US 6,934,714 Method and system for identification and maintenance of families of data records
3 defendants · 3 suits · updated October 6, 2026
Also cited as U.S. Patent No. 6,934,714 · US6934714B2 · US 6,934,714 B2 · 6934714 · the '714 patent
Data Resonance LLC has filed 3 patent-infringement suits on US 6,934,714, "Method and system for identification and maintenance of families of data records" since July 29, 2026, all in the E.D. Tex., against 3 distinct defendants including CTERA Networks Ltd., Mega Privacy (NZ) Limited and Mercari, Inc.. The patent was granted August 23, 2005 on a priority date of March 4, 2002. Its abstract opens: "Methods and systems for managing data records through a concept of families are provided." The examiner cited 2 references during prosecution.
- Assignee
- Data Resonance LLC
- Priority date
- March 4, 2002
- Granted
- August 23, 2005
- Expires
- March 4, 2022
- Status
- Expired - Lifetime
- Claims
- 50 (4 independent)
- Inventors
- Kelly Meinig
- Full text
- Google Patents
The suits
3 cases · E.D. Tex. (3)
| Filed | Defendant | Plaintiff | Court | Docket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-29 | CTERA Networks Ltd. | Data Resonance LLC | E.D. Tex. | 2:26-cv-00631 |
| 2026-07-29 | Mega Privacy (NZ) Limited | Data Resonance LLC | E.D. Tex. | 2:26-cv-00633 |
| 2026-07-29 | Mercari, Inc. | Data Resonance LLC | E.D. Tex. | 2:26-cv-00634 |
Docket links open the public record on CourtListener. Filing dates are the complaint's.
Independent claims
What is actually asserted, verbatim.
1. A method in a computer system for indicating direct and indirect relationships among a plurality of data records in a data repository to a designated record, each record having a plurality of data fields with values, comprising: determining, from the plurality of data records, a set of records that are directly-related to the designated record, such that at least one data field has a common value in the designated data record and in each of the records in the set; using the set of directly-related records, automatically determining from the plurality of data records a potential family of records that includes the set of directly-related records and records that are indirectly related to each other through a plurality of designated data fields; adding the designated record to the potential family of records when it is automatically determined that the designated record is not a duplicate of one of the data records in the potential family of records; and automatically setting an indicator in each of the data records in the potential family of records to indicate a family relationship between the records.
9. A method in a computer system for indicating a family relationship among a plurality of data records in a data repository to a designated record, each record having a plurality of data fields with values, comprising: automatically determining a set of data records from the plurality of data records that relate directly to the designated record and data records that relate indirectly to the designated record; and adding the designated record to the determined set when it is automatically determined that the designated record is not a duplicate of a data record in the determined set; and automatically associating with each record of the determined set an indication of membership in at least one family relationship.
30. A computer-readable memory medium containing instructions for controlling a computer process to indicate a family relationship among a plurality of data records in a data repository to a designated record, each record having a plurality of data fields with values, by: automatically determining a set of data records from the plurality of data records that relate directly to the designated record and data records that relate indirectly to the designated record; and adding the designated record to the determined set when it is automatically determined that the designated record is not a duplicate of a data record in the determined set; and automatically associating with each record of the determined set an indication of membership in at least one family relationship.
41. A record management system comprising: automatic de-duplication engine that, upon receiving a designated data record, automatically determines a set of data records from a plurality of data records in a data repository that relate directly to the designated record and data records that relate indirectly to the designated record; adds the designated record to the determined set when it is automatically determined that the designated record is not a duplicate of a data record in the determined set; and automatically associates with each record of the determined set an indication of a family of related data records.
Art before the examiner
5 references of record, 2 cited by the examiner.
Everything listed here was before the Office and is what a challenge must go beyond. Art the examiner never saw is where an invalidity search starts.
Examiner-cited
- US6212527B1 — Method and apparatus for cataloguing multimedia data (Survivors Of The Shoah Visual History Foundation)
- US6446092B1 — Independent distributed database system (Peerdirect Company)
Applicant-cited and other (3)
- US5628004A — System for managing database of communication of recipients
- US6115690A — Integrated business-to-business Web commerce and business automation system
- US6240411B1 — Integrating campaign management and data mining
Classification
- G06F16/215primary — Improving data quality; Data cleansing, e.g. de-duplication, removing invalid entries or correcting typographical errors
- Y10S707/99933 — Query processing, i.e. searching
- Y10S707/99942 — Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
- Y10S707/99943 — Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
Family
- US6934714B2 — B2 (2005)
- US20030167253A1 — A1 (2003)
Abstract
Methods and systems for managing data records through a concept of families are provided. Example embodiments provide an enhanced record management system, a Data Family Record Management System (“DFRMS”), which maintains families of data. In one embodiment, the DFRMS comprises a command interface, an auto de-duplication engine, a query engine, and one or more data repositories. The DFRMS automatically processes imported data to insure a clean data repository and the management of the families of data. Each new data record is normalized, automatically inspected for related data records, automatically de-duped, and then added to a family when appropriate. Related data records can be directly related or indirectly related, for example, through multiply nested, embedded relationships. Once established, the family associations in the data repository are used to retrieve data records in response to user queries, such as to retrieve only a selected set of records from each family or from a selected set of families.
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This page is assembled from public records — federal court dockets and the patent's own file — and is updated as the case list changes. It states what the record shows and is not an opinion on the validity or infringement of any claim. Patent data via Google Patents; docket data via CourtListener.