Content enhancement for analyzing data in a database
View Patent ↗An electronic commerce system ( 10 ) includes a content enhancement module ( 47 ) that analyzes the product data stored in a seller database ( 32 ) using one or more rules and that identifies one or more potential errors in the product data according to the rules. The rules include one or more generic rules that apply to substantially all seller databases ( 32 ) including product data. These generic rules include one or more of the following rules: a rule indicating that a potential error exists if two products in the seller database ( 32 ) have identical product identifiers but have otherwise different product data, a rule indicating that a potential error exists if two products in the seller database ( 32 ) have different product identifiers but have otherwise identical product data, and rules indicating that a potential error exists if the values associated with particular generic product attributes have a non-numerical format.
1. A computer-implemented method for content enhancement, comprising:
providing, by a computer, a plurality of product classes organized in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products and associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, at least one of the product classes having one or more associated pointers identifying one or more databases including product data for one or more products in the class, the product data including values for one or more attributes of the products in the class;
communicating, by a computer, a search query for product data to a database identified by a pointer associated with a product class selected by a user;
communicating, by a computer, one or more search queries to the one or more databases, in response to a user requesting product data in the one or more databases be associated with one or more classes, the search queries formulated according to one or more rules associated with the particular classes with which the product data in the one or more databases is to be associated;
identifying, by the computer, one or more potential errors in the product data by determining the product data is included in the results of one or more of the search queries; and
communicating, by a computer, the potential errors to a user associated with the one or more databases.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more rules comprises one or more generic rules applying to the one or more databases containing product data.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the generic rules further comprise a rule generating a product identifier for a product when the product data for that product does not include a product identifier, the generated product identifier comprising the name of a class in which the product is categorized and the values for one or more attributes of the product.
4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the generic rules comprise a rule indicating a potential error exists if two products in the one or more databases have identical product identifiers but have otherwise different product data.
5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the generic rules comprise a rule indicating a potential error exists if two products in the one or more databases have different product identifiers but have otherwise identical product data.
6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the generic rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the values associated with particular generic product attributes have a non-numerical format.
7. The method of claim 2 , wherein the generic rules further comprise a rule generating a product identifier for a product when the product data for that product does not include a product identifier, the generated product identifier comprising the name of a class in which the product is categorized and the values for one or more attributes of the product.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the rules further comprise one or more domain-specific rules applying only to databases including a particular type of product data.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the domain-specific rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the value associated with a particular product attribute is outside a specified range of values.
10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the domain-specific rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the value associated with a particular product attribute is not in a specified format.
11. A computer-readable storage medium embodied with software enabling content enhancement, the software when executed using one or more computers is configured to:
organize a plurality of product classes in a hierarchy, each product class categorizing a plurality of products and associated with one or more attributes of the products categorized in the product class, at least one of the product classes having one or more associated pointers identifying one or more databases including product data for one or more products in the class, the product data including values for one or more attributes of the products in the class;
communicate a search query for product data to a database identified by a pointer associated with a product class selected by a user;
communicate one or more search queries to the one or more databases, in response to a user requesting product data in the one or more databases be associated with one or more classes, the search queries formulated according to one or more rules associated with the particular classes with which the product data in the one or more databases is to be associated;
identify one or more potential errors in the product data by determining the product data is included in the results of one or more of the search queries; and
communicate the potential errors to a user associated with the one or more databases.
12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , wherein the one or more rules comprises one or more generic rules applying to the one or more databases containing product data.
13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the generic rules further comprise a rule generating a product identifier for a product when the product data for that product does not include a product identifier, the generated product identifier comprising the name of a class in which the product is categorized and the values for one or more attributes of the product.
14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the generic rules comprise a rule indicating a potential error exists if two products in the one or more databases have identical product identifiers but have otherwise different product data.
15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the generic rules comprise a rule indicating a potential error exists if two products in the one or more databases have different product identifiers but have otherwise identical product data.
16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the generic rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the values associated with particular generic product attributes have a non-numerical format.
17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the generic rules further comprise a rule generating a product identifier for a product when the product data for that product does not include a product identifier, the generated product identifier comprising the name of a class in which the product is categorized and the values for one or more attributes of the product.
18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 , wherein the rules further comprise one or more domain-specific rules applying only to databases including a particular type of product data.
19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the domain-specific rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the value associated with a particular product attribute is outside a specified range of values.
20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the domain-specific rules comprise one or more rules indicating a potential error exists if the value associated with a particular product attribute is not in a specified format.