US 6,523,041 B1 · Data linking system and method using tokens

Abstract

A method for linking data using permanent tokens is disclosed. The tokens may be used to link data pertaining to a consumer, a business, an address, an occupancy, or a household. The tokens are created in a central repository, which maintains an identification class for each entity. The identification class contains all available information concerning the entity. The tokens may be applied to a data storage system to allow real-time construction of a total customer view. The tokens may also be used to link the data storage system to a repository, such that the total customer view contains all available information concerning the customer. The total customer view may be used to formulate a response to customer input, such as a purchase or access to an Internet web page maintained by the data owner. By matching tokens instead of names and addresses, potential ambiguities and erroneous duplicates are eliminated. Data updates may be performed incrementally, and may be pushed from the repository to the data owner as new information is received.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A system for linking data comprising:

(a) at least one client data storage system;
(b) a plurality of data elements resident on said data storage system for an indefinite time, wherein each of said data elements comprises data that pertains to a particular entity, wherein each of said entities comprises one of a consumer, a business, a household, and an occupancy;
(c) a master repository;
(d) a plurality of identification classes resident on said repository, each of said identification classes corresponding to a particular entity, each of said identification classes comprising at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings, and common name and address misspellings, and wherein said repository contains identification classes pertaining to substantially all of said entities located within a particular geographic area;
and
(e) a plurality of tokens resident on said repository, wherein each of said tokens uniquely corresponds to a particular entity, wherein the unique correspondence of each of said tokens to a particular entity is persistent over time, and wherein each of said identification classes is tagged with that one of said tokens corresponding to the entity to which each said identification class pertains.

3 more elements

A method of integrating data, comprising the steps of:

(a) creating a set of identification classes, wherein each of the identification classes comprises data pertaining to an entity, each of the identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings and common name and address misspellings, wherein each entity comprises one of a consumer, a business, a household, and an occupancy, and wherein the set of identification classes comprises identification classes comprising data pertaining to substantially all of the entities located within a geographic area;
(b) storing the set of identification classes on a master repository;
(c) creating a set of tokens, wherein each of the tokens uniquely matches to a particular one of the entities, and wherein the unique matching of each of the tokens to a particular one of the entities is persistent over time;
(d) associating each of the identification classes on the repository with that one of the tokens that is matched to the one of the entities to which each of the identification classes pertains;
(e) building a transfer file from a client data storage system, wherein said transfer file comprises a plurality of data elements, and wherein each of the plurality of data elements is resident on the data storage system;
(f) transmitting the transfer file to the repository;
(g) matching each of the data elements in the transfer file to the corresponding identification class;
(h) tagging each of the data elements in the transfer file with at least one of the tokens contained in the identification class matched to that data element;
(i) rebuilding the data storage system using the data elements and tokens in the transfer file;
and
(j) collecting all data elements resident on the data storage system that are tagged with a particular token by searching for the particular token across the data storage system.

8 more elements

A method of constructing a total customer view using a data processing system, wherein at least one data element is resident on the data processing system, and each data element is tagged to the token corresponding to the entity to which the data element pertains, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a request for the total customer view, comprising the steps of:
(i) providing access to the data processing system via a communications network, wherein the communications network comprises a phone line and a magnetic device reader, and the input data comprises data stored on a magnetically encoded device;
(ii) receiving a customer input data via the communications network, wherein the input data corresponds to at least one of the data elements;
(iii) matching the input data to one of the data elements to which it depends by utilizing a set of identification classes, wherein each of the identification classes comprises data pertaining to a particular entity, each of the identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings, and common name and address misspellings, wherein each entity comprises one of a consumer, a business, a household, and an occupancy, and wherein the set of identification classes comprises identification classes comprising data pertaining to substantially all of the entities located within a geographic area;
and
(iv) returning the token tagged to the data element matched to the input data;
(b) matching the token corresponding to the customer with the token tagged to all data elements pertaining to the customer;
(c) retrieving all data elements to which the token corresponding to the customer is tagged;
(d) forming the total customer view based on at least one of the retrieved data elements;
and
(e) transmitting at least one of discount offers, coupons, and merchandise sale notices to the customer, wherein the selection algorithm for the at least one of discount offers, coupons, and merchandise sale notices uses the total customer view.

8 more elements

(a) receiving a request for the total customer view;
(b) matching the token corresponding to the customer with the token tagged to all data elements pertaining to the customer;
(c) retrieving all data elements to which the token corresponding to the customer is tagged;
(d) forming the total customer view based on at least one of the retrieved data elements;
(e) transmitting the token corresponding to the customer from the data storage system to a repository, wherein a plurality of identification classes are resident on the repository, each of the identification classes is tagged with at least one token, each of the identification classes comprises data pertaining to a particular entity, each of the identification classes comprises at least one of name aliases, name change history, address aliases, address change history, alternate name and address spellings, and common name and address misspellings, wherein each entity comprises one of a consumer, a business, a household, and an occupancy, and wherein the set of identification classes comprises identification classes comprising data pertaining to substantially all of the entities located within a geographic area;
(f) matching the token to the identification class that is tagged with that token;
(g) retrieving additional data from the matched identification class;
(h) transmitting from the repository to the data processing system the additional data, linked to the token corresponding to the identification class from which the additional data was retrieved;
(i) adding at least a portion of the additional data to the total customer view;
and
(j) transmitting the retrieved data elements and the additional data from the repository to an analytical engine.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Data linking system and method using tokens

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Data linking system and method using tokens

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims30