Sequential subset catalog search engine

Abstract

An electronic catalog search engine is configurable to optimize the search process by identifying the desired item from the most advantageous supplier, while efficiently utilizing computing resources. The search engine comprises a configurable search and data subset creation mechanism. The system accepts search terms from a user, and then executes a sequence of search strategies on subsets of the database which may include a proximity search, a word count search, and a fuzzy logic search. Subsets can be searched in any order and different search strategies can be applied to different subsets. The sequences are terminated when search steps have uncovered at least one match. Each database entry has a corresponding product category. A list of categories from each of the matching products is dynamically compiled and displayed to the user. The user can page through the list of displayed matches, or alternatively can create a subset of the list by selecting only the items within one of the categories. In addition, the user can further refine the list of items by selecting those items having a particular attribute. The invention has the advantage that users with a wide range of skills and/or familiarity with products can quickly find the products that they need. The system has the additional feature of creating electronic requisitions for the products listed in the database.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method comprising: 
 applying a search string to a first subset of data records in an electronic catalog to search for at least one match;    applying the search string to a second subset of data records in the electronic catalog to search for at least one match, only if applying the search string to the first subset of data records does not find at least one match; and    displaying the at least one match.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second subset of data records are in a hierarchy such that the first subset of data records is searched first.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising terminating the hierarchy upon finding the at least one match.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the second subset of data records corresponds to a catalog from a particular vendor.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first subset represents items available in-stock, and the second subset represents items not available in-stock.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the search applied to the first subset, fails to yield a matching result, wherein the search when applied to the second subset yields at least one matching result, and wherein displaying the at least one match comprises displaying the results of the search applied to the second subset.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein applying the search string to a first subset comprises using a first search strategy, the first search strategy being preselected to operate on the first subset of data records, and wherein applying the search string to the second subset comprises using a second search strategy, the second search strategy being preselected to operate on the second subset of data records.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the first and second search strategies each comprise at least one of a fuzzy logic search, a soundex search, and a stem search.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the first and second search strategies each comprise the same search methodology.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising additional applications of the search string to additional subsets of data records in the electronic catalog to search for at least one match, until at least one match is found.  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the search string comprises at least one term and is input by a user through a user interface.  
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein data records in the first subset of the electronic catalog are identified as being in the first subset by a certain value in a field of the data records.  
     
     
         13 . A machine-readable medium having stored thereon data representing instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising: 
 applying a search string to a first subset of data records in an electronic catalog to search for at least one match;    applying the search string to a second subset of data records in the electronic catalog to search for at least one match, only if applying the search string to the first subset of data records does not find at least one match; and    displaying the at least one match.    
     
     
         14 . The medium of  claim 13 , further comprising instructions which, when executed by the machine, cause the machine to perform further operations comprising terminating the search hierarchy upon finding the at least one match.  
     
     
         15 . The medium of  claim 13 , wherein the instructions for applying the search string to a first subset comprise instructions which, when executed by the machine, cause the machine to perform further operations comprising using a first search strategy, the first search strategy being preselected to operate on the first subset of data records, and wherein the instructions for applying the search string to the second subset comprise instructions which, when executed by the machine, cause the machine to perform further operations comprising using a second search strategy, the second search strategy being preselected to operate on the second subset of data records.  
     
     
         16 . The medium of  claim 15 , wherein the first and second search strategies each comprise the same search methodology.  
     
     
         17 . The medium of  claim 13 , further comprising instructions which, when executed by the machine, cause the machine to perform further operations comprising additional applications of the search string to additional subsets of data records in the electronic catalog to search for at least one match, until at least one match is found.  
     
     
         18 . The medium of  claim 13 , wherein data records in the first subset of the electronic catalog are identified as being in the first subset by a certain value in a field of the data records.  
     
     
         19 . An apparatus comprising: 
 means for applying a search string to a first subset of data records in an electronic catalog to search for at least one match;    means for applying the search string to a second subset of data records in the electronic catalog to search for at least one match, only if applying the search string to the first subset of data records does not find at least one match; and    means for displaying the at least one match.    
     
     
         20 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the first and second subset of data records are in a hierarchy such that the first subset of data records is searched first.  
     
     
         21 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , further comprising means for terminating the search hierarchy upon finding the at least one match.  
     
     
         22 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the second subset of data records corresponds to a catalog from a particular vendor.  
     
     
         23 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the first subset represents items available in-stock, and the second subset represents items not available in-stock.  
     
     
         24 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the means for applying the search string to a first subset comprises a first search strategy for the first subset of data records, and wherein the means for applying the search string to the second subset comprises a second search strategy for the second subset of data records.  
     
     
         25 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the search string comprises at least one term and is input by a user through a user interface.  
     
     
         26 . An apparatus comprising: 
 an electronic catalog having a first subset of data and a second subset of data;    a search engine to apply a search string to the first subset of data records to search for at least one match and to apply the search string to the second subset of data records to search for at least one match, only if at least one match is not found in the first subset of data records; and    a display driver to display the at least one match.    
     
     
         27 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , wherein the first and second subset of data records are in a hierarchy such that the first subset of data records is searched first.  
     
     
         28 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , wherein the second subset of data records corresponds to a catalog from a particular vendor.  
     
     
         29 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , wherein the first subset represents items available in-stock, and the second subset represents items not available in-stock.  
     
     
         30 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , wherein the search engine applies a first search strategy to the first subset and a second search strategy to the second subset.  
     
     
         31 . The apparatus of  claim 30 , wherein the first and second search strategies each comprise the same search methodology.  
     
     
         32 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , further comprising a user interface to receive the search string from a user.  
     
     
         33 . The apparatus of  claim 26 , wherein the data records in the first subset of the electronic catalog include a field having a certain value to identify the data records as belonging to the first subset.