, wherein an exhaustive list of valid UPCs is unavailable and wherein an exhaustive list of products associated with the valid UPCs is unavailable; evaluating, by the processor, the UPC against UPC evaluation rules stored in an evaluation rule data store to determine a likelihood of whether the UPC is valid for the product information submitted to the online marketplace, wherein evaluating the UPC against the UPC evaluation rules further includes evaluating a prefix of the UPC against the evaluation rules to determine a validity of the UPC, and the likelihood of the UPC being valid is increased when the prefix is used for at least a defined number of products associated with a brand; and transmitting an electronic notification over a computing network for display based at least in part on a result of evaluating, by the processor, the UPC against the evaluation rules. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the prefix of the UPC matches a prefix of UPCs associated with the brand, the prefix of UPCs associated with the brand being identified as associated with the brand when a minimum number of products in the brand have UPCs with the prefix or when a minimum number of other merchants use the prefix of the UPC with the brand of the product associated with the UPC. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further notifying the merchant electronically when the UPC is unlikely valid. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the UPC is a first UPC, the method further comprising receiving a second UPC of a different type than the first UPC and comparing a product associated with the second UPC with product information submitted with the first UPC to determine whether the first UPC is likely valid based on a similarity of the product associated with the first UPC to the product associated with the second UPC. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising determining that the UPC is likely valid if the merchant is a trusted merchant. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising performing a lookup on an external data store to determine likely validity of the UPC. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising identifying UPCs for products of a first defined product category as less likely valid than for products of a second defined product category. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the UPC as more likely valid when the UPC matches an existing UPC in a product identification data store than when a match is unavailable in the product identification data store. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the UPC as more likely valid when a minimum number of other merchants use the UPC with the product associated with the UPC. ### Claim 10 A non-transitory machine readable storage medium, including executable program instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, cause one or more computer systems to perform a method comprising: receiving, by a processor associated with the one or more computer systems, a product identification code from a merchant, the product identification code being a Universal Product Code (UPC), an International Article Number (EAN), a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN), a Manufacturer Part Number (MPN), an International Standard Book Number (ISBN), a Japanese Article Number (JAN), an Amazon Standard Identification Number (ASIN), or a Stock Keeping Unit (SKU), wherein an exhaustive list of valid product identification codes is unavailable; evaluating, by the processor, the product identification against evaluation rules retrieved from an evaluation rules data store to determine whether the product identification code matches any of the evaluation rules; determining, by the processor, a likelihood of validity of the product identification code for use with a product associated with the product identification code as a result of evaluating the product identification code against the evaluation rules, wherein evaluating the product identification code includes evaluating a prefix of the product identification code against the evaluation rules, and the likelihood of validity is increased when the prefix is used for at least a defined number of products associated with a brand; and transmitting an electronic notification to the merchant for display from the one or more computer systems over a computer network based at least in part on a result of evaluating, by the processor, the product identification code against the evaluation rules. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the executable program instructions cause the one or more computer systems to notify the merchant when the product identification code is likely invalid. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the prefix is less than an entirety of the product identification code. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein receiving the product identification code from the merchant comprises receiving an image of the product identification code. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein an exhaustive list of products associated with the product identification code is unavailable. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 10, the method further comprising: determining whether the product identification code is incorrect using the evaluation rules; determining whether the product identification code is improper using the evaluation rules; and determining whether the product identification code is invalid using the evaluation rules.