IP Library Granted Patent US 9,195,769
Granted Patent B2
US 9,195,769 · App. 13/553,703 · Granted Nov 24, 2015

Method and apparatus for quickly evaluating entities

Inventors: Jeremy Schiff (Portola Valley, CA); Sourav Chatterji (Fremont, CA); Corey Layne Reese (Portola Valley, CA); Steven Charles Schlansker (Los Altos, CA); Leejay Wu (Mountain View, CA); Paul Kenneth Twohey (Palo Alto, CA)
Assignee: OPENTABLE, INC.
G06F17/30873G06F17/30864G06F17/30876
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,195,769
App. No.
13/553,703
Granted
Nov 24, 2015
Kind
B2
Abstract

Embodiments of the invention relate to methods and systems for evaluating entities for a target user, the method comprising obtaining, at a server computer, entity data from a plurality of data sources. The entity data is then stored in an entity database. The method further comprises merging the entity data from the plurality of data sources, mapping the entity data to a corresponding entity, and differentiating the entity. Then a relevance is determined associated with the entity data and data source. The method further comprises generating a set of entity evaluations to the target user using the relevance, determining a set of one or more entities relevant to the primary user based on the entity data, user data, and the relevance, with an initial order of relevance, and displaying, on a user device, the set of relevant entities to the target user in the order of relevance.

Claims (77)

1. A computer-implemented method for evaluation of an entity by a target user based at least on stored data about the target user, wherein the entity is an entity of a set of entities, and evaluation is related to the entity, the method comprising:

receiving, at a server computer, entity data relating to a particular entity, wherein the entity data includes a relevance based on a rating and a weight based on a relationship with the target user for a particular user that provided the entity data through a particular data source;

determining, by the server computer, a set of entity evaluations to request from the target user based on the weight and the relevance;

from the set of entity evaluations to request, generating, at the server computer, a set of predicted entity evaluations for one or more entities relevant to the target user based on the entity data, user data, and relevance;

determining an order of relevance of the relevant entities based at least in part on the relevance and the weight to increase accuracy of the predicted entity evaluations; and

communicating, from the server computer to the target user, the order of relevance of the one or more relevant entities;

after communicating the order of relevance, receiving, from a user device, evaluation data from the target user that is based on an evaluation received through input via the user device;

in response to receiving the evaluation data, increasing the accuracy of the predicted entity evaluations by computing a similarity among the target user and the particular user.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

obtaining, at the server computer, personal data from the one or more of data sources, wherein the personal data is associated with the target user in a plurality of users;

storing the personal data at the server computer, wherein personal data associated with the plurality of users is stored in a user database;

merging, by the server computer, the personal data from the plurality of data sources;

mapping, by the server computer, the personal data from the plurality of data sources to the target user;

updating the user database with the personal data and stored data associated with the target user;

determining, at the server computer, whether an entity is associated with the personal data from the target user;

wherein the order of relevance of the set of entity evaluations to request is based at least in part on the personal data from the target user.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the relevance to the target user is based at least in part on location data including geographical data identifying the location of the target user.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the location data is determined from personal data received through a social networking site data source.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , wherein the communicating further comprises:

determining a set of media objects associated with the set of entity evaluations to request; and

displaying the set of media objects with the set of entity evaluations to request.

6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the personal data is used for the order of relevance to prioritize places the target user has visited over those they have not.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

obtaining, at a server computer, data from a plurality of data sources about entities in the set of entities;

merging, using the server computer, the entity data from the plurality of data sources;

storing the entity data at the server computer in an entity database;

mapping, using the server computer, an entity-specific subset of the entity data from the entity database, wherein the entity-specific subset pertains to a corresponding entity;

differentiating, using the server computer, portions of the entity-specific subset according to which of the plurality of data sources the portion derived from;

determining, using the server computer, a relevance associated with the entity specific subset and the data source, wherein the relevance is determined by a computer process to cross-reference the entity data and data source;

assigning, by the server computer, a weight to the entity data and the data source associated with the entity data based on the relevance; and

updating the entity database with the entity data associated with the corresponding entity.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the evaluation is received through input via the user device that includes finger gestures, clicking, shaking the user device, a coordinate motion between two user devices, blowing on the user device, spinning the user device, making a sound, or speaking a voice command.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the order of relevance is based at least in part on a frequency in which an entity or entity evaluation has been previously queried.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:

computing a confidence score for each predicted entity evaluation in the set of predicted entity evaluations;

after receiving the evaluation data, updating the confidence score.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the order of relevance is based at least in part on prioritizing predicted evaluations that predict the target user will have an extreme opinion in an evaluation.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the extreme opinion in the evaluation includes opinions that differ from the geographic norm.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the extreme opinion in the evaluation includes opinions that differ from the global norm.

14. A server computer comprising a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable medium, the non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising code executable by the processor to implement a method for evaluation of an entity by a target user based at least on stored data about the target user, wherein the entity is an entity of a set of entities, and evaluation is related to the entity, the method comprising:

receiving, at a server computer, entity data relating to a particular entity in the set of entities, wherein the entity data includes a relevance based on a rating and a weight based on a relationship with the target user for a particular user that provided the entity data through a particular data source;

determining, by the server computer, a set of entity evaluations to request from the target user based on the weight and the relevance;

from the set of entity evaluations to request, generating, at the server computer, a set of predicted entity evaluations for one or more entities relevant to the target user based on the entity data, user data, and relevance;

determining an order of relevance of the relevant entities based at least in part on the relevance and the weight to increase accuracy of the predicted entity evaluations; and

communicating, from the server computer to the target user, the order of relevance of the one or more relevant entities;

after communicating the order of relevance, receiving, from a user device, evaluation data from the target user that is based on an evaluation received through input via the user device;

in response to receiving the evaluation data, increasing the accuracy of the predicted entity evaluations by computing a similarity among the target user and the particular user.

15. The server computer of claim 14 , the method further comprising:

obtaining, at the server computer, personal data from the one or more of data sources, wherein the personal data is associated with the target user in the plurality of users;

storing the personal data at the server computer, wherein personal data associated with the plurality of users is stored in a user database;

merging, by the server computer, the personal data from the plurality of data sources;

mapping, by the server computer, the personal data from the plurality of data sources to the target user;

updating the user database with the personal data and stored data associated with the target user;

wherein the order of relevance of the set of entity evaluations to request is based at least in part on the personal data from the target user.

16. The server computer of claim 15 , wherein the relevance to the target user is based at least in part on location data including geographical data identifying the location of the target user.

17. The server computer of claim 16 , wherein the location data is determine from personal data received through a social networking site data source.

18. The server computer of claim 15 , wherein the communicating further comprises:

determining a set of media objects associated with the set of entity evaluations to request; and

displaying the set of media objects with the set of entity evaluations to request.

19. The server computer of claim 15 , wherein the personal data is used for the order of relevance to prioritize places the target user has visited over those they have not.

20. The server computer of claim 14 , the method further comprising:

obtaining, at a server computer, data from a plurality of data sources about entities in the set of entities;

merging, using the server computer, the entity data from the plurality of data sources;

storing the entity data at the server computer in an entity database;

mapping, using the server computer, an entity-specific subset of the entity data from the entity database, wherein the entity-specific subset pertains to a corresponding entity;

differentiating, using the server computer, portions of the entity-specific subset according to which of the plurality of data sources the portion derived from;

determining, using the server computer, a relevance associated with the entity-specific subset and the data source, wherein the relevance is determined by a computer process to cross-reference the entity data and data source;

assigning, by the server computer, a weight to the entity data and the data source associated with the entity data based on the relevance; and

updating the entity database with the entity data associated with the corresponding entity.

21. The server computer of claim 14 , wherein the evaluation is received through input via the user device that includes finger gestures, clicking, shaking the user device, a coordinate motion between two user devices, blowing on the user device, spinning the user device, making a sound, or speaking a voice command.

22. The server computer of claim 14 , wherein the order of relevance is based at least in part on a frequency in which an entity has been previously queried.

23. The server computer of claim 14 , further comprising:

computing a confidence score for each predicted entity evaluation in the set of predicted entity evaluations; and

after receiving the evaluation data, updating the confidence score.

24. The server computer of claim 14 , wherein the order of relevance is based at least in part on prioritizing predicted evaluations that predict the target user will have an extreme opinion in an evaluation.

25. The server computer of claim 24 , wherein the extreme opinion in the evaluation includes opinions that differ from the geographic norm.

26. The server computer of claim 24 , wherein the extreme opinion in the evaluation includes opinions that differ from the global norm.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 27, 2014
From: NESS COMPUTING LLC
To: OPENTABLE. INC.
Reel/Frame 032969/0450 →
CONVERSION OF CORPORATION TO LLC Recorded Mar 5, 2014
From: NESS COMPUTING, INC.
To: NESS COMPUTING, LLC
Reel/Frame 032387/0975 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 28, 2012
From: SCHIFF, JEREMY RYAN; CHATTERJI, SOURAV; REESE, COREY LAYNE; SCHLANSKER, STEVEN CHARLES; WU, LEEJAY; TWOHEY, PAUL KENNETH
To: NESS COMPUTING, INC.
Reel/Frame 029050/0648 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 61510004 · Jul 20, 2011
Related Publication 20130024465A1 · Jan 24, 2013